ST. AUGUSTINE, Fla. – Their wounds from war may be invisible, but an estimated 400,000 service members have them. Combat stress, post-traumatic stress and traumatic brain injuries are signature wounds of Operations Enduring Freedom and Iraqi Freedom. Injured warriors suffering from these disorders can often lock themselves in their own homes, fearing anything on the outside will trigger negative memories from the battlefield.
Wounded Warrior Project brought nearly two dozen of these heroes to St. Augustine for a mental health retreat. For many, this was the first time they had left their homes to engage in the community.
Recommended Videos
"Combat stress changed everything about my life," said U.S. Army and Army Reserve combat veteran Edwin Medina from Jacksonville. "I'm not the same person I was before I deployed. My friends and family would say I used to be easygoing - but that's not me anymore. It's a struggle every day."
To address the growing mental health needs of warriors like Medina returning from war, WWP created its Combat Stress Recovery Program (CSRP). With the support of donors, CSRP is able to offer veterans a range of specialized programs and services - each tailored to the veteran's specific needs - all free of charge.
Medina and the other warriors recently spent three days in St. Augustine tackling challenging outdoor activities that helped them step outside of their comfort zones.
The retreat gave them an opportunity to confront their high-stress triggers with the goal of understanding them and developing the skills needed to manage them.
"I know what it's like to be alone, to isolate yourself and have no help," Medina said. "This event changed that for me. I needed this in my life right now. I needed to be with my brotherhood."
Medina actually did change his life immediately following this retreat. He had never been on a surfboard until he attended the WWP event, and now he has made surfing a part of his daily routine.
Exposure to traumatic combat and operational experiences can affect service members and veterans spiritually, psychologically, biologically, and socially. A mental health retreat can provide a safe, private environment for warriors to express themselves and share their combat experiences -- with both laughter and tears.
"Reconnecting warriors to each other in the civilian world is very important," said Mike Linnington, WWP Chief Executive Officer. "The peer support that played a critical role on the battlefield has the same function in their recovery at home. In combat, soldiers rely upon each other for survival. It becomes an unyielding trust. When warriors stumble, fall, or become injured, it's the warrior marching next to them that will pick them up and carry them on their shoulder."
At the end of the retreat, the veterans were able to share lessons learned from the activities, identify what impacted their personal struggles most, and then set achievable goals for their own recoveries.
"I know each of those guys will hold me accountable for the goals I set for myself. I know they will call me out if I start falling back. And they will do all of it without judgment," said Medina.
"For me, the most challenging part was when we all were surfing at the beach," explained Frank R. Poupart, a retired U.S. Army combat veteran from Tampa. "It wasn't just the physical part. It was mostly having to deal with the crowd -- everyone was getting so close to us. But at the same time, it taught me to move past those triggers. This event was important for my recovery. I found myself having so much fun attempting to do something I never would have tried on my own, that I stopped noticing I was in a crowd of people I didn't know. And suddenly I was out of my comfort zone and OK. I think I conquered that."
Both Poupart and Medina shared their personal experiences following the retreat, and issued a message of hope to fellow injured warriors. You can watch their stories – in their own words – here.
Post-9/11 veterans dealing with invisible wounds of war can learn more by contacting the Wounded Warrior Project Resource Center at 888-997-2586 or online at this direct link.