The Person I Was - A film.
After leaving the Navy, where I led a life of extraordinary effort, adrenaline, consequence, and camaraderie, I returned to civilian life to find myself deeply depressed. years later, I reconnected to life through Paragliding. I never told anyone how important this was to me until years later when I met someone else that had a similar experience, and I suspected there may be more of us.
The Person I Was is the story of veterans whose lives were changed by paragliding and adventure. The 7 minute teaser exists only here in this 7 minute film. Please watch, have a peek into our world and make yourself part of the effort to make this a FULL LENGTH film by telling EVERYONE about this great story and clicking the DONATE button below.
If YOU are reading this (and I know you are) I need YOUR help to fund this future film. Please click the DONATE button below and pitch in so I can do the rest of the hard work to bring you the whole story!!
ADVENTURE THERAPY 101
Medics, Infantry, EOD, SEAL, SWCC, Paratrooper, Ranger, Combat Controller, anyone working on a flight deck, are all military jobs that are exciting and guarantee one will be put in harm's way. They necessarily require a higher level of fitness and training than say, a yeoman or a storekeeper. Not to discount the importance of a yeoman or storekeeper (without them, our workload and ability to focus on training would be wholly compromised) however, they do not require the trust, highly focused attention and accuracy of their teammates near daily survival. This reliance and continual level of warfare readiness can create a state of hyper-vigilance.
Carrier vessel flight deck
This state may become normalized and permanent.. even after leaving the military. Challenging feelings don’t come with name tags - for veterans, it can be a confusing mix. Often, we are too proud to admit our discomfort, we’ve been conditioned not to complain. The common assumption is that veteran depression is caused solely by PTSD.
Many people have assumptions of what is the direct cause of our particular brand, but to be fair it’s complicated… even to ourselves.
What it can be, is a mix of adrenaline addiction, loneliness, loss of culture, PTSD and activity… or any combination of that even without the specter of War. Adding to that mix, wartime mistakes and experiences can be devastating psychologically.
I want to help non-veterans better understand our experience, to let others know that they aren’t alone and that help doesn’t necessarily come in the form of a white fluorescent office and handful of pills. This is not to say one shouldn’t consider medicine, traditional therapy, or other methods of treatment for depression. They can and have been effective and should not be ruled out. Current studies with MDMA, polyphyletic mushrooms, ketamine and other formerly banned medicine have been showing great promise in helping with otherwise untreatable PTSD/depression.
Adventure therapy is an alternative and additive way that seeks to reunite the Veteran with community, challenge, and adventure in a new, positive and long lasting way.
The purpose of this website is to secure funding for a feature length production that tells the stories of veterans who have found connection and renewed interest in life after their extraordinary service. I hope you will enjoy, share and support this mission. And if you are one of us, please reach out! We are here with a dozen ways to help you reconnect to life.
HEY! did you click on that button under the movie?? YOU WANTED TO DONATE CRYPTO? I got you! Send BTC, ETH, LTC, XRP and DOGE to adventuretherapy.crypto got a different coin? The film’s Coinbase username is @adventuretherapy Thanks in advance!
IF YOU CAN’T PITCH A COUPLE BUCKS YOU CAN HELP A VETERAN OUT BY TELLING EVERYONE!!