Vulnerable Story
By Ed Cohen
Book COMING SOON
About Ed Cohen
His life is a powerful testament to resilience, transformation, & global leadership.
For forty-five years, Ed Cohen served as an internationally known executive, holding leadership roles at Amazon, Booz Allen Hamilton, and Tech Mahindra. He consulted for top companies such as Deloitte, Yahoo, Price Waterhouse Coopers, Western Union, AT&T, Barclays, and Xerox, shaping the futures of global organizations. On the outside, Ed had it all: A global career as a corporate executive, author, and consultant with worldwide recognition.
1959
My Birth and Early Childhood
1966
A Spark of Resilience
Severely burned at six, I spent months in the hospital enduring infections, surgeries, and a coma. Mrs. Hanson, my first-grade teacher, became a lifeline, showing me that kindness could exist amid suffering. Even after I nearly died, my father’s abuse continued relentlessly.
1969
A Glimmer of Hope
Early 1970s
Forced Labor and Moral Conflict
At ten years of age, I was forced to work at my father’s gas station, where I witnessed his infidelities and endured his manipulation.
1975
My Father’s Suicide
My father’s death brought complicated feelings of relief, guilt, and lingering trauma. The nightmares of his violence stayed with me, even in his absence.
1976
A New Beginning at University
Education became my escape. I left for college at sixteen. I saw education as my path to freedom and a new beginning.
1989
A True Partnership
Marriage brought moments of joy, while adopting our daughter offered a glimpse of hope. Despite these incredible additions to my life, I remained haunted, locked in a constant battle with the ghost of a past I couldn’t escape.
2003
Loss of Guiding Lights
My mother’s death reopened old wounds, plunging me back into depression and self-abusive behaviors. A year later, my Aunt Audre, my guiding light, passed away. Her final words urged me to release the past and embrace my future.
2005-2012
Growth in India
Moving to India opened new paths for healing. Volunteering at a Hyderabad orphanage, I connected with children who had also suffered deeply. By helping them, I found renewed strength and purpose in my own journey.
Late 2010s
Embracing Vulnerability
During these years, I gradually broke the silence around my pain, finding strength in being vulnerable rather than viewing it as a weakness. I continued to confront the shadows of my past with greater awareness, transforming buried pain into resilience and healing.
2024
Breaking the Silence
Writing Vulnerable has transformed my pain into resilience, encouraging others to end the silence and find strength in vulnerability. This journey isn’t just mine—it’s a movement for others to reclaim their voices, shed their masks, and journey from abuse to abundance.
Vulnerable
One Man’s Journey from Abuse to Abundance
Meet
Ed Cohen
“Every day of my childhood, I held my breath, never knowing if I’d ever break free—
or if my father’s violence would end my life.”