At Platoon 22 we are working to combat the ever-rising Veteran suicide rate. Each day, more than twenty of our Veterans are lost to suicide. To combat these numbers civic engagement is key.
“It’s the importance of sharing the stories of our veterans in the struggle. A lot of folks look at mental health as like this incurable thing. We understand it’s going to be a long road back, but we fully expect you to come back. We don’t extend as, as a society, that same expectation to people that are suffering with various forms of mental health crisis or issues. It’s like if you’re crazy, you’re going to always be crazy.
A lot of times it just takes people learning how to cope with the issues and things they have. I still have depression, but I’ve learned how to manage that and learn how to mitigate it. I still have PTS, I’m gonna always have PTS. But what I learned through my process and what we want to be able to show people through Platoon 22 is that yes, going through a traumatic experience is traumatic and will leave scars. But if you learn how to navigate that process, and if you find the way to develop the resolve to get through the other side of it, it makes navigating life so much better. And that’s the plain truth that a lot of folks just don’t want to admit. You’re going to get hit with more stuff, right? I don’t care how much trauma you went through, you will continue to have trauma up until the day that you die. And if you don’t learn how to manage and mitigate the trauma that has already happened in your life, then 100% that next trauma might be the thing that does you in. Our goal is to show people that it’s not just about having PTSD or PTS, It’s about having PTSG, which is post traumatic growth. Not only can you survive post suicide, or post depression, or anxiety or whatever you’re dealing with, if you learn how to navigate that, you can actually thrive. ”
Danny Farrar, Co-Founder
With this epidemic running through our ranks, we must stand together and win this war.
