Help Brandon Heal and Overcome $200k Debt

Hi, my name is Brandon Rice.

I never imagined I’d be writing this, but here I am — in the most vulnerable, courageous place I’ve ever been.

I’ve been through a mental health crisis that cost me everything — financially, emotionally, spiritually. Years of suppressing trauma, navigating undiagnosed conditions, and trying to hold it all together as a father, husband, and healer finally caught up with me. I was hospitalized for my inability to cope with the mental struggles of life, and now I’m left trying to make sense of a lifetime of pain that I had buried under smiles, service, and survival.

I’ve since made the life-changing decision to focus on me and my son, Zeze (pronounced Zay-Zay). I’ve realized I can’t pour into others unless I’m whole — and for the first time, I’m choosing me.

But I need help. Fortunately, I’m still able to work, but the financial toll of life’s mental misfortunes have dealt me a card that I am no longer able to tackle on my own.

The financial toll of this chapter is enormous. One year, 2018, changed the entire trajectory of my life. That’s was my first time having a manic, then depressed episode. I made rash, irrational decisions that have haunted me further because I decided to go back to school to become a psychiatric mental health, nurse practitioner to learn more about others, but more importantly, learn more about myself. This constant, figuring out of life and researching myself while trying to understand others, has led to over $200,000 of debt — from student loans, impulsive life choices, and simply trying to follow what felt good in the moment just to survive. The cost of seeking peace has been high, and now I’m asking for your help to get through this storm.

Your donation will go toward:

• Mental health care, therapy, and trauma healing

• Safe housing and basic living needs

• Paying down crushing debt from education and past instability

• Rebuilding a life founded on peace, clarity, and purpose

• Creating resources to give back to others in similar pain

Every dollar matters. Every share matters. And every prayer or kind word is a gift.

I believe in joy. I believe in healing. I believe the most important thing in life is to nourish yourself first before you attempt to nourish another. But as a father, and as a good father, who had no guidance on how to be a good father, I understand that even when I’m not nourished, I will always nourish my son and find a way to do so. And that’s what I’m doing right now — creating a new way to nuourish myself and my son, while I continue to work as a registered nurse, taking care of the lives of others, and do my part to make my life in the life of my son better.

I will continue to do everything in my power to help others realize the life-changing power of mental wellness — through my story, my future work, and how I choose to live going forward. These funds won’t just help me survive… they’ll help me give back to the same industry that saved my life.

But I cannot do that if I cannot first take care of myself — and my son — with the love, presence, and stability we both deserve.

Thank you for being part of this journey. Thank you for seeing me. And thank you, deeply, for helping me rise.

With heartfelt gratitude,

Brandon