{"id":30466,"date":"2018-06-27T12:59:30","date_gmt":"2018-06-27T16:59:30","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.wework.com\/creator\/creator\/?p=30466"},"modified":"2020-02-26T14:32:48","modified_gmt":"2020-02-26T19:32:48","slug":"helping-veterans-heal-wounds-others-cant-see","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.wework.com\/ideas\/community-stories\/member-spotlight\/helping-veterans-heal-wounds-others-cant-see","title":{"rendered":"Helping veterans heal wounds others can\u2019t see"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

When former Marine Corps captain Zach Iscol went out for beers with his former commander, they talked about the 33 men in their battalion who had been killed in action in the Iraqi city of Fallujah in 2004.<\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Unfortunately, tragedy did not end there.<\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201c[We] realized that there\u2019d soon be a point in time when we\u2019d lost more Marines to suicide than to enemy action,\u201d Iscol says. \u201cIt\u2019s an epidemic.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n

That moment six years ago led to the founding of the<\/span> Headstrong Project<\/span><\/a>, a New York City-based nonprofit that helps veterans heal the wounds that have plagued so many of their lives as a result of the experience of war and beyond\u2014in particular, the effects of post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD).<\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Today about<\/span> 15 percent of the men and women who served in Iraq and Afghanistan<\/span><\/a> suffer from PTSD. And<\/span> veteran suicides occur at an alarming rate<\/span><\/a>, with the Department of Veterans Affairs reporting that about 22 veterans kill themselves every day.<\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Iscol decided he wanted to do something about this problem by providing veterans with top-notch mental health care, free of charge. He joined forces with two staffers at Weill Cornell Medical College in New York City: Ann Beeder, a clinical psychiatrist who has treated patients suffering from trauma for more than two decades, and Gerard Ilaria, a licensed social worker and health care professional who has dedicated much of his career to caring for people with HIV. Together they co-founded Headstrong.<\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"
Gerard Ilaria and Dustin Shryock discuss strategy at Headstrong.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

At Headstrong, post-9\/11 veterans can receive confidential treatment at no cost, and without bureaucracy or paperwork\u2014or the stigma that often surrounds mental health counseling.<\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cThese are good people who have to make impossible life-and-death decisions,\u201d says Iscol, 39. \u201cAnd you have to live with those decisions. And when you\u2019re a good person it can be really hard to live with those decisions.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n

There is no cap to the number of counseling sessions veterans can partake in. According to Iscol, the program currently has more than 500 veterans in treatment across 18 cities.<\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cWe\u2019ve treated over 700 veterans in six years,\u201d he says. \u201cAnd we\u2019ve had zero suicides that have been in our treatment program.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Ilaria said that helping veterans in the workplace is a big part of the program. It\u2019s an important part of getting their lives back on track.<\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cVeterans make excellent leaders and they\u2019re great on a team,\u201d says Ilaria, 57. \u201cBut they can\u2019t really do well at their job if their mental health isn\u2019t in order.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Todd Bowers, director of WeWork\u2019s Veterans Initiative, says that Headstrong is a valuable resource for veterans and their loved ones.<\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n

“By providing cost-free, bureaucracy-free, and stigma-free treatment for the hidden wounds of war, Headstrong and their incredible team have helped to shape the narrative around post-9\/11 veterans and their families by showing that the right help at the right time can heal anyone,” says Bowers, who was a staff sergeant with the Marine Corps serving in Iraq and Afghanistan.<\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n