WEBVTT 00:00:05.160 --> 00:00:08.980 All across America and around the world, this 00:00:08.980 --> 00:00:15.140 is Veterans Radio. This is Veterans Radio. Good 00:00:15.140 --> 00:00:18.600 day. I'm Jim Fossone. I'm the Officer of the 00:00:18.600 --> 00:00:20.699 Deck today here on Veterans Radio and thanks 00:00:20.699 --> 00:00:23.460 for joining us. We've got some interesting stories 00:00:23.460 --> 00:00:25.640 for you. We always want to remind you, you can 00:00:25.640 --> 00:00:28.739 find more about Veterans Radio at its Facebook 00:00:28.739 --> 00:00:32.420 site or at the web, veteransradio .org, where 00:00:32.420 --> 00:00:35.259 we're on the web 24 -7. You can find a lot of 00:00:35.259 --> 00:00:38.299 our podcasts there as well. We post new ones 00:00:38.299 --> 00:00:42.479 every Tuesday, so you can get a new story, a 00:00:42.479 --> 00:00:45.219 new interview, something you didn't know before 00:00:45.219 --> 00:00:49.460 by going to veteransradio .org. 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We just want to remind you that Veterans 00:01:34.280 --> 00:01:39.340 Radio podcasts are available on all your favorite 00:01:39.340 --> 00:01:43.359 streaming platforms including RSS .com, Apple 00:01:43.359 --> 00:01:48.230 Podcasts, Spotify, YouTube Podcasts, I Heart 00:01:48.230 --> 00:01:52.329 Radio, and Reeves Across America Radio. So wherever 00:01:52.329 --> 00:01:55.870 you are, you can find us, whether it's on your 00:01:55.870 --> 00:01:58.269 mobile phone or your computer or your laptop, 00:01:58.370 --> 00:02:02.010 your tablet, but listen in to Veterans Radio 00:02:02.010 --> 00:02:04.769 Podcasts. We post something new every week, and 00:02:04.769 --> 00:02:07.269 you're going to find it informative. We want 00:02:07.269 --> 00:02:11.460 to welcome to Veterans Radio today, an Army veteran 00:02:11.460 --> 00:02:15.159 of some 30 years, Will Brock, who was a Chief 00:02:15.159 --> 00:02:20.319 Warrant Officer for retiring in 2023. Will, welcome 00:02:20.319 --> 00:02:23.240 to Veterans Radio. Well, thank you, Jim, for 00:02:23.240 --> 00:02:25.340 the invite. It's an honor to be on today, sir. 00:02:25.620 --> 00:02:28.360 Well, we're going to talk about your experience 00:02:28.360 --> 00:02:30.759 with equine therapy, but let me set this up a 00:02:30.759 --> 00:02:34.810 little bit, as I said to our audience. Will served 00:02:34.810 --> 00:02:37.930 for 30 years in the Army. He did four tours of 00:02:37.930 --> 00:02:40.810 duty overseas, including Iraq, Afghanistan, and 00:02:40.810 --> 00:02:44.009 Syria. Along the way, he collected two bronze 00:02:44.009 --> 00:02:47.469 stars, meritorious service medal, a combat action 00:02:47.469 --> 00:02:52.150 badge. But in his non -military career, he's 00:02:52.150 --> 00:02:55.569 been a journeyman lineman with IBEW, and he's 00:02:55.569 --> 00:02:58.330 awfully happy he's not out servicing electrical 00:02:58.330 --> 00:03:01.289 grids in southeast Michigan in the freezer weather 00:03:01.289 --> 00:03:05.229 we have at the moment. But I also became a small 00:03:05.229 --> 00:03:07.770 business owner in the home care business. Has 00:03:07.770 --> 00:03:12.090 a local visiting angels offices in southeast 00:03:12.090 --> 00:03:16.409 Michigan. He's been elected to the Michigan House 00:03:16.409 --> 00:03:19.189 of Representatives and is serving district 30. 00:03:20.870 --> 00:03:24.069 Got a family and a lot of active involvement 00:03:24.069 --> 00:03:26.669 in things like disabled American veterans, veterans 00:03:26.669 --> 00:03:29.750 of foreign wars, Little Blessings Veterans and 00:03:29.750 --> 00:03:32.759 Community Outreach and the Rotary Club. Will, 00:03:32.780 --> 00:03:34.539 I don't know how you have time for it all, but 00:03:34.539 --> 00:03:37.539 again, the focus today will be on equine therapy. 00:03:37.860 --> 00:03:42.080 So again, thanks for joining us. No, I appreciate 00:03:42.080 --> 00:03:46.439 the introduction and yeah, I got a lot of experiences 00:03:46.439 --> 00:03:49.500 and hopefully, you know, that comes with a lot 00:03:49.500 --> 00:03:51.620 of baggage to it at times when you're talking 00:03:51.620 --> 00:03:54.259 combat tours and such, but you know, working 00:03:54.259 --> 00:03:56.580 with equine therapy and Little Blessings Veteran 00:03:56.580 --> 00:03:59.020 Outreach, I sit on the board as the president 00:03:59.020 --> 00:04:02.289 currently for the last two years. And so it's 00:04:02.289 --> 00:04:04.490 an honor to talk today about equine therapy. 00:04:05.050 --> 00:04:07.330 Well, you know, let's jump off there because 00:04:07.330 --> 00:04:10.870 you mentioned, you know, that much time and the 00:04:10.870 --> 00:04:14.310 comeback tours. It's not unusual. Somebody has 00:04:14.310 --> 00:04:17.889 a little bit, as you refer to it, baggage, PTS 00:04:17.889 --> 00:04:22.350 in particular. Tell us about what baggage you 00:04:22.350 --> 00:04:25.970 had and what led you to try equine therapy. Wow, 00:04:26.250 --> 00:04:29.110 that's a loaded question. You know, they say 00:04:29.110 --> 00:04:31.449 nobody goes to war and comes back the same. No, 00:04:31.449 --> 00:04:34.470 you know, it took me three tours before I believe 00:04:34.470 --> 00:04:37.029 that to be honest, it was, you know, a lot of 00:04:37.029 --> 00:04:41.129 rejection of changes within, you know, my own 00:04:41.129 --> 00:04:43.389 psyche, you know, you have physical issues, anyone 00:04:43.389 --> 00:04:45.949 that served 30 plus years in the military, you're 00:04:45.949 --> 00:04:49.170 going to have physical ailments and issues. But 00:04:49.170 --> 00:04:52.269 when you're faced with the situations and the 00:04:52.269 --> 00:04:56.290 environment that you're put into being in combat 00:04:56.290 --> 00:05:00.410 that it also changes you mentally whether you 00:05:00.410 --> 00:05:04.889 are aware or admitted or not and so coming home 00:05:04.889 --> 00:05:08.509 it was you know I was in Iraq in 03 and 04 I 00:05:08.509 --> 00:05:11.889 called the Wild West and you know came home and 00:05:11.889 --> 00:05:15.870 I I thought I was the same looking back I wasn't 00:05:15.870 --> 00:05:19.389 you know I went again in 09 back to Iraq and 00:05:19.389 --> 00:05:22.990 you know came home even more different but yet 00:05:22.990 --> 00:05:26.680 refusing you know, to admit that. I went to Afghanistan 00:05:26.680 --> 00:05:31.639 in 15, 14, 15, and then when I came home, the 00:05:31.639 --> 00:05:36.519 wheels fell off. And I still refuse, you know, 00:05:36.540 --> 00:05:39.800 to get help. I refuse to admit that I had a problem. 00:05:39.920 --> 00:05:43.279 It just caused expounded difficulties between 00:05:43.279 --> 00:05:46.180 family. You failed to mention I have nine children. 00:05:46.240 --> 00:05:49.819 My wife and I have nine together. All natural 00:05:49.819 --> 00:05:55.399 born, you know, all our own. Well, in your story 00:05:55.399 --> 00:05:58.040 up until the nine children is pretty typical. 00:05:58.040 --> 00:06:03.100 I mean it's it's it's all the Guys and gals who've 00:06:03.100 --> 00:06:05.879 done these multiple rotations. You're gonna you 00:06:05.879 --> 00:06:11.060 know things change and you May not believe that 00:06:11.060 --> 00:06:14.560 but your family sees it and the family starts 00:06:14.560 --> 00:06:16.500 saying hey, man You know you got to get a little 00:06:16.500 --> 00:06:19.180 help talk to somebody and I suspect that's what 00:06:19.180 --> 00:06:22.639 was going on I mean, there was a time or two, 00:06:22.639 --> 00:06:25.379 you know, with my spouse, Natalie, she's a saint, 00:06:25.500 --> 00:06:28.779 she's endured so much, you know, that she said, 00:06:28.860 --> 00:06:31.180 you have to get help. And I would get help to 00:06:31.180 --> 00:06:34.519 the degree that it satisfied her needs. You know, 00:06:34.519 --> 00:06:37.459 but at the time, you know, I take a time period 00:06:37.459 --> 00:06:41.920 after 2015, you know, for 10 plus years, I lived, 00:06:42.860 --> 00:06:47.079 I lived with bitterness and with no regret for 00:06:47.079 --> 00:06:50.560 anything that I did. You know, in 2020, I went 00:06:50.560 --> 00:06:53.939 back for my fourth tour, Iraq and Syria. You 00:06:53.939 --> 00:06:56.459 know, honestly, I went back, I told my wife I 00:06:56.459 --> 00:06:59.699 was going back to get