Battle Buddies – Have you been told that your mental health has changed since joining the military? If so, have you submitted your mental health Disability Benefits Questionnaire (DBQ) to the VA? You are not broken; you are battle-tested because of your bravery. You are a warrior.

Military life has led us to extraordinary experiences that only a brother or sister in arms can understand. We joined the military, strengthened our character, refined our values, and lived by the creed of duty, honor, and country. Many of our experiences contributed to our growth and helped us build resilience and grit. Other experiences challenged our physical safety, emotional stability, or beliefs about ourselves and those with whom we served.

Those traumatic events left many of us looking for ways to survive the turmoil. Traumatic events often fester in our memory, contributing to long-term psychological and physical injuries and leaving invisible wounds.

You didn’t have to deploy to have experienced trauma or stress. Whatever way your stressors occurred, those events left many of us looking for ways to survive the turmoil. Distressful events often fester in our memory, contributing to long-term psychological and physical injuries and leaving invisible wounds.