COLORADO SPRINGS — The importance of mental health is a big conversation today. And veterans are no strangers to having mental health struggles.
Stan Culbert was just 20 years old when he was drafted into Vietnam. He spent his 21st birthday overseas. He says he never imagined it would spark a 25-year career in the army.
Stan doesn’t go into detail but says what he saw in Vietnam still haunts him today. He calls himself a fighter. Fighting off the memories of the war. Stan’s brother also served in the Vietnam war.
He tells me his brother had an especially hard time returning to society. His brother suffered from post-traumatic stress disorder after witnessing horrific events overseas.
“PTSD was new, and they were still working, and stuff and they had him on medication that didn’t help him and it actually made him worse until he got a provider at San Francisco, Presidio,” said Stan.
Stan’s brother wasn’t alone. Many veterans are still coping with the memories they have of war.
There is help. Here are the services available for veterans through the Mt. Carmel Veterans Center.
VETERAN SERVICES:
Veterans Crisis Line
1-800-273-8255, press 1
VeteransCrisisLine.net
Suicide Prevention Collaborative of El Paso County– Visit this page and scroll all the way to the bottom for a full list of services.
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