Positude Podcast: PowWow with Jennifer Hixon “A Soldier's Heart”

A Holistic Approach to PTSD Maggie, host of the Positude show, introduced her guest, Jennifer Hixon, from the non-profit A Soldier’s Heart. Maggie highlighted the "drastically growing" numbers of veteran suicides, attributing the crisis to the government's failure to address Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) effectively. She contrasted the government's approach—which she described as releasing soldiers directly into the public, medicating them with pills, or even researching brain chips to "nullify" emotions—with the work of A Soldier's Heart. The organization, founded by Dr. Ed Tick, focuses on healing veterans' "invisible wounds" in a holistic and spiritual manner, encouraging them to talk about, process, and heal from their trauma rather than suppressing it. Jennifer's Path to A Soldier's Heart Jennifer explained her involvement began six years ago when a successful, MIT-educated friend (a veteran) re-entered her life. He was deeply depressed and had attempted suicide twice, though the gun jammed both times. He was exhibiting severe physical symptoms, but doctors could find nothing medically wrong, leading Jennifer to understand the concept of an "invisible wound." Together, they explored spiritual and holistic texts (A New Earth, Soul Retrieval), which began to help him. A few years later, a friend gave Jennifer Dr. Ed Tick’s book, War and the Soul. She was stunned to find it articulated everything she and her friend had experienced. Upon discovering Dr. Tick was local, she volunteered at his organization, A Soldier's Heart, and has been there for nearly three years. Redefining Post-Traumatic Stress Jennifer explained the philosophy of A Soldier's Heart, emphasizing that they reject the term "Disorder" (the "D" in PTSD). She stated: Post-traumatic stress is a "natural reaction to an abnormal situation." It is not a medical disorder but a "moral injury," a "fall from grace," and a "loss of innocence." She stressed the profound disconnect between veterans and the public. The military constitutes less than 1% of the population. While civilians are "at Starbucks," soldiers are making impossible moral decisions and witnessing atrocities, such as seeing children set on fire or a 12-year-old girl (the same age as their daughter) begging to be killed after being repeatedly raped during an ethnic cleansing. When these soldiers return, they often "protect us" by remaining silent, especially when they sense civilians (and even some therapists) cannot handle their stories. A Soldier's Heart aims to teach civilians and families to "honor that sacrifice... by hearing their stories" without judgment. Ancient Wisdom for Modern Wounding Jennifer detailed how Dr. Tick’s methods are based on studying how ancient cultures integrated their warriors: