By Steve Hubrecht 

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Invermere councillor Gerry Taft has released a book about the very public nervous breakdown and mental health struggles he suffered last fall.

The book — ‘The Safe Word is Pineapple: My Journey from Mayor Through Crazy’ — is part memoir, part social commentary and charts blow-by-blow Taft’s travails, starting with the sudden onset of psychosis and paranoia last September. This was followed by his arrest under the Mental Health Act, the ensuing loss of his career as a realtor, the abrupt changes in his personal relationships as well as pretty much everything else in his life, culminating in a year-long healing process.

It’s a gripping ride that bounces around in time and location, as Taft tries to navigate his mental health crisis, and to hold onto his sanity and his family. It flashes back to fill in his backstory (including much that is already familiar to Pioneer readers, such as his rise as a local gelato entrepreneur, his decade as Invermere mayor, the deer cull lawsuits, his unsuccessful run at provincial politics, and his transformation into a real estate agent). The book also uses Taft’s experience as a platform to examine a range of larger scale issues, such as gaps in the mental health care system, and his polarization in society over political and social issues.

“I’m a bit biased, but I think it is an interesting story, and I hope the themes are relatable,” Taft told the Pioneer. “A lot of people have, or know someone who has, suffered from burnout or dealt with mental health issues, such as depression or anxiety. Maybe this book can give a little bit of insight into what that is like, or at least what it was like for me.”

Taft frankly admitted that time in his life “was pretty rough.” He’s now able to look back and has learned some lessons as a result of the experience, but said he’d much rather have come to those conclusions in a less dramatic fashion.

“In some ways it was therapeutic to write the book, to go back and go through what happened. But I also wanted to share what I learned,” said Taft.

‘The Safe Word is Pineapple’ is not candy-coated. The impending sense of dread Taft felt is bleakly palpable in some of the sections describing the start of his mental descent; as is the frantic fear that later seizes him, making him run down the street, clutching his daughter, desperately certain he needs to save her from demons. And he is honest about his faults, both during his mental health crisis and throughout his life, leaving him looking less-than-heroic in multiple instances.

“I felt I needed to do that, to tell everything and to be as transparent as possible. One of the things I feel I’ve learned is that if you are vulnerable, it allows other people to be vulnerable back,” said Taft. “It’s okay to struggle. It’s okay to fail. You can pick up the pieces and rebuild after.”

‘The Safe Word is Pineapple’ is available at Invermere’s Four Points Books on main street, on Amazon, or through Taft’s author website at www.thesafewordispineapple.com.

The book came out on October 8, but there will be an official launch party on Wednesday, Oct. 23 at the Bistro Restaurant in downtown Invermere on main street from 6 ?to 9 p.m. with a pineapple theme, pineapple pizza and pineapple drinks.

Gerry Taft’s memoir ‘The Safe Word is Pineapple!’
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