I grew up in the Adirondack Park of Upstate, NY. I’m grateful for my roots. I am one of the last of eight children, a twin. I grew up on a ninety acre farm, and love the area I came from - truly one of the last unspoiled places. It is my deeply held conviction that my exposure to this wilderness area contributed to my ability to recover from trauma.

I received my A.A.S. degree in 1981 from Clinton Community College, Plattsburgh, NY. While holding four part-time jobs, I delayed enlisting in the U.S. Army. In January, 1981, I entered active duty as a Medical Specialist. My main incentive was serving my country. From 1981 to 1986, I did just that - receiving Basic Training at Fort McClellen, Alabama and Advanced Individual Training at Fort Sam Houston, Texas. I was first stationed in Colorado Springs, Colorado, later in Stuttgart, Germany. I left active duty in January '84, adding three years of reserve time at the local VA hospital.

My therapist speaks of my "Contradictions." I am living evidence. Things can look great on the outside, and feel terribly broken on the inside. Following an armed robbery in 1996, I struggled with what was later to be diagnosed as Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) and Major Depression. Following the robbery it took me a year to seek assistance. I thought I could deal with it on my own. I was mistaken. Through therapy I learned that it's not always important to appear in control. That's my mask. I've learned that sometimes showing your vulnerability can actually be a sign of strength. It took me a long time to get to that reality.

In therapy the story that unraveled was one of years of trauma and abuse, perpetrated on me predominantly in the military; and then, oh yes, the tradition carried on quite well by itself. I had mistaken beliefs that what had happened to me was normal; as a matter of fact, they hadn't even registered on my radar as ‘abnormal’ until after I had a gun held to my head. All my life I guess I'd been operating under the principle that something was wrong with me; I was, somehow, flawed; " … it was me, what was broken". It was not. I accepted disability retirement in 2001. Ultimately, my therapist recommended the WTRP at the VA Palo Alto Health Care System.

WTRP saved my life. They didn't cure me, or fix me. Instead, they helped me find the tools and begin the process of building a new life. They showed me a map, and then helped me to draw my own. They taught me that even though PTSD is a part of my life, it doesn't have to be MY life. That I can be "This" AND "That". This program has given me tools that I utilize to get through every day, and to begin that process every day JOYFULLY. Blessings to you for your journey.