Page 389 - Total War on PTSD

I credit my proclivity for adventure sports to my untethered childhood. I was around 14 when my father taught me how to roll and I kayaked some pretty mellow rivers. My parents didn't hold me back. Anything I wanted to get involved in, they would support. It helped me to understand high-intensity situations and realize that I could operate under pressure. My family had me involved in all the team sports when I was a kid. I was about halfway into high school when I started branching away from team sports and getting into individual sports. My parents let me bull ride, box and fight MMA. The boxing was because I was in so many fights and my parents thought I could channel that rage into something constructive. Really, it just taught me to be a better fighter. I always loved challenging myself. It really helps you recognize your capabilities.
I knew right when I turned 18 that I needed to make the decision to kinda jump-start my life and so I decided that the military was the route that I was going to go. Getting boots on the ground was probably one of the most life-changing things the military did for me. I served five years Active Duty with the 101st Army Airborne, Charlie Company 3-187th Infantry Regiment Rakkasans (nickname in Japanese meaning parachute men) overseas in Iraq and Afghanistan. I saw heavy combat during my tours in Iraq and Afghanistan between 2007 and 2011. Just a few weeks into my first tour to Iraq my company lost five Soldiers in a single IED blast. My regiment ran mission’s day and night, at an extremely high operational tempo, putting us in numerous fire-fights, ambushes, and bombings.
In Iraq our job was to get the Iraqi Army to handle their own issues. A lot of that was really complicated because we had our own Rules of Engagement (ROE) and they had theirs. They pretty much did whatever the hell they wanted and we had to be cool with it
389 of 1042