By a Veteran of The Rifles and Special Forces Support Group
I joined the Army at 17. By 24, I had seven years of service, two frontline tours in Afghanistan, and a body and mind scarred by combat. I was shot at, rocketed, blown up, and saw friends obliterated by IEDs. I was injured and evacuated. As I wrote in my account, "I think from these experiences I have gained a well rounded experience of modern warfare and military life in general. I do not say this as some kind of boast or to portray myself as some kind of expert, just to give some context."
Yet, the trauma that lingered—the depression that engulfed me for years after leaving—wasn't primarily from the battlefield. "It was not combat trauma that lead to any of my mental health issues or returning to a civilian life. It was the training itself." This is the silent epidemic among veterans: a struggle forged not in war, but in the barracks.