Extreme sports outings help veterans with PTSD

SAN DIEGO — Post-traumatic stress disorder, or PTSD, begins when someone experiences heightened feelings of anxiety and emotional discomfort or stress after experiencing or witnessing a traumatic event, according to the American Psychiatric Association.

The National Center for PTSD estimates that among veterans from operations Iraqi Freedom and Enduring Freedom, between 11% and 20% have PTSD in any given year.

Recreation and sports are becoming increasingly common methods of therapy.

Near Fort Bragg in North Carolina, Warrior Adventure Quest organizes laser tag, hockey and paintball sessions as part of the resilience training for Army units. A Montana-based nonprofit — Xsports4vets — organizes extreme sports outings for military veterans, such as rockclimbing, skydiving and rafting.

Co-founder and Army veteran Anton Johnson said Xsports4vets was started after another co-founder’s family member took his life when he returned from Iraq. Janna Sherrill wanted to build a community for veterans returning home to link them to services and prevent social isolation.

“It really helps to fill out that missing piece of reconnecting with other veterans,” Johnson said. “We find that a lot of veterans, after they’re done serving, kind of get up and spread to the wind, so they lose some of that personal contact with their fellow battle buddies.”

Having a safe, sober outlet for excess adrenaline is another benefit of extreme sports for veterans, he said.

“Those things keep us safe while we’re in combat, but when we get home, our bodies don’t know what to do with the rushes that come with the adrenaline dumps or cortisol,” Johnson said. “We find that veterans can seek those rushes out in risky or unsafe behaviors, so we wanted to find an alternative that got veterans that same experience, but in a safe, sober environment.”

Kristen Walter, a clinical research psychologist at Naval Health Research Center, published a surf therapy study in 2019. Among the group of 70 military patients, primarily from the Marines and Navy, participants found that surfing improved symptoms for those living with depression and PTSD.

“There’s several ways I think the recreation therapy can complement other forms of treatment,” Walter said. “It often uses a strength-based approach, rather than deficit-based. I think that focusing on strength can be a very nice way to engage people in care and also allow them to get experiential treatment.”

SAN DIEGO UNION-TRIBUNE / TNS Michael Spivey, with wife Kris Spivey in 2019, started surfing and snowboarding after suffering a traumatic brain injury in Afghanistan. Researchers believe extreme sports and recreation therapy can help focus on what is rewarding in life, as opposed to therapy that focuses on what is wrong.