Meet some of our volunteers

COUNTY REP - ANDREW

Being county rep for Combat Stress in North Yorkshire has been a rewarding experience for me. Yorkshire has a strong military presence, so there are plenty of events that benefit from having someone from the charity in attendance. I have enjoyed meeting people from all sorts of backgrounds, and on a personal level (having served myself) maintaining a link with the military side of life. Much of my work has been about raising awareness of Combat Stress among the younger generation of service personnel, ensuring they know what we can do to help them and their colleagues, either now or in the future.

I was asked by Combat Stress to take up the role after I raised money for the charity by walking 92 miles along the Teesdale Way nonstop in 36 hours. The walk was a real challenge, but nothing compared to the challenges some veterans go through, so I was delighted to help out. I have found myself doing all sorts of interesting things from thanking former England Rugby League players for raising money, to briefing the monthly Welfare Officers course to ensure that word gets out to our military units, and attending many military health fairs meeting the next generation of soldiers.

My family and I have just moved to southeast Cornwall where I hope to continue the role as Combat Stress representative albeit in a different county, and keep spreading the word about the vital work this amazing charity does.

Community volunteer - lisa

The overriding reason I volunteer at this charity is that no veteran returning from conflict should suffer in silence and sadly we know that it can take many years for the symptoms to manifest.

The bravest choice is to serve your country and this selfless act means we must be there for them when they need us most.

Everything I do at this charity is in memory of a friend, an SAS medic who was to suffer unimaginable mental trauma, following an incident when he served his regiment.

Sadly, he never did find our vital services, but I hope my work at Combat Stress does mean we can save the life of other veterans and that we can be a beacon of hope and light in dark times

Community volunteer - Mel

Having served for 37 years in the Armed Forces the day-to-day support for my peers and men and women working for and alongside me was to be expected and protected at all times. Following retirement and having suffered from periods of depression it soon became clear that the coping strategies used in service life were not viable in civilian life. There were no structured routines, defined roles and the sense of camaraderie had been left behind. Support from the NHS in the Primary Care area is patchy to say the least and the lack of signposting for those vets suffering from mental health issues is still lacking – even following the Armed Forces Covenant initiative alongside Op Courage. Looking “out of the box” worked for me – enter Combat Stress - the only organisation in the UK that provides peer and family support alongside intensive treatment.

As a Combat Stress volunteer I have met many fellow vets who are not only suffering from the symptoms and upheaval to family life but have also concluded that there is nothing out there to turn their situation around. Having joined the Combat Stress family I am confident that help is available and I always look forward to spreading the word whenever and wherever I can. The opportunity to chat with other vets has now become precious to and I cherish any opportunity to meet and hopefully direct them to the support that is now available.