Bryan Hood
Bryan Hood was raised in Springfield, Missouri where he joined the Army reserves at the age of 17. He knew he wanted to be a soldier since he was a small boy. As a child you'd find him playing G.I.Joe or guns with other neighborhood kids in the woods behind his house. Spending much of his summers at the family farm, Bryan had a love for the outdoors and adventure. In his teen years he struggled with many of the typical challenges and issues; poor grades, getting into fights, drinking, issues with his parents, etc. Having grown up in a Christian home and attending church regularly, he knew what was right but chose "the hard way".
After enlisting for active duty at the age of 19, he quickly married his 17 year old high school sweetheart, and began life at Ft. Stewart, Georgia. After being assigned duty stations in Georgia, Virginia and Germany, he decided to leave active duty in 2000. He then returned home to Springfield, Missouri with his wife and two kids, where he took a job with his father in the farm equipment business. He enlisted in the Army Reserves upon leaving active duty to continue his service. In 2003, Bryan's unit was called to active duty in support of Iraqi Freedom where he served 12 months in various locations in Iraq. After returning home, he spent a month at home trying to figure out what the next step in life was. A year later, he and his wife would divorce after many years of marital struggle.
About that time, he and some work mates sought out new careers in the private military sector, and began contract work in war zones. Bryan took a job with a very notable company and worked for them for five years, then worked another two doing similar work for a different company. During those seven years working in the intelligence community for a government agency, he never realized how much was going on back home. His older children were growing up without him and his new wife was "holding down the fort" with their infant son. In 2012, Bryan was injured in Kandahar in a non-combat accident, prohibiting him from ever returning to the "rock star", adrenaline junkie lifestyle. While trying to manage the CrossFit gym he began after his injury, and several subsequent surgeries, he began to sink into depression. During this time he struggled with anxiety, depression, survivor guilt from the loss of many friends, prior marital issues, isolating himself, trouble sleeping and an opiate addiction. He closed his CrossFit gym in November 2016 and told his wife, he was "ready to go to heaven". About the same time, an old contracting buddy reached out to him about a combat veteran retreat and encouraged him to commit to attend. In February 2017, he did and it changed his life.
Find Bryan's book on Amazon:
"Forged In The Flames Of Agony And Laughter: Experiences and lessons learned from a regular dude combat veteran who's lived an extraordinary life. So far."
Recently, being medically retired from the Army for PTSD and a host of other issues, Bryan has grown deeper than ever in his Christian faith. He mentors other combat veterans who struggle with PTSD. The path of Post Traumatic Growth has been amazing for Bryan, but has not always been easy. He still has his struggles and has learned skills to manage and practice during those "times in the valley". Beginning a career in network marketing forced Bryan to jump back into society and meet new people, to determine how he can positively impact their lives. He was recently interviewed by Dr. Richard Tedeschi and Dr. Bret Moore for their upcoming book on Post Traumatic Growth. Bryan was also invited to speak about his story on the Megyn Kelly Today Show with the founder of Boulder Crest Retreat, Ken Falke.
Here are the two links for Bryan's segments on the Megyn Kelly Today Show.
https://www.today.com/video/fighting-ptsd-veterans-and-active-duty-members-address-military-mental-health-crisis-1270084163642
https://www.today.com/video/-it-s-post-traumatic-growth-inside-a-facility-changing-the-lives-of-u-s-heroes-1270089795701
Bryan Hood was raised in Springfield, Missouri where he joined the Army reserves at the age of 17. He knew he wanted to be a soldier since he was a small boy. As a child you'd find him playing G.I.Joe or guns with other neighborhood kids in the woods behind his house. Spending much of his summers at the family farm, Bryan had a love for the outdoors and adventure. In his teen years he struggled with many of the typical challenges and issues; poor grades, getting into fights, drinking, issues with his parents, etc. Having grown up in a Christian home and attending church regularly, he knew what was right but chose "the hard way".
After enlisting for active duty at the age of 19, he quickly married his 17 year old high school sweetheart, and began life at Ft. Stewart, Georgia. After being assigned duty stations in Georgia, Virginia and Germany, he decided to leave active duty in 2000. He then returned home to Springfield, Missouri with his wife and two kids, where he took a job with his father in the farm equipment business. He enlisted in the Army Reserves upon leaving active duty to continue his service. In 2003, Bryan's unit was called to active duty in support of Iraqi Freedom where he served 12 months in various locations in Iraq. After returning home, he spent a month at home trying to figure out what the next step in life was. A year later, he and his wife would divorce after many years of marital struggle.
About that time, he and some work mates sought out new careers in the private military sector, and began contract work in war zones. Bryan took a job with a very notable company and worked for them for five years, then worked another two doing similar work for a different company. During those seven years working in the intelligence community for a government agency, he never realized how much was going on back home. His older children were growing up without him and his new wife was "holding down the fort" with their infant son. In 2012, Bryan was injured in Kandahar in a non-combat accident, prohibiting him from ever returning to the "rock star", adrenaline junkie lifestyle. While trying to manage the CrossFit gym he began after his injury, and several subsequent surgeries, he began to sink into depression. During this time he struggled with anxiety, depression, survivor guilt from the loss of many friends, prior marital issues, isolating himself, trouble sleeping and an opiate addiction. He closed his CrossFit gym in November 2016 and told his wife, he was "ready to go to heaven". About the same time, an old contracting buddy reached out to him about a combat veteran retreat and encouraged him to commit to attend. In February 2017, he did and it changed his life.
Find Bryan's book on Amazon:
"Forged In The Flames Of Agony And Laughter: Experiences and lessons learned from a regular dude combat veteran who's lived an extraordinary life. So far."
Recently, being medically retired from the Army for PTSD and a host of other issues, Bryan has grown deeper than ever in his Christian faith. He mentors other combat veterans who struggle with PTSD. The path of Post Traumatic Growth has been amazing for Bryan, but has not always been easy. He still has his struggles and has learned skills to manage and practice during those "times in the valley". Beginning a career in network marketing forced Bryan to jump back into society and meet new people, to determine how he can positively impact their lives. He was recently interviewed by Dr. Richard Tedeschi and Dr. Bret Moore for their upcoming book on Post Traumatic Growth. Bryan was also invited to speak about his story on the Megyn Kelly Today Show with the founder of Boulder Crest Retreat, Ken Falke.
Here are the two links for Bryan's segments on the Megyn Kelly Today Show.
https://www.today.com/video/fighting-ptsd-veterans-and-active-duty-members-address-military-mental-health-crisis-1270084163642
https://www.today.com/video/-it-s-post-traumatic-growth-inside-a-facility-changing-the-lives-of-u-s-heroes-1270089795701
PTSD to PTG
