Bryn's Story
By Walking With The Wounded on
Bryn served as an Infantryman in the elite 1st Battalion Parachute Regiment (1 PARA), part of the Special Forces Support Group. He was regularly deployed on operations - to Kosovo, Sierra Leone, Northern Ireland, Iraq, and Afghanistan – and he was fulfilled by his achievements as a soldier.
After 10 years of active duty however, the physical demands of the role took its toll, and he experienced pain and damage to both his ankles. As he was no longer able to train or go on operations, he accepted that it was time to hang up his Army boots.
Unphased by the transition to civilian life, Bryn quickly transferred his military expertise into a career in private security. He secured contracts to protect senior US government officials as they...
Kane's Story
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After Kane’s military career came to a sudden end, he had no idea what to do next. Without any direction in life, he felt stuck and increasingly disillusioned. Over time, he decided that he was most suited to working outdoors and he focused his energy into achieving his goal. WWTW supported Kane into a new career in Arboriculture. They provided him with help, encouragement, and the funding that he needed to get his professional training and apply for work. Now Kane has a great job as an Arborist with a leading utilities service company.
“Upon leaving the Army I was really stuck in a rut and didn’t know what to do. The turning point was meeting Lynsey at WWTW. She gave me so much help and support along the way and now I have landed myself...
Carly’s story
By Walking With The Wounded on
Carly joined the Army in June 2012. When the initial 14-16 weeks of basic training commenced Carly immediately began to experience symptoms of anxiety, feeling panicky. When the PT session came round Carly recollects standing in the ablutions in floods of tears brought on by the mere thought of the obstacle course. Eventually Carly was discharged from the Army in September 2013, just 15 months after joining. In 2015 Carly suffered a breakdown and sought treatment through her GP. In August 2017 Carly met with an Employment Adviser from Walking With The Wounded who Carly refers to as "brilliant from day one". After initial successes, In January 2018 Carly began to once again experience feelings of anxiety and self-doubt and...
Paul's story
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Paul served for 23 years in the RAF, mainly in the Bomb Disposal Unit, but his job exposed him to prolonged danger and repeated traumatic events, and his mental health suffered as a result. During Paul’s first tour abroad, he started to experience panic attacks and he was sent back to the UK with suspected Acute Stress Reaction. As a committed team member, he felt guilty and ashamed that he had left his colleagues and he asked to be sent back to Iraq to re-join his unit. The second and third tours followed and Paul was exposed to further trauma and started to suffer from anxiety and depression and to experience intense and disturbing flashbacks. To try to hide the symptoms of PTSD and to manage his mental health, Paul self-medicated with...
Mark's Story
By Walking With The Wounded on
‘I wish more people would reach out. It’s hard to ask for help but if you do then the help is there. My WWTW Employment Advisor, Chris, did so much more than just support me into work. His own experiences with mental health helped me to get a grip on my issues and guide me to where I am now.’
Mark joined the Army when he needed a job and the opportunities where he lived were in short supply. He knew that he wanted a decent career, and the military seemed a good choice. Initially, Mark joined the Parachute Regiment and completed 12 months of hard training. Disaster struck when he seriously injured his ankle, and he was unable to complete his essential parachute jumps.
As a keen soldier, Mark was determined to continue his military career....
Matt's Veteran Story
By Walking With The Wounded on
Initially referred for a mental health assessment, Matt was diagnosed with PTSD and received therapy. His job was identified as part of the problem and he was advised to start a new career. Dan worked to restore Matt’s confidence and helped guide him through the job market. Matt will start a new role shortly and is feeling positive about the future.
‘The support and advice that WWTW provided, turned my life around. I still have my down days and I feel challenged every so often, but these are becoming fewer. I am a better person to be with and I feel my family love me more than ever and in turn I feel I have the right to love them back. I feel I am the father I want to be to my young children. I am so grateful. Thank you.’
Matt was 17 when...
Robert's Veteran Story
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‘WWTW meant absolutely everything. They really cared, and now I am a lot better man than I have been for years.’
Robert enlisted in the Army and joined the Royal Artillery, serving for 8 years.
10 years later, in 2006, Robert re-enlisted with 609 (West Riding) Squadron RAF Reserves, and was deployed to Afghanistan with 3 Squadron RAF Regiment (Regular Unit). It was a ‘full-on’ tour lasting 7 months. Robert began to experience problems adjusting to civilian life - he couldn’t sleep or cope with life and he was unable to understand why. He struggled on for five years but eventually his mental health got the better of him and he had a breakdown in March 2013.
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In 2017, after years of trying to get help, his...
Matt's Story
By Walking With The Wounded on
Every penny you raise for Walking Home For Christmas will support people like Matt..
‘As an alcoholic, I’d taken things right to the edge and I needed to rebuild my life in gradual steps. The help I received from WWTW was incredible. My WWTW Advisor, Alex, was always there for me - She listened, she did lots of work on my behalf and then she pointed me in the right direction. She got it spot on and I cannot thank her enough for that.’
Matt joined the Royal Hampshire Regiment in 1983 at the age of 16. After 5 years’ service, Matt decided to leave the army to pursue a career outside of the military.
Unfortunately, it was during this period that Matt began to drink. At first it was social drinking – the odd pint after work and at the...
Neil's Veteran Story
By Walking With The Wounded on
Every penny you raise for Walking Home For Christmas will support people like Neil...
Deployed to Bosnia, Macedonia, Iraq, Sierra Leone and Afghanistan in a 23-year career before medical discharge. 
Neil, a WO2 in the Army Air Corps, suffered a training accident in Kenya where he was trapped underwater beneath an upturned raft, nearly drowned, suffered spinal injuries and as a result struggled with PTSD, including an extreme phobia of water. This impacted his family life, his marriage suffered and eventually lead to divorce, “it felt like I had lost it all, my wife and two wonderful children. It was too much to deal with.”
Post discharge he was referred to WWTW’s mental health programme, is now able to cope with his PTSD and has...