I am angry tonight. Angry at the lack of understanding that returning warriors have faced for millennia and I still must face in the broken hearts of those who have been fighting our goddamn wars for more than 16 years now....and still they come home to blatant insensitivity. Angry that any heart could not stretch … Continue reading 16 Years & They Still Don’t F***ing Get It
Coping with the News Cycle
Another day another screaming interview with someone who wants to roll back a few rights to increase their perception (sic) of safety. It is tough to hear these opinions isn’t it? Every time I hear one of these people scream about how my rights are killing, hurting, insulting, offending, etc. them it starts a cycle … Continue reading Coping with the News Cycle
After Combat, When is Love Worth Fighting For?
"But I love my wife. She's everything to me. I don't want to lose her." "He's not the man I married. I can't do this anymore." I hear these two expressions all the time from good people whose hearts are aching and weary. Brave people who are dealing with intense trauma and changes in each … Continue reading After Combat, When is Love Worth Fighting For?
The Others
Do you recall the Nicole Kidman thriller The Others? In it she lives in a haunted house which she does not know to be haunted. Eventually the ma & pa caretakers, also ghosts unbeknownst to Kidman, tell her about the “others” who are the other ghosts in the house threatening her children. And some … Continue reading The Others
Groundhog Day…Again
It is almost February 2nd. Time for more reruns of the Bill Murray/ Harold Ramis classic movie. It is a movie that works on many levels for many of us. In thinking about this movie (it is a favorite of mine) I found an interesting parallel to post military life. Speaking for myself, when I … Continue reading Groundhog Day…Again
Find a Fight You Can Believe In Again
Warriorhood -- the status of being a warrior. Warrior -- a person who is called to defend others; to live by a code of honor and ethics in pursuit of the greater good; to lead the non- warrior class in living up to the ideals of the society. These definitions are my own, but I … Continue reading Find a Fight You Can Believe In Again
A Reason to Fight On
He led the rebel movement. Rebels? Yes, that's what they were. How unimaginable it would have been just a few years before. When life was normal. Peaceful. Predictable. The invading foreigners were determined to decide the fate of his people. Determined to impose a way of life, their way of life. A life he could … Continue reading A Reason to Fight On
Coming Home
We are back but we are not yet home. We are inside the building but it is now unfamiliar. Sand and heat are our familiar now. The smell of cordite, gunpowder, and C4. We sweated in the crippling heat. We fought the camel spiders. We gave candy to the kids. We watched villages burned; some … Continue reading Coming Home
Why You Need a Sense of Self to Heal
When I was 21, I was bedridden for six months. Stress-induced chronic fatigue, though the specialists at that time didn't know what was wrong with me. They wondered if it was all in my head. I knew it wasn't, but since the age of 9 I had highly trained doctors examine me, test my blood … Continue reading Why You Need a Sense of Self to Heal
When You Feel Like You Don’t Deserve to Be Happy
"I don't deserve to be here." "I don't deserve to be happy." It comes from deep within, this sense of having violated the sanctity of Life as a warfighter. It's very hard to feel that you are a good soul when you've killed people. Even harder, at times, when you couldn't save people you loved … Continue reading When You Feel Like You Don’t Deserve to Be Happy
These Questions Could Change Your Life
You've tried everything you know to do. Meds, therapists who don't get it, PTSD programs, drinking, getting high, staying overly busy. Some of it has helped alleviate the pain; mostly, you just end up putting up with it all. You would give anything if someone would just come along and help you find a way … Continue reading These Questions Could Change Your Life
What if Suicide Doesn’t End the Pain?
Sending you the energy of strength and courage today... may you feel held and wanted. You are not your wounds. You are not your limitations. You are not your reaction to war. You are an eternal being experiencing this lifetime. And there is hope and love for you here. If you are in imminent risk … Continue reading What if Suicide Doesn’t End the Pain?