DIANA CANNON RAGSDALE 
WRITER/MEMOIRIST

Diana Cannon Ragsdale advocates for those who have left the Mormon Church, cope with mental illness, were raised by dysfunctional families, and must overcome abusive situations. She details her challenging journey in her memoir, Loose Cannons.

Prior to writing her book, she raised three kids as a single mother, graduated from the University of Utah, and practiced physical therapy for sixteen years. Since retiring, she has been exploring her creative and adventurous side by writing, painting, and traveling.

Life for Diana has never been easy, but through her courage, strength, and tenacious personality, she has been able to fight for her sanity, despite being born into total chaos by two mentally ill parents. She spent her childhood with her five unsupervised, half-starved siblings, withstanding their parent’s alternative “swinging” lifestyle, her mother’s continuous trips to the psychiatric ward, and her father’s ongoing suicide attempts and descent into madness. 

While most of her early childhood memories were suppressed, she knew something was wrong with her. After escaping home to attend college on a dance scholarship, she fell into a series of unhealthy relationships as she denied her traumatic past.  When she began to rebuild her relationship with her estranged mother of forty years, her journey of rediscovering and finding her lost-self began. She is grateful to her deceased mother and father, who, as most Mormons do, left behind a plethora of detailed journals, letters, and photos (though her family’s chronicles were scandalous and utterly shocking).

Today, she is happily married and has five children: three of her own, two stepchildren, and eight grandchildren, all of whom give her immense joy.