Episode 456 Stephanie Weaver Warrior PATHH for Post-Traumatic Growth Transcript

This transcript is from episode 456 with guest Stephanie Weaver.

[00:00:00]

Scott DeLuzio: Hey everyone, welcome back to Drive On. I’m your host, Scott DeLuzio, and today my guest is Stephanie Weaver, uh, the Warrior PATHH Program Manager at Camp Southern Ground. And we’re going to dive into a much needed topic today, uh, discussing the Warrior PATHH Program. program and how it supports the active duty service members, veterans, first responders, uh, and all those who are experiencing traumas, uh, that they, they’ve, uh, they’ve gone through.

And we’re also going to, uh, share a little bit about, uh, what Camp Southern Ground has to offer. So, uh, before we get into all that, uh, Stephanie, I want to welcome you to the show. I’m really glad to have you here.

Stephanie Weaver: Thank you for having me. I’m very honored to be here and excited to tell you more about Warrior PATHH and Camp Southern Ground.

Scott DeLuzio: Yeah, absolutely. So, um, let’s start off with Warrior PATHH. Uh, tell us a little bit about what Warrior PATHH is, uh, what the program is, how it differs maybe from other support programs that are out there. And, uh, yeah, kind of all about Warrior [00:01:00] PATHH.

Stephanie Weaver: Great, thank you. Yeah, so Warrior PATHH, um, differs from the other programs that are out there because we are non clinical, um, Warrior PATHH is not therapy, it’s not treatment, uh, it’s not even a retreat, uh, it is a training program based off of the concept of post traumatic growth. So, we hear about post traumatic stress, we get the label of having PTSD or anxiety or depression, and then we tend to feel like this is the best that life is going to be because of the service we gave or continue to give, whereas when we come to Warrior PATHH, you learn a variety of different practices and concepts all based off of post traumatic growth.

Mm

Scott DeLuzio: of post traumatic growth. I’ve heard it before from, from some other folks and, um, you know, hearing it now from you, it just kind of reminds me, um, of that because sometimes when we’re talking about things like PTSD, post traumatic stress, uh, you know, disorder, we, uh, [00:02:00] we kind of get stuck in that past, in whatever it was that happened to us back then, and that becomes almost like a defining moment.

Like, I am a, you know, a victim of whatever this trauma was that I experienced, and that’s who I am. And it’s hard to pull yourself and kind of separate yourself from any sort of trauma. Um, and you get stuck, and you don’t know how to move forward and move on from that. And that’s what that term post traumatic growth, uh, you know, gives me.

The, the hope that there’s, there’s something new, there’s something better. Uh, I don’t, I don’t have to be stuck as a, uh, you know, a victim of whatever this trauma happened to be. Um, could you tell us a little bit about the, kind of the background of Warrior PATHH and kind of how it got started and, um, what, maybe what more important, why it got started and, and [00:03:00] how.

That can now has led to the creation of this program and how it can help folks who are going through it and maybe describing a little bit about what that, that, that, uh, background was.

Stephanie Weaver: Yeah, um, so Warrior PATHH, uh, was created by a, a guy named Ken Falk and Josh Goldberg, and Ken Falk was a Navy EOD tech, and he, when he retired from the service, him and his wife would go visit service members at Walter Reed that had lost limbs or that were just struggling with some type of mental health, and what they, What they realized, because they’d bring them out to, to their, their farm, which was there in Virginia, and what they found was that the typical approach, or the mainstream approach to mental health just wasn’t enough, and there had to be, there had to be something different, and there had to be something more.

And so Ken started this journey trying to find that, and he went to a lot of different places around the country and programs. [00:04:00] And what he ended up finding was, um, at UNC Charlotte, um, with two professors. Dr. Rich Tedeschi and Lawrence Calhoun, and they had coined this term called post traumatic growth back in 1995, and he asked them, do you think that this would work for the warrior community, and they said absolutely would work, and they they said yes.

They showed them studies that they had done from the Hanoi Hilton and how did these prisoners of wars come back and be able to function and not only just function but go on and to live great lives after have been through such a traumatic experience of being tortured and starved, and be able to come back where a majority of us thought they were going to come back and not be able to, to be the people that they were before they left.

And so that’s where this whole concept of post traumatic growth came from. Is again, it’s, it’s more, it’s, it’s not, with post traumatic growth, it is focused on the aftermath of [00:05:00] the, uh, of the trauma, not on the specific event, which is what PTS is and PTSD is focused on.

