Guns and Mental Health by Walk the Talk America
An honest and comprehensive discussion about guns and mental health. Two highly stigmatized cultures that have long stood across from each other, refusing to collaborate whenever tragedy strikes. That trend ends now. For firearms owners, clinicians, and the curious public.
Guns and Mental Health by Walk the Talk America
Ep 150: I Was Almost a School Shooter Part 2
In this unfiltered conversation, Aaron Stark returns to continue a story: how he went from the brink of committing a school shooting to becoming a national voice for prevention and mental health reform. Host Jake Wiskerchen digs into the raw truths that don’t get discussed enough, from the failings of our systems to the unrelenting weight of shame and what it means to truly reach a hurting kid.
Aaron speaks candidly about what it’s like to test adults as a desperate teenager, how he challenged the narrative around “mental health” and “gun control,” and how one spontaneous act of compassion changed his life forever. You’ll also hear honest critiques of the counseling profession, cultural dysfunction in schools, and why emotional honesty, not more checklists, is what might save a life.
This episode is perfect for anyone trying to understand what drives violence and how to stop it before it starts.
Topics Covered:
- Why schools and systems often fail to intervene
- The real role of parents in missed prevention
- Why Aaron avoids the terms “gun control” and “mental health”
- How trauma, shame, and identity create a dangerous mix
- The cultural shift from abuse being joked about to being addressed
- The power of community, compassion, and being seen
