Former Special Forces and Warriors Heart Co-Founder Tom Spooner spoke candidly about how he dealt with prescription drug abuse and suicide thoughts after coming home from war during a moving KCJE 1370 AM Talk Radio interview on March 28, 2016 on the Let’s Get Healthy show. Tom’s new mission is to stop the 22 veteran suicides per day in the US, which is why he co-founded Warriors Heart (a private peer-to-peer healing program for our protectors) and Mission 22.
Host Bill Swail and Dr. Marianne Calvanese asked Tom questions about his military experience, mission and recovery. After over 20 years of deployments, including in Iraq and Afghanistan, Tom shared his first-hand struggles with addiction, PTSD and reconnecting with his family that many veterans face in their War at Home.
Tom expanded that because many doctors are way too quick to use prescription drugs as band-aids versus address the real issues, the result is often painkiller addiction. Veterans are actually twice as likely to die from accidental opioid overdoses than non-veterans, according to a 2011 study of the VA system. In comparison, Warriors Heart focuses on healing the whole body, including chemical dependencies, PTSD and other mild co-occurring disorders.
Host Bill Swail added that when these prescriptions run out, many veterans sadly turn to heroin, and then fall into a more dangerous spiral of lost jobs and homelessness. Tom Spooner responded to this comment by adding, “We want people to know that is not ok.”
When asked to expand on this new program, Tom explained that Warriors Heart is the first private healing center for “Warriors Only” (veterans, military, law enforcement and first responders) that will provide peer-to-peer healing for those dealing with addiction, PTSD and mild TBI (Traumatic Brain Injury). Along with a 28-day residential treatment program, Warriors Heart will give “Warriors” the option of Day Treatment, Outpatient, and Sober Living (60 Day Minimum).
As part of a dedicated team of warriors opening Warriors Heart, Spooner invites everyone to join the “ War Against Suicide.”
Warriors Heart is located on a ranch in Bandera, Texas (just outside San Antonio), and is the Mission 22 solution-side to chemical dependency. For more information, visit http://warriorsheart.com