fixed. You know, as stupid 00:06:59.699 --> 00:07:02.579 as that sounds now, but that was my mentality, 00:07:02.579 --> 00:07:06.740 like, I'm going to go get fixed. And, you know, 00:07:06.740 --> 00:07:11.120 I came back thinking I was fixed. I got my last 00:07:11.120 --> 00:07:13.500 tour in and, you know, you mentioned my daughter 00:07:13.500 --> 00:07:16.040 wrote the book during that time I was deployed 00:07:16.040 --> 00:07:20.180 in 2020 -21. my family started going through 00:07:20.180 --> 00:07:23.740 Little Blessings. My wife actually started before 00:07:23.740 --> 00:07:26.500 I deployed in 2020. For three months, she was 00:07:26.500 --> 00:07:30.500 going weekly to Little Blessings for horse equine 00:07:30.500 --> 00:07:33.720 therapy. And I didn't know she was even going 00:07:33.720 --> 00:07:38.459 until she told me after three months. And that's 00:07:38.459 --> 00:07:42.639 how irrelevant and detached I was for my family. 00:07:43.019 --> 00:07:47.100 And I say that with regret now, but until really 00:07:47.100 --> 00:07:51.920 recently, I had no regrets on that. And even 00:07:51.920 --> 00:07:54.740 up until current point, I, you know, my kids 00:07:54.740 --> 00:07:58.240 went through the program in 21. They started 00:07:58.240 --> 00:08:01.639 the kids program, an 18 week program. The adult 00:08:01.639 --> 00:08:04.160 program is 50 weeks. So it's a whole year long. 00:08:05.220 --> 00:08:10.379 But when I came back from Iraq in 21, I saw my 00:08:10.379 --> 00:08:13.360 kids, it helped me. I started to get involved 00:08:13.360 --> 00:08:16.220 with Little Blessings, but still did not. did 00:08:16.220 --> 00:08:20.000 not address the issues, the root issues of bitterness 00:08:20.000 --> 00:08:25.379 and PTSD and the anger and the lack of guilt. 00:08:26.680 --> 00:08:30.899 And then actually December of last year, I enrolled 00:08:30.899 --> 00:08:33.200 into the program. So I'm actually new at the, 00:08:33.320 --> 00:08:35.360 you know, I was president of the organization, 00:08:35.840 --> 00:08:38.200 but yet, you know, having never been through 00:08:38.200 --> 00:08:41.440 the program. But last December, prior to Christmas, 00:08:42.019 --> 00:08:45.620 you know, we we as a family get a point where 00:08:45.620 --> 00:08:50.320 I finally admit it, I need help that I haven't 00:08:50.320 --> 00:08:53.659 been getting. And so I'm actually about five 00:08:53.659 --> 00:08:57.080 weeks into the program right now. So that's kind 00:08:57.080 --> 00:09:00.179 of current, that's 25 years and two minutes. 00:09:00.220 --> 00:09:04.259 Yeah, it's impossible to do justice to the story 00:09:04.259 --> 00:09:06.779 and the time we have here in this interview. 00:09:07.379 --> 00:09:11.200 But I think it's important because people Don't 00:09:11.200 --> 00:09:16.480 be surprised, ashamed, rooted into the ground 00:09:16.480 --> 00:09:20.519 if you don't, quote unquote, fix yourself right 00:09:20.519 --> 00:09:24.299 away. It takes years to get to the point where 00:09:24.299 --> 00:09:26.240 you find something. First off, that you admit 00:09:26.240 --> 00:09:28.100 that hey, I need to do something and you find 00:09:28.100 --> 00:09:32.200 something that works for you. And for some people, 00:09:32.779 --> 00:09:36.379 equine therapy may be the thing that works. Now, 00:09:36.580 --> 00:09:39.690 you live and your family lives in a... rural 00:09:39.690 --> 00:09:42.730 area, got a little, you know, you might call 00:09:42.730 --> 00:09:48.490 it a hobby farm. But what led them, what led 00:09:48.490 --> 00:09:51.970 Natalie to equine therapy and why did you ultimately 00:09:51.970 --> 00:09:54.929 go, yeah, you know, maybe I need to get with 00:09:54.929 --> 00:09:59.169 the program. Well, what brought her to it was 00:09:59.169 --> 00:10:03.590 the inability to cope with what I wasn't coping 00:10:03.590 --> 00:10:10.799 with. That's what brought her to the table. She 00:10:10.799 --> 00:10:14.480 met Jamie Paxson, who started Little Blessings 00:10:14.480 --> 00:10:20.159 in about 2018. And that's what drew Natalie to 00:10:20.159 --> 00:10:23.600 the program. And it gave her a lot of things 00:10:23.600 --> 00:10:26.279 in her toolbox on how to deal with a veteran 00:10:26.279 --> 00:10:29.799 being married to a veteran. She now leads a spouse 00:10:29.799 --> 00:10:33.960 group that meets every other week at Little Blessings. 