My name is Paul Allwood. I’m 60 years old and from North East Victoria in Australia. I’ve been married for 34 years and have four amazing grown up “kids”. I’ve played guitar on and off since I was in my late teens - more off than on.
I spent 37 years being an engineer, and 25 years as a volunteer fire fighter. After attending almost 1,000 incidents - bush fires, house fires, car and truck accidents, many with fatalities…I’ve been struggling with PTSD for several years and I’m no longer working.
Since I’m not working I have a bit more time to dedicate to playing guitar. I’m really enjoying it sy really helps to take my mind off other stuff. I don’t remember how I first came across Justinguitar, but I’m glad I did. I’ve never had any music or guitar lessons and I really love Justin’s video song lessons.
Tonight I posted my first video on AVOYP of me attempting to play Harvest Moon. Really nervous going public and horrible sound quality - I’ve got a way to go.
I’m having a bit of trouble getting the hang of navigating the forum, so not sure if I’ve got this in the right spot - I was aiming for the Introduce Yourself page.
Paul, once again welcome and thanks for sharing some background. Wish you well.
Any assistance you need to help with navigation feel free to reach out to me or the other Community Moderators (@DavidP, @Richard_close2u, @LievenDV ).
I sorted out the duplicate post for you. No worries!
Hi Paul,
Nice to meet you. Good luck with your playing. Learning guitar, playing favourite songs etc. It’s a great pursuit to focus attention and distract from more difficult aspects of life.
I can relate to getting totally comfortable navigating the forum, in time and the more you familiarise yourself I’m sure you will be whizzing round.
Best wishes,
Alan
I’m a 60 year old also, married nearly 40 years with 3 grown “kids”!!! I’m still working & trying to fit guitar in with all the other demands life… well… demands!!!
Good on you for picking up the guitar and playing… you definitely don’t have to master guitar to benefit from it’s wonderfully calming effect.
I’m an Air Traffic Controller & initially (more years ago than I’d like to admit) learned a few chords and when I would get a break at work, I’d get the guitar out of my locker and just strum… not songs, just random chord progressions. It really helped me to de-stress. Just sitting on the grass outside, watching the birds & the flag waving while playing those few chords kept my head in the game. Now, having played for a while & learned a bit more, I still love to just aimlessly strum for the sheer joy of playing! No lyrics, no “right” or “wrong” just fun!
You sure have an amazing story of your work history. I can relate to the PTSD for sure. Keep playing guitar because it’s therapeutic. I can’t think of anything I’d rather do. I’ve been at it here since about 2020. I went from God awful to being the opening act for our community open mic last week. I made leaps and bounds here thanks to Justin’s method and the support of the community. The best advice is to take it a day at a time and enjoy the journey. Best of luck
Welcome to the community, great to hear from another Aussie. A few of us around here besides Justin.
I too suffer from ptsd and depression and find playing guitar is a huge help when I’m having a bad day. Playing music soothes my mind like few other things do.
Welcome to the community Paul, from a fellow Aussie.
Glad you found Justin. Great tuition, great teaching method, wonderful community here.
Stick close to Justins lessons, join in, and reach out anytime you need help, or just want to share thoughts, ideas etc.
Lookin forward to your progress.
Welcome Paul! Thanks for sharing your story and glad to hear that guitar and Justin’s course are providing some welcome distraction along with a lot of fun I’m sure. Looking forward to checking out your Harvest Moon cover, off to track it down now All the best with your journey, hope to hear more from you soon
!!!
All the best with your journey, hope to hear more from you soon 