This Marine Veteran Manages Anger With Distance Running and Coping Techniques
9/11 was the worst thing that's ever happened in my lifetime that I've been actually part of and worked at the site. So, I've seen the worst that this country has ever experienced. I don't harp on things anymore that I would years ago. I learned that it'll be okay. You'll get through this.
My name is Michael. I'm a US Marine. I joined the Marine Corps in 1989 and I got out in 1993. During that time, I was deployed to Desert Storm, and I was a part of the 6th Motor Transport Battalion. I always wanted to join the Marines since I was a child. I loved it. I really was shocked at first. I was the high school mascot. I was a class clown. So, in the beginning, I had to really learn not to act inappropriately because they would punish you harshly for that behavior. We were sent over to the Gulf during the war, and our job was to drive anything and transport anything from bombs to clothing.
I remember when I first came home, I had an episode at a bar, and I remember getting into a fight and grabbing one of the bartenders by the throat and really trying to hurt him. And I've never done anything like that before, and it really scared me because that was not me. There's so many veterans that have issues with mental health and really get into a deep state of depression, and I don't want, you know, that for myself and my family. They deserve better. So, we are working on it. You know, I do have issues. I know that I've been diagnosed with PTSD, and really, I'm trying my best to work through that. One of the things I do when I have something bad happen or I'm really angry, some of the tools that I've learned from therapy, is that I need to take a breather count. You know, we all say that that works, ‘one to ten,’ you know, we do our best, but most of the things that happen to me now are not dangerous. They're aggravating, they're annoying, but they're not gonna make my life really that bad. So, I have to understand that.
The training, being able to do an Ironman distance triathlon, walking for 22 hours, doing 50 miles, running for a 33 mile, Tough Mudders, and all those crazy events were empowering but also helping me. Now that I'm helping veterans and I spent a lot of time doing this, this is my life. I dedicated my life to charity work and started hearing their stories, and it started bringing back memories that I've been through. So, I decided to start getting help, and it was probably one of the best things I've ever done in my life to really understand why I act the way I do and get some help for it. One thing that I'm really fortunate is that my family is involved in my life, in the charity, as well. Well, I have to understand that there's things that they wanna do, so I'm learning to spend more time with them and understand what their lives and their needs are.
No human being should go through the traumas of what a soldier goes through and come home and not get help. Everyone that comes home from a deployment or been in the military should talk to someone just to find out where they are, because if you don't, it's just gonna fester, and you're gonna get worse because veterans are not getting the help that they need. It's so important to really understand that you're not alone, and there's others there that are willing to help you and do whatever they can to get you in a place where you belong.