00:10:34.659 --> 00:10:37.080 My kids get into the program. And when I came 00:10:37.080 --> 00:10:40.769 home at 21, I saw my kids in a program and I 00:10:40.769 --> 00:10:43.570 remember crying, watching my kids, you know, 00:10:43.629 --> 00:10:46.470 seeing and talking to the mental health specialist, 00:10:46.889 --> 00:10:49.429 you know, that was explaining the issues, the 00:10:49.429 --> 00:10:52.009 problems that my kids were having. And at that 00:10:52.009 --> 00:10:57.250 point, I knew that my problems, my PTSD was, 00:10:57.250 --> 00:11:00.710 in a sense, being transcended to my family. Now, 00:11:00.710 --> 00:11:03.850 I wasn't to the point where I cared enough to 00:11:03.850 --> 00:11:07.789 fix myself, but... I was successful at business, 00:11:08.009 --> 00:11:10.929 I was a chief foreign officer for, nobody's gonna 00:11:10.929 --> 00:11:14.389 tell me what to do. I was successful in the military 00:11:14.389 --> 00:11:18.909 as well as civilian life as a reservist. But 00:11:18.909 --> 00:11:22.250 bringing me to the table was, we brought 30 some 00:11:22.250 --> 00:11:25.049 vets through this program, year long program 00:11:25.049 --> 00:11:29.309 at Little Blessings. And it has changed the life 00:11:29.309 --> 00:11:32.429 of multiple families, all these families, not 00:11:32.429 --> 00:11:35.419 just the vet, but the whole family. Well, let 00:11:35.419 --> 00:11:37.700 me give the life to do it. Let me give the full 00:11:37.700 --> 00:11:40.600 name of it. It's Little Blessings Veterans and 00:11:40.600 --> 00:11:43.799 Community Outreach, if I've got it right. And 00:11:43.799 --> 00:11:46.700 Jamie Paxton, who you referred to, who I think 00:11:46.700 --> 00:11:50.019 is the executive director, she did 25 years in 00:11:50.019 --> 00:11:52.840 the United States Air Force and came out as a 00:11:52.840 --> 00:11:56.179 first sergeant. So again, somebody who's been 00:11:56.179 --> 00:12:00.720 there and knows the personality of somebody who 00:12:00.720 --> 00:12:03.389 says, I'm a chief warrant officer, what the hell 00:12:03.389 --> 00:12:08.789 are you going to tell me? Right? Yeah, and we're 00:12:08.789 --> 00:12:10.950 the ones that have all the answers. If you've 00:12:10.950 --> 00:12:13.049 been in the army or the Marines, the warrant 00:12:13.049 --> 00:12:16.769 officers are the ones everyone goes to for help. 00:12:17.649 --> 00:12:19.710 We are the ones that are supposed to have the 00:12:19.710 --> 00:12:22.490 answers, but when we don't have the answers for 00:12:22.490 --> 00:12:26.950 ourselves, it's hard as a human being to admit 00:12:26.950 --> 00:12:30.330 that. And that was my problem. So what is it 00:12:30.330 --> 00:12:36.250 about the horses? Why equine therapy? Why not 00:12:36.250 --> 00:12:38.049 just go to the VA and talk to a mental health 00:12:38.049 --> 00:12:42.009 person? Why was it the equine therapy that drew 00:12:42.009 --> 00:12:46.950 you in? Well, for me, horses scare the crap out 00:12:46.950 --> 00:12:51.990 of me. So that's a start. And it's a challenge. 00:12:52.820 --> 00:12:57.019 Secondly, equine therapy and specifically EGALA 00:12:57.019 --> 00:12:59.860 is the model that we follow. It's a nationally 00:12:59.860 --> 00:13:04.440 recognized model. It's not going out riding horses. 00:13:05.779 --> 00:13:10.740 It's not equestrian. It's interacting with the 00:13:10.740 --> 00:13:13.340 horses and horses have an innate ability. They're 00:13:13.340 --> 00:13:16.799 a fight or a flight animal. Their reactions are 00:13:16.799 --> 00:13:18.720 based off their instinct. Either they're going 00:13:18.720 --> 00:13:23.539 to fight or they're fleeing. And a lot of times 00:13:23.539 --> 00:13:27.500 that's where vets end up getting. When I look 00:13:27.500 --> 00:13:32.700 at my history, coming back from tours, and the 00:13:32.700 --> 00:13:36.639 inability to deal with the issues at home, the 00:13:36.639 --> 00:13:40.539 children, the upheaval, the arguments, or different 00:13:40.539 --> 00:13:43.379 things that come up, we either fight or we flight. 