Richard Barker
“With better systems and procedures in place, I hope we can reach a stage where all veterans are able to access appropriate care and support quickly and easily.”
When Richard, 64, left the Army in 2018 after serving for 22 years as a Regular and another 20 as a Reserve, he began to struggle with a lack of purpose in his life. Through support from Combat Stress and a local veterans curling club where he connected with fellow veterans, he was able to regain some balance.
Sam McGeachie
“As soon as I found out I was leaving, I started thinking about where I was going to stay and it was definitely my main stress.”
34-year-old veteran Sam McGeachie was medically discharged at the end of 2020 after serving in the Royal Army Medical Corps since 2009. She has complex PTSD and so it was really important that she found somewhere to live that felt safe and secure, but as it was her first home outside the Army she didn’t know where to start.
Read her story here
Sally – The Story of a Scottish Veteran in 2020
“I had no place to call my own, no real stability and it was having a seriously debilitating effect on my mental health”
28-year-old Sally served in the Army for five years, including a tour in Afghanistan. After leaving, she struggled with her physical and mental health and had little stability in life. When she finally reached out for help, she found an amazing team of support workers and volunteers working tirelessly together to help her get back on her feet, even as the nation was dealing with the challenges presented by the coronavirus pandemic.
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Read her story here
Redmond Bruce
“Scaremongering at company level needs to stop”
28 year-old Red from Edinburgh left the Army in May 2014 at the age of 23. Although he had a clear idea that he wanted to pursue a career in the police after leaving the Army, his experience of transitioning back into civilian life was mixed.
Read his story here
Dominic Pitts
“I was so ignorant of what was outside of the Army”
When Dominic, 33, made the final decision to leave the Army at the end of his 12-year contract, the reality of civilian life felt quite overwhelming. However, after a range of support and guidance, he is now preparing for a career in the IT sector and looking forward to settling in Scotland with wife Maxine when he leaves the Army in April 2020.
Read his story here
Craig Powers
“I found it hard to talk about myself – in the Military you’re always part of a team and you always talk about ‘we’”
Craig spent 21 years in the Army moving between positions in England, Scotland, Germany and Gibraltar, with tours in Northern Ireland, Sierra Leone, Iraq and Afghanistan. In 2017, he decided with wife Helen that they wanted more stability – the opportunity to settle somewhere and buy their own home. For the first time in two decades he had to consider employment outside the military.
Read his story here