Talking with the wounded

Best day of my life; not for the goat.

Formerly in the Blue & Royals, Simon Moloney, a sniper in Afghanistan, becomes the hunted.  After getting shot through the neck, first aid from his team medic, he re-joins the fight - which he is subsequently awarded the Conspicuous Gallantry Cross for.  There were worse days to come on that tour, and long after leaving it all comes back.  If this were a book you wouldn't put it down; and don't spare a thought for the goat!
Simon has been supported by PTSD Resolution - a charity he recommends to anyone serving or ex services who no matter how small may suffer from PTSD: PTSD Resolution Charity for UK Forces Veterans Mental Health
Simon is also a trustee of a new charity he champions called Head Up - Mental Health Awareness For UK Armed Forces | Head Up (head-up.org.uk)

Chinook Crew Chick

From "How very dare they!" at being shot at, to the the highs and lows of military life - Liz McConaghy takes us on her journey as the longest serving female Chinook crew member. Part of that role was MERT (Medical Emergency Recovery Team) collecting the injured from the battlefield which many of the previous guests have first hand experience of. Her proudest work..but it came at a cost. An inspiration, and well worth an hour of your time.  
Her book is a great read - "Chinook Crew Chick"- available at Waterstones, Amazon etc
The charities Liz refers to that she couldn't live without :
Combat Stress - Mental health services for veterans | Combat Stress
Help 4 Heroes - UK Armed Forces and military veterans charity | Help For Heroes
Op Courage - The NHS Veterans Mental Health initiative - Mental health support for veterans, service leavers and reservists - NHS (www.nhs.uk)
And the one she volunteers for Aerobility  
 

Bad news comes in 3’s

We could have called this episode "I woke up in Birmingham" as my guest, Carl Shadrake has done it more than once.  He is also the first guest on this podcast from a leadership role.  We get a unique perspective what its like when the leader is the casualty; how it is to return to the scene,  and go through it all again. Third event is best left for you to listen to.
Carl's chosen charities who have helped him along the way are listed below.  And here is his business should Project Management positions within the built environment on defence contracts be of interest: www.cspmconsultancy.co.uk
Carls charities are: 
SSAFA, the Armed Forces charity
UK Armed Forces and military veterans charity | Help For Heroes
The Colonel's Fund - Grenadier Guards (grengds.com)
This is the last episode before Christmas - have a wonderful festive season and look forward to you joining us for Series 2 in the New Year.
Want to be my guest - email me at: thesearchchicken@gmail.com
 

Family I never knew I needed.

Karl Warde takes us on his journey into darkness, eventual PTSD diagnosis and the journey back to the light.  A harrowing story of one mans war and how it changes everything.
The following charities have helped Karle pick up the pieces:
Home - Veterans Aid (veterans-aid.net)
The Colonel's Fund - Grenadier Guards (grengds.com)
My contact details: thesearchchicken@gmail.com
 

Click Bait

Jason Gould tells us about nearly losing it all and his incredible recovery.  Inspirational doesn't begin to describe him, the people who saved him,  and the hundreds who put him back together.  This will move you.  If that's not enough he also tells us about the incredible job he does now.
Jason's chosen charities are BLESMA and the Colonels Fund - for giving him the confidence and skills to grab life and live it to the full. Their links are below.  If you want to get hold of me or would like to tell your story please email:  thesearchchicken@gmail.com
www.blesma.org
www.grengds.com/colonels-fund
 

Headbutting Bullets

Alex Harrison talks us through how he came to being shot in the head, walking off the battlefield after pointing out where the enemy were - for which he was decorated, and the slide into the abyss that is PTSD and his subsequent recovery. a remarkable man who has a very matter of fact way of telling his story

Headbutting Bullets

Alex Harrison talks us through how he came to being shot in the head, walking off the battlefield after pointing out where the enemy were - for which he was subsequently decorated and the slide into the abyss that is PTSD and his subsequent recovery.  A remarkable man who has a very matter of fact way of telling his story.
Alex can be found on Insta at: https://www.instagram.com/one_eyed_harry/#
The Charities Alex refers to who have helped in his recovery:
The Colonel's Fund - Grenadier Guards (grengds.com)
Welcome - Walking With The Wounded
The Not Forgotten - The Not Forgotten
Behind the Heroes CiC
To contact me email: thesearchchicken@gmail.com if you have a story to tell.

Happy blow up day.

"Happy blow Up day" - his line not mine - it will become clear.  Episode 1 has Tony Checkley talk us through his military journey; the good, the bad and the ugly.  From hysterical encounters with the Queen, to stepping on a landmine and the chaos thereafter, and who has helped in his recovery. 
This is the first one I recorded - making all the obvious mistakes regarding music, transitioning, sound quality etc etc... but if you can get over all that - which is easy to do such is the captivating story Tony has to tell, you will hopefully not notice that this shouldn't really be called a podcast but a short story. 
Tony mentions a couple of charities which have been a part of his recovery:
The Colonel's Fund - Grenadier Guards (grengds.com)   
Military Charity for Limbless Veterans | Blesma
"Talking with the wounded" is a twice a monthly publication - gives you time to listen to the longer ones and me time to try and work out how to improve the production side of things..which may not be evident in the first series.  
Thanks for listening - please follow and share and send me your comments.
Ben