00:13:43.860 --> 00:13:47.519 That's a military bred instinct. Horses have 00:13:47.519 --> 00:13:50.519 that same instinct. And so working with the horses, 00:13:51.100 --> 00:13:54.350 you're learning how number one to identify those 00:13:54.350 --> 00:13:56.570 problems that you have but number two how to 00:13:56.570 --> 00:13:59.370 manage those problems and the horses have this 00:13:59.370 --> 00:14:02.870 unique ability to do that and to mirror your 00:14:02.870 --> 00:14:07.409 emotions your anxiety and it helps you regulate 00:14:07.409 --> 00:14:10.149 those things now obviously i'm only five weeks 00:14:10.149 --> 00:14:12.289 into the program there's a lot that i haven't 00:14:12.289 --> 00:14:15.769 seen yet but that's you know this is what it 00:14:15.769 --> 00:14:18.509 does for the veteran well and you've been around 00:14:18.509 --> 00:14:21.720 it though now for years through the family And 00:14:21.720 --> 00:14:24.340 I want to talk a little bit about so that you 00:14:24.340 --> 00:14:28.539 can do some bragging on what it did for the kids 00:14:28.539 --> 00:14:31.519 and Anna in particular, the direction that she 00:14:31.519 --> 00:14:40.980 took it. It changed my kid's outlook. Because 00:14:40.980 --> 00:14:43.879 as the title of my daughter's book, she wrote 00:14:43.879 --> 00:14:51.320 hope on four hooves. My family, we're very religious 00:14:51.320 --> 00:14:54.340 family we you know we're very we're christian 00:14:54.340 --> 00:14:57.700 we we worship and we believe in god and we have 00:14:57.700 --> 00:15:01.700 faith but but in the situation with their father 00:15:01.700 --> 00:15:04.559 i'll take my my daughter was 14 when she wrote 00:15:04.559 --> 00:15:08.919 the book she didn't have a lot of hope that things 00:15:08.919 --> 00:15:12.700 were going to work out at that time and through 00:15:12.700 --> 00:15:16.379 the equine therapy it allowed my kids to learn 00:15:16.379 --> 00:15:18.659 how to regulate those emotions that were being 00:15:18.659 --> 00:15:22.909 passed on to them and to bring hope back to my 00:15:22.909 --> 00:15:25.669 family, you know, right alongside with God was 00:15:25.669 --> 00:15:27.929 there the whole time. But you know, there's the 00:15:27.929 --> 00:15:30.769 physical and the spiritual. And sometimes the 00:15:30.769 --> 00:15:33.649 two, you know, one's weaker than the other, depending 00:15:33.649 --> 00:15:36.450 on the situation and physically and emotionally, 00:15:36.649 --> 00:15:41.830 my kids were falling apart because of the anxiety 00:15:41.830 --> 00:15:45.190 that I had that I was creating in them. And so, 00:15:45.309 --> 00:15:47.049 you know, them going through the program and 00:15:47.049 --> 00:15:49.389 my wife going through the program, it allowed 00:15:49.389 --> 00:15:53.240 them to to get hope back again that things are 00:15:53.240 --> 00:15:55.960 going to be okay and there's a way out of this 00:15:55.960 --> 00:15:59.700 darkness that we have been placed into. And this 00:15:59.700 --> 00:16:04.419 is a, if you will, private non -profit. And I 00:16:04.419 --> 00:16:06.220 want to point that out because of the family 00:16:06.220 --> 00:16:09.179 aspect of this. Veterans can go to the VA for 00:16:09.179 --> 00:16:11.980 mental health care, but VA doesn't do anything 00:16:11.980 --> 00:16:17.129 for the family. It's not designed, authorized, 00:16:17.330 --> 00:16:21.549 funded for family mental health care. So things 00:16:21.549 --> 00:16:24.990 like Little Blessings Veteran Outreach are important 00:16:24.990 --> 00:16:27.690 and supporting those are important because it's 00:16:27.690 --> 00:16:30.470 a family affair, not just a veteran affair. And 00:16:30.470 --> 00:16:32.409 let me tell you that, veteran radio listeners, 00:16:32.570 --> 00:16:36.740 we're talking to Will Brock, chief. Warrant Officer 00:16:36.740 --> 00:16:40.759 IV, 30 years in the Army, and his and his family's 00:16:40.759 --> 00:16:43.120 experience with equine therapy. Little Blessings 00:16:43.120 --> 00:16:45.019 Veteran Outreach. You can find it