Overwhelmed by Current Events: John Wick Uses the Mental Health Warrior Creed to Stay in Charge and THRIVE
So there we were — John Wick and I — sitting in a downtown diner, nursing our diet sodas like two guys who had just lost a fight… to the news.
Who would’ve thought?
Me, a Mental Health Warrior… and John Wick — the man who can take down an army with a pencil — both overwhelmed.
Not by high-speed chases or epic showdowns… but by headlines, notifications and the never-ending scroll of chaos.
I took a sip of my soda and glanced over at him. Even Wick looked worn down.
“Bruce,” he said, his voice low and steady, “how do you handle it?”
“I can face bullets. I can handle blood,” he continued. “But this?” He shook his head. “This constant stream of stress from current events…”
I nodded.
“I’ve got a Warrior tool that can help us stay in charge — and maybe even THRIVE in the middle of the chaos.”
The Warrior Path
John’s a fellow Warrior. He knows my story — 20 years battling Bipolar, Alcoholism, Anxiety Disorders and PTSD. It left me feeling so powerless that I tried to end my life.
But in that dark time, I discovered something life-changing: Mental health is the key to overcoming any challenge.
That truth became the Mental Health Warrior Program — a bold SELF-HELP approach that puts YOU in charge.
So you can take charge of your emotions, face your challenges and build the life you actually want.
“And,” I said, “the blueprint for becoming a Warrior is laid out in my book I Triumphed Over Bipolar, Alcoholism and Anxiety Disorder by Becoming a Mental Health Warrior.”
“And at the core of it… is the Warrior Creed: Bend Not Break.”
John nodded slowly, focused now. “Meaning?” he asked.
“Chaos is part of the fight. But Warriors do not let it break them. We bend… so we can stay grounded, stay resilient and stay in charge.”
John gave a small nod.
And with that, we mapped out three Mental Health Warrior actions anyone can use to stay grounded, resilient and in charge — even when current events feel like they are coming at you from every direction.
Action 1: Take Care of You First
“The first action is living the Creed — Bend Not Break", I said. When the noise ramps up — stress, bad news, overwhelm — that’s my signal to slow down, breathe and check in.
Because I know what happens if I don’t. I break.
And when I break, I do not just have a rough moment — I can slip back into old habits, get stuck or let the chaos take charge of my day.
I’ve been there before, and I’m not going back.
So now I bend first. I step away. I reset. I take care of myself before the pressure gets the final say.
Because when I stay in charge, I stay in the fight.”
John's Takeaway: John nodded. “So Bend Not Break does not mean pretending the pressure is not there.”
“Exactly,” I said.
He thought for a second.
“For me, that means when the headlines start piling up, I do not keep scrolling until I am angry, exhausted and ready to fight the entire internet.”
I laughed. “Probably a good plan.”
John gave the slightest grin.
“I put the phone down. Step away from the noise. Take a walk. Get something to eat. Clear my head. Then I decide whether I actually need to go back to the news at all.”
“I bend before the pressure breaks me.”
Action 2: Lean on Your Tribe
“Next up,” I said, “is leaning on your tribe.”
“When life feels like a nonstop barrage — stress, bad news, uncertainty — it is easy to think we have to handle it alone. But that is how pressure builds.
Isolation makes everything heavier. Carry it long enough… and eventually, it can take you down.”
“But Warriors do not do that. We learn to Bend Not Break.
And bending means understanding, ‘I do not have to carry this by myself.’
One of the strongest ways we stay grounded is by leaning on our tribe — the people who remind us who we are when the noise gets loud.
Because together, we do more than survive the pressure. We triumph.”
John’s Takeaway:
“Yeah,” he said. “Even I do not go it alone.”
“When things go sideways, I have people — Winston, the Bowery King. I am still in the fight… but they have my back.”
He paused. “That keeps me steady.”
Then he looked at me.
“So Bend Not Break can mean letting someone else help carry the weight.”
“Exactly,” I said. “You are still standing on your own feet, Warrior. You are just not standing there alone.”
Action 3: Control the Controllables
“Last one,” I said, leaning back. “Control the controllables.”
“When everything feels out of control,” I continued, “that’s when Warriors simplify the fight.”
I tapped the table. “You can’t control the headlines. You can’t control the chaos.”
“But you can control your next move.”
“Your routine. Your choices. Who you spend time with. What you do next.”
“Small things,” I said. “But those small choices add up to something powerful — they put you back in charge.”
I looked him in the eye. “Because when we chase what we cannot control, that is when the pressure starts taking over.”
“But when we lock in on what is ours to own…”
“We bend. We choose our next move. And we keep moving forward.”
John’s Takeaway:
John sat quietly for a second, then gave a small nod.
“Yeah,” he said. “When I’m outnumbered, I don’t waste time on what I can’t control.”
“I focus on what I can do next.”
He glanced at me. “I can’t stop everything out there… but I can take the next step.”
I smiled. “That’s it.”
“One step at a time. That’s how you stay in the fight.”
Wrap Up
By now, our glasses were empty, the noise of the diner fading into the background.
John sat back, calmer. Steadier.
“I’ve handled a lot of fights,” he said. “But this one… it never stops.”
I nodded. “Yeah. But as a Warrior, when you learn to Bend Not Break, you stay in charge.”
I slid a copy of I Triumphed Over Bipolar, Alcoholism and Anxiety Disorder by Becoming a Mental Health Warrior across the table.
“Pass it along,” I said. “Someone in your circle needs it.”
John picked it up and gave a small nod.
Outside, the chaos was still there. But inside?
We were grounded. We were steady. We were in charge.
Because Warriors do not have to defeat every bit of chaos around them.
We bend.
We choose our next move.
And we keep moving forward.
That is how we stay in charge — and how we THRIVE.
Bruce Schutter ⚔️
(Creator of the Mental Health Warrior Program)
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