Tag: PTSD

Lifestyle, Writing, Podcasting, Military Life, Inspirtation, North Carolina

Veteran Voices: Reckoning Online Event TODAY!

alisonpaulklak

Warrior cultures of the past such as the Greeks, Romans, and Native Americans welcomed their military home in rituals of storytelling. Following in that tradition, Poetic Theater’s Veteran Voicesprogram seeks to revive these practices through creating an environment for veterans to share their stories, helping them to express those stories in a way that informs others, helping them recognize that their experiences do not define them and that they are universal and part of a long line of experiences from warriors throughout history and, to help them become comfortable sharing these works with others in an intimate but public setting.”

Military Community, wellness

Memorial Day is a Tough Day for Many

alisonpaulklak

As most people get to enjoy some much needed R&R today on Memorial Day, there are many who are directly impacted by its sentiment. These individuals have lost fathers, mothers, brothers, sisters, sons, daughters, uncles, aunts, friends and teammates. Survivors have to move forward each year with the guilt, trauma, and sadness which consumes them knowing they are alive and their loved one is not.

Lifestyle, Writing, Podcasting, Military Life, Inspirtation, North Carolina

Porch Talk: Three Friends Talk “Coping” During #PANDEMIC (while raising children/pregnancy)

alisonpaulklak

I recently had the chance to porch sit with my bestie neighbor, Miranda Crosby and our mutual friend Danica Thomas, to talk about the ups and downs we’ve experienced throughout the Covid-19 pandemic— and how we have coped with the changes in our lives. We brought our unique perspectives, backgrounds, personalities, quirks to the microphone 🎙 to chat candidly about this strange time in life that has turned the world 🌎 upside down. Miranda— an Army spouse whose husband deployed overseas in January— is pregnant with their first child all while wading through these new socially distant waters sans her husband. Danica— a widowed Army spouse, is a military suicide awareness and prevention advocate raising two young daughters as a single parent while working and virtually homeschooling her daughters all on her own. Alison (me)— an Army spouse, children’s book author, writer, podcaster trying to juggle content creation, marketing, writing, book sales while rejoicing as the final week of the school year approaches for her second grader. Thank the LORD.

Lifestyle, Writing, Podcasting, Military Life, Inspirtation, North Carolina

Veteran Voices

alisonpaulklak

Poetic Theater Productions' 5th Annual showcase of original work by #veterans, Veterans Voices, expressing their experiences and stories from within and beyond the #military will be held this coming Saturday, March 7th at 2pm Wild Project, 195 East 3rd Street, New York, NY. The event will feature theater, poetry and music. 
According to Eastern North Carolina native and veteran Omar Columbus— whose #poetry will be featured at the event, "Poetic Theater Productions' 5th annual showcase of original work by veterans, Veteran Voices calls upon the traditions of past warrior cultures such as the Greeks, Romans, and Native Americans, who welcomed their military home in rituals of storytelling.
Reviving these practices, military veteran artists take the stage to share their stories and experiences in a way that is both healing and informs others, sharing the moral burden of war.
Following the showcase, there will be a post-show discussion on the movement to support existing and new programming in New York which highlights veteran voices...

Lifestyle, Writing, Podcasting, Military Life, Inspirtation, North Carolina, Military Community, Uncategorized

Danica Thomas- Widowed Army Spouse, Service Member Suicide Awareness Advocate, Susan M. Tillis Foundation

alisonpaulklak

“I want to make a difference and make sure that our Veterans know there are many reasons to fight through the pain. They owe it to themselves and to those who lost their lives on the battlefield and the ones who lost their battle at home.” – Danica Thomas

Lifestyle, Writing, Podcasting, Military Life, Inspirtation, North Carolina

Guiding Wellness to the Military Community

alisonpaulklak

Kelsy Timas is guiding the military community to wellness— one soldier, one military spouse, one veteran at a time. Civilians are welcome to join the journey as well.
With 20 years experience in the health and wellness field, she has developed an entirely holistic establishment dedicated to healing individuals from the inside out.
I recently received the opportunity to visit Guiding Wellness Institute in Fayetteville, North Carolina to talk with Kelsy about her mission and passion which pours from every inch of her business.
The center offers services ranging from yoga, therapeutic massage, facial treatments, acupuncture, holistic life coaching, wellness and nutrition consultations onto to educational courses to include yoga teacher trainings.
In addition, Guiding Wellness Institute provides Warriors At Ease programs which supports health and healing of services members, veterans, military spouses and their families through yoga and meditation. The program was first developed in 2006 in partnership with Department of Defense-funded research at Walter Reed National Military Medical Center. 
Through the programs success, a teacher training curriculum was developed to meet the growing demand of specially-trained instructors to share the benefits of WAE to the military community. WAE has grown to a network of 750 plus teachers worldwide who serve warriors and their families in the United States and abroad.
One of the most unique features offered at the institute are FREE (yes, you read that right... FREE) yoga classes provided weekly on Wednesday (6:30-7:30pm), Thursday (6:30-7:30pm) and Friday (9:15a-10:30am) for all active & retired military to include military spouses and their family members.
Kelsy and I spoke in depth about the many beneficial services Guiding Wellness Institute provides. You can listen 👂 to our conversation here on Hodge Podge Podcast 👉: https://anchor.fm/jalisonpaulyahoocom/episodes/Kelsy-Timas--Guiding-Wellness-To-the-Military-Community-eamm03