on the web 00:16:45.019 --> 00:16:49.759 at lbveteranoutreach .org if you want some more 00:16:49.759 --> 00:16:52.679 information. As I said, it's founder and executive 00:16:52.679 --> 00:16:56.279 director is a 25 -year Air Force veteran, so 00:16:56.279 --> 00:17:00.279 she knows what she's talking about. Will, as 00:17:00.279 --> 00:17:05.910 you... Begin the process of going through the 00:17:05.910 --> 00:17:13.529 program. Is it something that you sort of begin 00:17:13.529 --> 00:17:17.990 to see changes in yourself or recognizing patterns 00:17:17.990 --> 00:17:23.049 before they get to developed? What do you expect 00:17:23.049 --> 00:17:26.569 to get out of the program? Right now I'm learning 00:17:26.569 --> 00:17:31.849 to recognize the patterns of the horse. So, the 00:17:31.849 --> 00:17:37.589 emotions or reactions of the animal, it takes 00:17:37.589 --> 00:17:40.990 an eye. So, you know, I used to make fun of my 00:17:40.990 --> 00:17:43.089 wife, you know, talking to, going to talk to 00:17:43.089 --> 00:17:46.130 Mr. Ed, you know, the horse. Right, right, right. 00:17:46.430 --> 00:17:48.970 You know, what's he going to teach us? What's 00:17:48.970 --> 00:17:50.769 he going to teach you? You know, how does he 00:17:50.769 --> 00:17:53.690 talk, et cetera. You know, but the horses have 00:17:53.690 --> 00:17:56.750 definite reactions based off their emotions. 00:17:57.170 --> 00:18:00.200 Number one is realizing what is making you know 00:18:00.200 --> 00:18:02.640 the reactions the good and the bad reactions 00:18:02.640 --> 00:18:06.160 in that animal that's what i'm in the process 00:18:06.160 --> 00:18:09.000 of learning right now and to regulate and to 00:18:09.000 --> 00:18:14.180 build trust with that creature in order for that 00:18:14.180 --> 00:18:19.880 creature to you know help me it's it's you know 00:18:19.880 --> 00:18:22.579 it sounds you know sometimes it's it's voodoo 00:18:22.579 --> 00:18:26.420 sounding but but it it literally has changed 00:18:26.420 --> 00:18:29.779 the lives of many, many veterans just in our 00:18:29.779 --> 00:18:35.319 own community. And again, our organization, the 00:18:35.319 --> 00:18:38.480 VA, I would question whether the VA mental health 00:18:38.480 --> 00:18:42.079 helps a lot, but you can talk to somebody once 00:18:42.079 --> 00:18:44.440 a month or every other month or every quarter. 00:18:46.779 --> 00:18:49.279 You're discussing problems and trying to fix 00:18:49.279 --> 00:18:52.160 problems, but Little Blessings encompasses the 00:18:52.160 --> 00:18:55.759 entire family and the entire psyche of the person. 00:18:55.950 --> 00:18:59.049 you know, it's a family affair. We have the, 00:18:59.049 --> 00:19:01.490 you know, the family dinners once a month. We 00:19:01.490 --> 00:19:03.609 have the children's program. It's a place where 00:19:03.609 --> 00:19:05.390 veterans, when they're done with the program, 00:19:05.650 --> 00:19:09.869 they still continue to come to the ranch to interact 00:19:09.869 --> 00:19:11.990 with the animal that they went through the program 00:19:11.990 --> 00:19:15.289 with, you know, and their support. There's other 00:19:15.289 --> 00:19:18.049 veterans there that have been through the same 00:19:18.049 --> 00:19:20.910 program or currently in the program that are 00:19:20.910 --> 00:19:23.809 there to also interact with that veteran. It 00:19:23.809 --> 00:19:27.930 gives a camaraderie ship as well as the family 00:19:27.930 --> 00:19:32.970 getting that support mechanism as well. And again, 00:19:33.109 --> 00:19:36.369 it's all supported by private funds. Yeah, the 00:19:36.369 --> 00:19:39.930 horse picks up on your aggression, right? I mean, 00:19:39.930 --> 00:19:43.930 if you're hostile, it reacts a certain way. If 00:19:43.930 --> 00:19:48.069 you can calm yourself, it calms itself. Is that 00:19:48.069 --> 00:19:49.970 what you're talking about when you say, I'm just 00:19:49.970 --> 00:19:54.980 learning to read the horse? Yes, yes sir. Yeah, 00:19:54.980 --> 00:19:58.019 if you have a high anxiety the horse is going 00:19:58.019 --> 00:20:00.819 to exhibit those same symptoms because they pick 00:20:00.819 --> 00:20:02.779 