Post-traumatic stress disorder not only affects Armed Forces, fire departments and police, it can afflict search-and-rescue members too, says Wounded Warrior B.C.'s co-founder.
The running tour, which raises money for mental health supports for professionals who are exposed to trauma, through Wounded Warriors Canada, stopped in Nanaimo Friday, Feb. 28.
Dan Bodden, runner and co-founder, is both a member of the Royal Canadian Air Force and a search-and-rescue organization and says both can suffer from PTSD.
"Sometimes there's a plane crash [there] could be family members, and you come in and there's a spouse who is deceased, and the spouse beside them is still alive, or a little baby, and then you go home to your own kids. How do you deal with that and be normal for the next day? We're not wired for that so [seeking help] needs to be normalized," Bodden told the B次元官网网址 Bulletin.
Bodden helped found the B.C. run 12 years ago. Back in 2011/12, troops were returning from Afghanistan and there were reports of self-harm and suicide from them and first responders as well. There needed to be dialogue and we weren't "going to drink or pray our way through this."
"The Armed Forces and first responder communities have quantum change over the past decade with programs, like 'Hey, boss, I need a week off,' and there's administrative mechanisms like, 'Hey B次元官网网址� go and take your week and check in with us after.' That's not questioned anymoreB次元官网网址� I remember what it used to be like, and I see what it's like now, and things have changed," he said.
However, there is still room for improvement and Bodden envisions a time when mental health supports will be as normal as going to a doctor for tendinitis.
2025 spells a return for Bodden after a running hiatus and he says things are as good as can be. He wasn't able to train in January because of a "100-day cough," but is getting back up to speed.
"In the evening, I'm measuring my heart rate over sleep and all that stuff, and I am recovering and don't feel too bad for an old guy with 70k on his legs," quipped Bodden.
The fundraising target is $250,000. Jacqueline Zweng, Wounded Warrior B.C. run director, said $25,000 was raised at the Nanaimo event and the group is confident the goal will be met.
On the morning of Saturday, March 1, the tour embarked for Shawnigan Lake, with stops in Ladysmith, Chemainus and Duncan. The tour ends Sunday, March 2 in Victoria.
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