Page 6 - March ARB Beacon 7-24-15

6 July 24, 2015
Mental health resources available for those in need
By Airman 1st Class Christian Clausen
432nd Wing/432nd Air Expeditionary Wing Public Affairs
CREECH AIR FORCE BASE, Nevada (AFNS) --
(This feature is part of the “Through Airmen’s Eyes”
series. These stories focus on individual Airmen, high-
lighting their Air Force story.)
The clinic buildings themselves aren’t scary, but add
the words ‘mental health,’ and most people will avoid
them like they contain tigers on the loose. That’s why
the 432nd Wing Human Performance Team was stood
up -- to alleviate that stigma, provide help and have eas-
ily accessible trained mental health professionals.
Some service members might have a false impres-
sion of the mental health clinic as a dark hole, where
clearances are lost and careers are ruined. Capt. David,
a 432nd Wing remotely piloted aircraft pilot, had this
very concern as he prepared to make an appointment.
In the previous months, David battled depression on
a daily basis, and his motivation slowly wilted away
until he found it a struggle to even find the energy to
enjoy playtime with his children.
“I love my kids with all my heart,” he said. “It just got
to a point where I was under so much stress and felt so
depressed. I didn’t want to do much of anything.”
David’s troubles began during a deployment. As if be-
ing away from his family, missing birthdays and holidays
wasn’t enough, he faced problems with his daily duties.
“While on deployment it felt as if I wasn’t a part of
the team and while I was doing great work, for some
reason I had a negative reputation,” he said. “On top of
that, I was having some marital issues.”
His frustrations seemed to follow him home, oppor-
tunities to make instructor pilot or flight commander
passed him by and he saw junior officers with less ex-
perience fill these slots instead.
“I felt I was getting ignored for no reason,” he said.
“I tried my best, I did great work, but I was being bad-
mouthed and I didn’t know why.”
Everything seemed to keep piling up: the daily
struggles of shift work, lack of sleep and time away
from family, combined with a million other things. His
mind started wandering to a dark place.
“I thought about committing suicide,” he said. “I
couldn’t do that to my family. I also remembered hearing
that suicide is a permanent solution to a temporary prob-
lem. I knew deep down my feelings of despair would sub-
side. For the time of despair, it really hurt.”
David and his wife decided he needed to get help im-
mediately. While he was still hesitant for fear of career re-
percussions, he decided that was the least of his worries.
“I finally had to accept that I was most likely going
to lose my clearance and not be able to fly,” he said.
“At that point I knew I just needed help.”
David sought out the chaplain for guidance, where
he learned about the other services of the human per-
formance team. The HPT is unique to Creech Air
Force Base, and is comprised of the chaplain corps, an
operational psychologist, an operational physiologist
and a flight medicine doctor. The HPT aims to help
Airmen in the spiritual, psychological, physical, emo-
tional and intellectual areas of wellness.
The chaplain determined David needed psychologi-
HEALTHY BASE INITIATIVE
Considering the demands facing the remotely piloted aircraft enterprise, Creech Air Force Base, Nev., has
formed their own Human Performance Team to meet the needs of those supporting RPA operations at this
one of a kind deployed-in-place location. The team consists of an operational psychologist, an operational
physiologist, a flight medicine doctor and the chaplain corps, who together treat the five areas of wellness for
all Creech AFB Airmen.
cal help and referred him to the operational psycholo-
gist. David met with him for weekly sessions, but, ulti-
mately, it wasn’t enough.
“(The psychologist) recommended I go to the men-
tal health clinic,” he said. “I was still really nervous.
I really didn’t want to be put on (duty not to include
flying) status.”
After the nerve-wracking visit to the clinic, David
was diagnosed with depression and his fear of being
DNIF became a reality.
“When they put me on DNIF, I was angry,” he said. “I
was angry at the chaplain, the psychologist, just everyone.”
While he was no longer on flying status, David re-
tained his clearance and was transferred from his fly-
ing squadron to the 432nd Operations Support Squad-
ron as the chief of operational planning and exercises.
His frustration and uneasiness started to subside.
His new assignment gave him the opportunity to sup-
port the operations rather than fly them.
“The change gave me a much needed break,” he
said. “Now I work a normal day shift with weekends
and holidays off, which let me spend some much need-
ed quality time with my wife and kids.”
The new mission, coupled with his ongoing treat-
ment, brought about a positive change.
“I felt refreshed; I have more self-confidence, self-
esteem, and I’m more sociable and motivated at work,”
he said. “I even won company grade officer of the
quarter for my squadron and I’m getting praise from
my bosses. It’s been a total change.”
If not for the advice and counseling he received from
the HPT, as well as the support from his family, it’s possible
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U.S. Air Force photo/Tech. Sgt. Nadine Y. Barclay
he wouldn’t be here to see this positive change in his career.
“I was very hesitant (about) following the advice from
the HPT to go to mental health,” he said. “In the end, they
were right and I’m very thankful to them and my family.”
In light of his new success, David talks about the
HPT and shares his experiences to help others who
may be going through similar struggles.
“The HPT is a great tool for Creech and ultimately
the entire Air Force,” he said. “Having all of the mem-
bers together in one team and each one having high-
level clearances, means they can go into the squadrons
and talk to Airmen about how they’re doing. They’re
unique because we’re unique.”
David also wants Airmen to know that even if
they’re on a medication, they can apply for a waiver to
get back to flying.
“I personally know a pilot who is on a depression medi-
cation and was able to get back to flying,” he said.
“If anyone is going through hard times and needs help,
don’t hesitate, because in most cases your career won’t be
affected and you will actually improve it,” he said
David is now back on track both in his personal
and professional life and currently has a waiver in the
works to get back on flying status.
“I’m so thankful for everyone who has been there to
help me and I’m really excited to get back to flying,”
he said.
If you or a family member is experiencing stress or
feeling depressed, there are resources at March Air Re-
serve Base that can help you. For more information,
contact Elaine Valentine at 951-655-5097.