up because they're a fight -or -flight animal 00:20:02.779 --> 00:20:06.180 they they are unsure of your feeling you know 00:20:06.180 --> 00:20:09.279 your your anxiety they can feel now that I don't 00:20:09.279 --> 00:20:12.720 know how they do it but they do it and and their 00:20:12.720 --> 00:20:14.839 reaction is either they're gonna fight you or 00:20:14.839 --> 00:20:16.940 they're gonna flight you know they're gonna flee 00:20:16.940 --> 00:20:19.000 from you they're trying to decide what they're 00:20:19.000 --> 00:20:22.750 gonna do and And so I'm in the portion of breathing 00:20:22.750 --> 00:20:25.130 those emotions of the horse, you know, but those 00:20:25.130 --> 00:20:28.069 are really truly my emotions that are coming 00:20:28.069 --> 00:20:30.970 out in the horse. Now this little Blessing Veterans 00:20:30.970 --> 00:20:34.950 Outreach is in Monroe County, just a little bit 00:20:34.950 --> 00:20:38.710 north of the Ohio state line. But these kind 00:20:38.710 --> 00:20:41.829 of therapy, equine therapy programs are all over 00:20:41.829 --> 00:20:45.650 the country. And there are some I don't know 00:20:45.650 --> 00:20:49.089 if I'd call it standards or groups. I know one 00:20:49.089 --> 00:20:51.710 of them's a professional association of therapeutic 00:20:51.710 --> 00:20:56.190 horsemanship international. And you mentioned, 00:20:56.190 --> 00:20:59.730 you know, as little blessings are following a 00:20:59.730 --> 00:21:05.410 sort of a time -tested. Yeah. EGALA model, and 00:21:05.410 --> 00:21:07.970 there's an association, EGALA, it's nationally 00:21:07.970 --> 00:21:11.430 certified. There's EGALA, people that practice 00:21:11.430 --> 00:21:14.160 the EGALA. Gallup model throughout the U .S. 00:21:14.180 --> 00:21:17.480 There's only a very small handful that specifically 00:21:17.480 --> 00:21:22.140 do it strictly for veterans. And that's, again, 00:21:22.339 --> 00:21:25.420 if you're listening to this or on Veterans Radio 00:21:25.420 --> 00:21:28.019 or the podcast and you're thinking, hey, I got 00:21:28.019 --> 00:21:30.259 this, this might work for a friend of mine or 00:21:30.259 --> 00:21:32.599 they ought to just look into it or maybe it's 00:21:32.599 --> 00:21:35.759 something I'd be interested in, there is, there 00:21:35.759 --> 00:21:38.319 are resources available. You might have to search 00:21:38.319 --> 00:21:43.480 them out a little bit. you know, by going onto 00:21:43.480 --> 00:21:46.900 the internet or maybe talking to a VA social 00:21:46.900 --> 00:21:51.680 worker and getting a referral, again, this is 00:21:51.680 --> 00:21:54.900 gonna be on the private side of things. It's 00:21:54.900 --> 00:21:57.380 not a VA hospital benefit, that's for damn sure. 00:21:58.299 --> 00:22:00.960 No, it is not. I mean, we would love for it to 00:22:00.960 --> 00:22:04.019 be at some point, you know, supported by the 00:22:04.019 --> 00:22:07.140 VA and they see that They see the benefit of 00:22:07.140 --> 00:22:09.180 it because there's been conversations even at 00:22:09.180 --> 00:22:12.319 the local level with the Ann Arbor VA. But it 00:22:12.319 --> 00:22:16.019 has yet to be adopted by the VA as one of their 00:22:16.019 --> 00:22:21.319 methods. But we'll stay optimistic. And a gala 00:22:21.319 --> 00:22:24.619 for those of us who are functionally illiterate 00:22:24.619 --> 00:22:27.339 in this area, which I am, it's Equine Assisted 00:22:27.339 --> 00:22:33.569 Psychotherapy, E -A -G -A -L -A dot org. where 00:22:33.569 --> 00:22:36.269 again you can find it's got a link for find a 00:22:36.269 --> 00:22:39.170 program for example and and you can get more 00:22:39.170 --> 00:22:42.869 information if you're down in Louisiana or you're 00:22:42.869 --> 00:22:48.609 over in New York you can probably find something 00:22:48.609 --> 00:22:55.089 nearby that is worth giving a go and is it a 00:22:55.089 --> 00:22:59.690 combination both will of kind of Working with 00:22:59.690 --> 00:23:02.430 the horse and working with a mental health therapist? 00:23:03.390 --> 00:23:07.829 Yes, there's a mental health therapist at the 00:23:07.829 --> 00:23:11.589 sessions. There's an EGALA certified handler 00:23:11.589 --> 00:23:15.970 at the sessions. It's a pretty strict program. 00:23:16.190 --> 00:23:21.490 Each session is made to address a slightly different 00:23:21.490 --> 00:23:25.509 avenue or a different step in the program. You 00:23:25.509 --> 00:23:28.799 lead the horses and you're your commands you 00:23:28.799 --> 00:23:30.940 know you're given commands to give to the horse 00:23:30.940 --> 00:23:35.019 as you lead it and on the horse will obey or 00:23:35.019 --> 00:23:38.720 not obey based off your level of anxiety or command 00:23:38.720 --> 00:23:43.299 you know your confidence level you know there's 00:23:43.299 --> 00:23:46.619 so many variables within it but but it's proven 00:23:46.619 --> 00:23:50.359 to work and help and and we see it working each 00:23:50.359 --> 00:23:53.859 and every day currently at our place we have 00:23:54.779 --> 00:23:59.099 15, I want to say 15 or 16 veterans in the program 00:23:59.099 --> 00:24:01.640 right now. And there's four different phases. 00:24:01.920 --> 00:24:05.059 So they're, you know, they're not all, it's individually, 00:24:05.339 --> 00:24:07.220 individual sessions, but they're all different 00:24:07.220 --> 00:24:12.539 times of the week in different phases. This has 00:24:12.539 --> 00:24:16.240 been very interesting. And again, I think most 00:24:16.240 --> 00:24:19.519 veteran radio listeners wouldn't know about this, 00:24:19.680 --> 00:24:23.099 Will Brook. They wouldn't be able to maybe suggest 00:24:23.099 --> 00:24:26.000 it to somebody who this is perfect for. So I 00:24:26.000 --> 00:24:28.559 really appreciate the time that you've given 00:24:28.559 --> 00:24:31.980 us today to talk about how it's helped the family, 00:24:32.839 --> 00:24:35.240 as well as dad finally getting on board and going, 00:24:35.500 --> 00:24:38.759 okay, I'm gonna suck it up and do this myself 00:24:38.759 --> 00:24:43.240 and see the value. They were probably surprised 00:24:43.240 --> 00:24:46.279 that dad finally came around to it, but I bet 00:24:46.279 --> 00:24:50.650 they're all pretty happy. I've gotten a lot of 00:24:50.650 --> 00:24:54.829 positive comments, Jim, not just from my family, 00:24:54.890 --> 00:25:00.250 but also other veterans that are proud or thankful 00:25:00.250 --> 00:25:02.730 that I took this step. Because I am kind of a 00:25:02.730 --> 00:25:05.829 public figure. I'm a state house rep member. 00:25:06.950 --> 00:25:10.069 I'm pretty famous in my area. I'm a business 00:25:10.069 --> 00:25:14.309 owner. And I don't want to say I'm humble, but 00:25:14.309 --> 00:25:16.880 it takes a lot of humility. to admit that you 00:25:16.880 --> 00:25:19.339 need help and I've had a lot of veterans reach 00:25:19.339 --> 00:25:22.599 out to me and say thank you for what you've done. 00:25:23.599 --> 00:25:25.619 Absolutely and I want to thank you for taking 00:25:25.619 --> 00:25:28.559 time to share this story and give a little hope 00:25:28.559 --> 00:25:31.000 out there to the veteran community and maybe 00:25:31.000 --> 00:25:33.299 looking at equine therapy is something that they 00:25:33.299 --> 00:25:35.579 ought to do. Will thanks for your time today. 00:25:36.259 --> 00:25:38.980 Thank you Jim I appreciate you sir. And I want 00:25:38.980 --> 00:25:40.740 to thank everybody for listening to Veterans 00:25:40.740 --> 00:25:44.539 Radio today. I am Jim Fossone. It's been a pleasure 00:25:44.539 --> 00:25:47.180 to be your host. I'm a Veterans Disability Lawyer 00:25:47.180 --> 00:25:49.940 at Legal Help for Veterans, and you can reach 00:25:49.940 --> 00:25:55.900 us at 800 -693 -4800 or legalhelpforveterans 00:25:55.900 --> 00:25:59.119 .com on the web. You can follow Veterans Radio 00:25:59.119 --> 00:26:02.420 on Facebook and listen to its podcasts and Internet 00:26:02.420 --> 00:26:06.880 radio shows by visiting us at veteransradio .org. 00:26:07.000 --> 00:26:10.519 That's veteransradio .org. We would again want 00:26:10.519 --> 00:26:13.500 to thank our national sponsors, the National 00:26:13.500 --> 00:26:17.460 Veterans Business Development Council, nvbdc 00:26:17.460 --> 00:26:22.539 .org. 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