What Keeps Vets Alive After Service

The stress does not stay at work. It follows you into your sleep, your marriage, and your patience with your kids. Guest, Johnnie Gilpen, talks about a stretch in pediatric emergency medicine where he lost six kids in a short time and had to face a direct question from a colleague about how he was coping. He explains the three supports he relies on: faith, three people he can call without hesitation, and counseling plus honest conversation. He connects it to a simple military idea, the three-man foxhole, and shows how to set that up in civilian life so you are not isolated when things get heavy. He closes with writing and storytelling, including Warhorse Journal, and how putting events on paper can help your spouse understand what you have not been able to say out loud. Timestamps: 03:15: Losing six kids fast and the coping question 04:45: The three supports he uses every time 06:15: A Vietnam-era dad and the cost of staying silent 11:00: Building a three-person call list and using it early 28:30: Writing small stories that change home life Links & Resources Veteran Suicide & Crisis Line: Dial 988, then press 1 Website: https://www.johnniegilpen.com Follow Johnnie Gilpen on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/johnniegilpen/ Transcript View the transcript for this episode.