Scott DeLuzio: Right. And I like the, the focus on that, that aftermath. Um, you know, what, what’s next? That’s okay. Yeah, sure. That thing happened. We can acknowledge that it happened. It’s not like we’re, we’re trying to hide it or anything, but let’s focus on the, the what’s next, what, what’s in the future. Um, and you know, we. all experience trauma in, in one form or another throughout our life, we’re no one’s gonna be immune to it. I, you know, I, I, I wish we could be, uh, that, that would be nice if there was some, uh, program out there that, that completely made you immune to any sort of trauma. Right? Um, not, but it doesn’t happen that way.

It’s not realistic, I don’t think. And, um, you know, as, as great as it sounds even, um. It, it may not be even the best thing. Um, you know, I, I’ve talked to [00:06:00] some people who have, uh, you know, they, they had cancer or something and they had a, you know, not a great, uh, diagnosis and, and they ended up beating it and they, they got better.

And, um, you know, they’re, they’re now, they survived and now they’re thriving. Um, and sometimes it sounds so counterintuitive, but some of them were like, that’s the best thing that’s ever happened to me. Uh, and it’s like, wait, what? Come again? Um, but it, but the lessons learned like through this, this growth, um, you know, and without that traumatic experience, they may not have experienced the, the growth that comes from it afterwards.

Um, I’m not saying that everyone needs to go, you know, You know, get into a car accident or go start smoking cigarettes so they get cancer and you know, you know, all that kind of stuff, don’t do that to yourself. Like don’t, don’t go purposely do that. There’s, there’s enough stuff going on in the world that you’re, you know, eventually

Stephanie Weaver: Mm hmm. Mm

Scott DeLuzio: unfortunate will happen.

But it’s how do you deal with that and how do you get those, those tools [00:07:00] or those resources to carry along with you, um, that you can, you know, You may not need it every single day. You might, you know, especially early on, you might need it. But once when you kind of learn those, those tools and resources, maybe it’s something that you can use.

You know, just go back to when, when something unexpected happens or, you know, uh, a trigger, you know, comes up or something like that, uh, you’re, you have those tools that you can now go back to and, and help you continue move, move forward, right? Is that kind of what, um, the, the Warrior PATHH program, what, what people can kind of hope to, to get out of the program?

Um, you know, maybe you can talk a little bit more about that, uh, you know, what that whole process looks like too.

Stephanie Weaver: Sure. Yeah, it’s a again. There’s there’s no guarantees with with Warrior PATHH Like I mentioned it was it’s a training program. So it’s 75 contact hours that you come for a week followed on by 83 days of Basically follow up and connection [00:08:00] is really what it’s a course that you work through but the course is all just designed of just keeping connected with people that have been through Warrior PATHH and just reminding you of the concepts that you learned.

So when when people come to Warrior PATHH we don’t call them, we don’t call them tools and I think To share a little bit about my story is I needed something that I could use every single day rather than run into a doctor’s office or to a therapist’s office. Which I thought was my only option at the time.

I thought that was just gonna be my new norm. I wanted something before I walked into Walmart or before I walked into a restaurant to eat with my family. Okay, what can I use now? Or even just sitting here in the house. We were alone with our thoughts. What can I use? And so that’s what we, we do at Warrior PATHH.

Um, we have, uh, five domains of post traumatic growth, which are personal strength, deeper relationships, appreciation for life, spiritual and existential change, and new possibilities. And [00:09:00] so, we have this roadmap that we use when you come to Warrior PATHH, and we teach you a, uh, a variety of wellness practices, um, we talk about disclosure, about saying the things that are just, that are important.

With people that we trust that we just need to get out and say out loud. Um, so again you learn a different practices because we like to use that term rather than tools because when I was struggling I was tired of going to my toolbox. I didn’t want to feel broken anymore. I needed something that I could use and you think about the professional athletes or even our warrior training we had a practice as something to be proficient and so that’s what we do at Warrior PATHH is we provide different practices that you can use so that you can use it any time of the day whenever you need it.

Scott DeLuzio: Yeah. And I, I had used the term tools, uh, you know, earlier, and, um, to me, the analogy of a toolbox is there’s, [00:10:00] uh, there’s something functional that, uh, I need to use a tool because there’s something that maybe it’s broken. I need to fix it. You know, you know, something came loose and I got, I have to have a screw loose and I have to retighten that screw or, you know, uh, you know, hammer a nail, you know, into something to, to fix something.

Um, and that, that was kind of a visual that I had, but as you’re talking, it’s like, okay, well, maybe it’s not. The best visual because you have something that needs to be fixed, but you know, maybe that person isn’t broken, right? That person’s responding in a normal, natural way to an abnormal, unnatural kind of event, right?

Um, you know, it may be a natural event, you know, depending on what the situation is, but um, It’s, it’s, it’s not a normal, uh, event that, that you go through, you know, on a daily basis. You’re not [00:11:00] in a car accident every single day. You’re not in combat every single day. You’re not, you know, all these things are not having to, every single day.

It’s not a normal thing to have to endure those types of traumas. Um, and so, You react the way a normal human would. Um, and, so it’s not that you need to be fixed, it’s, you just need to know what to do. How to cope with those things. Right? And so that, that’s something that to your point, you, you do need to carry that around with you.

It’s not a, a tool that you go, you know, let me go grab that screwdriver ’cause that screw’s coming loose and I gotta go fix that screw. Um, it’s something that you, you keep with you on a daily basis. So you’re, you’re handling things before they become problems,

Stephanie Weaver: Mm hmm. Mm hmm. Yeah, it’s a, it’s more of a preventive maintenance, I guess, is as we call it. And the reason why we do these, it’s also not [00:12:00] just because we want to be able to react better, we want to be able to respond. So, because of the things I had seen and experienced, my family got the worst of me. And when I come home and, for instance, my son would spill Cheerios, I would react on him.

Scott DeLuzio: Mm-hmm

Stephanie Weaver: And, and where if I just had taken a moment to take a step back, do some of the practices that I’d learned, I could have then connected with him and responded so that now he’s not terrified if he has an accident like that. So that’s where these things are more of, of a, of a preventive maintenance type thing.

So it’s like changing your oil in your car.

Scott DeLuzio: Yeah, right. I was actually going to use that exact example. Changing the oil in your car, changing your tires, you know, you, you want to do that before your engine starts smoking, right? You, you want to, you want to change your tires before they, they are completely bald and you know, you have no grip on the road and you end up causing an [00:13:00] accident.

That’s when, that’s when things need to be fixed. Um, you know, it’s not that there’s anything wrong. It’s normal that your tires wear out. It’s normal that the oil level gets low as, as you use the car, because that’s just what. It happens, that’s

Stephanie Weaver: Right.

Scott DeLuzio: I mean, it’s not like you did anything wrong. Uh, it’s not like, oh, I drove my car too much and that’s why the tires are bald.

Well, okay, fine, but fix it. And, or not fix it, but, you know, change those tires out, and then you don’t have a problem. Right? And it’s not anything that needs fixing, it’s just needs fixing. Something that needs addressing, um, and, and that’s, I think, I think a much better way to look at it than the, the toolbox analogy that I, I was giving before, um, is, is just that preventative maintenance when we did it in the military all the time on, you know, our vehicles, on our, our weapons, on, on all sorts of things, um, you, you do that preventative maintenance so that when you need, uh, to be at your peak performance, you can be at your peak performance without having all this equipment breaking down.

Um, yeah. [00:14:00] Same thing with us, you know, we’re, we’re built like that too. We, we need maintenance as well. Um, you know, we, we need to take care of ourselves, uh, both physically and mentally.

Stephanie Weaver: Mm hmm.

Scott DeLuzio: and make sure that we, we come to whatever situation in our life as the top level that we can be that with the most potential.

Um, and, and so, yeah, I, I love that, that. Visual, um, I’m very much into analogies and trying to, you know, make comparisons to other things in real life. So, um, you know, this is all real life, but, uh, you know, but in, you know, your, your everyday day to day life that people can latch on to that. Yeah, I get the fact that I need to change oil in my car or change the tires or even put gas in the car, you know, you know, all those things are just a normal natural occurrence that that happens through the usage of the vehicle.[00:15:00]

You know, normally, we don’t, we don’t see a traumatic event. But When we do we we need to have some sort of way to deal with that and what what type of maintenance is involved So that way we don’t flip out when you know, our our kids make a little mess or something By the way, that’s not uncommon that that that type of reaction happens So if people are out there listening to it and thinking Like oh my gosh, I you know, I’m I’m such a monster because I’m reacting this way.

No, obviously, you shouldn’t react that way. But you did. But it’s normal that people do this. But there’s better ways to handle that. Right?

Stephanie Weaver: Right. Exactly. Yeah. I mean, again, you know, that struggle is always going to be there. Um, again, we’d be, we’d be really rich people and. It’d be great to solve [00:16:00] all the problems in the world. Um, we just like to, we have an analogy that we use, uh, a light switch. So we’re either on or off all the time. And so it’s, when you come to Warrior PATHH, it’s just learning on how to instill that, that dimmer switch.

Um, because it’s a training gap. You’re not, it’s not a flaw in your character because of the struggles that you’re going through, which we kind of beat ourselves up like, gosh, I’m a horrible person because I can’t connect with my family. It’s a training gap. No one trains you how to then leave the service or um, even with first responders.

I mean, every day that, you know, they, they go to battles in my eyes, you know, they don’t know what they’re going to encounter and then they have to come home and then function normal. No one told you on, hey, this is some training that and how you can now not be so reactive. You can respond, um, in a way that you can still connect because you’re right.

That struggle is going to come. That flat tire is going to come. Even if you just change, you change your tires, things are great, that flat tire is going to come, but how do you respond to that?

Scott DeLuzio: Yeah, [00:17:00] exactly. How do you respond? And what what do you do with that? And and I like that the Another analogy, I’m big on these things, but another one that you used was that dimmer switch, um, where, yeah, sure, there may be times when you need to turn it up to ten, and you need to be full on, and the military does a great job at having you go from zero to ten.

In, you know, in

Stephanie Weaver: It’s our training.

Scott DeLuzio: that’s our training. Yeah. And, and they want you to, because there’s no going into combat half assed and saying like, oh yeah, well, maybe I’ll, I’ll fight if this happens. And it’s like, no, you’re going into fight and that’s, that’s it. Like, there’s no question about it. You just go in, you fight, you do your, your job and, and, and you get out.

And so that, that’s kind of the mindset that we, They had drilled into us.

Stephanie Weaver: hmm.

Scott DeLuzio: And so now it it’s all or nothing when that, when that cereal hit the [00:18:00] floor, it’s like, well, that wasn’t supposed to be there. Um, it wasn’t supposed to be like that. So now I got it. I got to crank it up to 10 to address that situation and yell and scream and everything like that, because we don’t have that dimmer switch installed.

Right. Um, But if we can dial that back down, like, sure, there may need to be some sort of reaction, especially if it was like a, you know, a correctable thing, like they purposely threw it on the floor. It’s like, okay, well, sure, as a parent, you should, you should correct the kid, but not by becoming a drill sergeant and screaming in their face and, you know, all that kind of stuff, because that isn’t helpful. You know, that just instills fear and um, isn’t really what you want when you’re talking about, you know, situations like that. Now, they’re about to run out in the street and get hit by a truck. Yeah, sure, crank it up to 10. But, you know, they’re two completely different scenarios, right? Um, and so, so I like that [00:19:00] analogy, that you put that.

So, um, So I know you, you had described it as non clinical, uh, the, the program. Um, can you tell us a little bit about what that is specifically, uh, versus a more clinical approach and kind of what the differences are between those two, just in case any, any of the listeners are confused on, on the difference between that and like what it is that you’re referring to.

Yeah,

Stephanie Weaver: do my, my best, um, With the difference, um, again, you know, with the, with therapy and with, I was on 11 different medications when I left the service. Um, I tried therapy and I go in, feel okay maybe for an hour, talk to them, maybe connect, maybe not connect, and then on a lot of meds that, Really, I think just made it worse for me.

Um, whereas Warrior PATHH, um, again, it, it’s, it’s not [00:20:00] clinical. We’re not going to sit around in a circle. We’re not going to tell a bunch of war stories. Um, it, it, it’s really just coming in and getting training. And we even call it a leadership program because with warriors, we don’t have a monopoly on trauma.

You kind of mentioned it earlier that everyone has some type of, of trauma or, and. And so it’s really about getting back out there into the community and also helping them because they don’t have the same resources that we do. And so that’s another analogy of why we’re different is that we don’t need a professional license to go out and talk about post traumatic growth and just connect with people.

Which we know connection is such an important thing. I mean the Surgeon General’s talking about loneliness. There’s a Harvard study on adult development that’s been going on for many years regarding loneliness. And so that’s one of the the big things we talk about is how do we go connect with civilians?

Because most of our interaction is with civilians. It’s in so That’s [00:21:00] what makes us different. It’s not just a hey quick pill. It’s a lifestyle change. It’s a lifestyle choice. Makes for your path a little bit different.

Scott DeLuzio: Well, and the good thing, too, about what you were just talking about, uh, reaching out to other people outside of the first responder, veteran, military communities, um, you’re right, a hundred percent, that the vast majority of people we’re going to interact with are not involved in those communities at all.

Um, they’re, they, they may not have any, even family members or any sort of connection

Stephanie Weaver: Mm

Scott DeLuzio: communities. And so their understanding of what those people go through, I’m not saying they’re incapable of understanding. It’s just not on their radar. Um, you know, it’s, it’s not going to be that, that big of a, uh, understanding from them.

And then, then you get, um, that conversation going and you, and you make that connection, um, to them. And 100%, you’re right, other people are going to, you know, regular civilians are going to have traumas in their own life. [00:22:00] And if we can share and spread some of these, these, uh, ways of coping and dealing with these things with those folks, um, you know, imagine if everyone had these things, if, if this was just standard procedure that, you know, Kindergarten, first grade, or something.

I don’t know what the age appropriateness is for this, and we just start teaching these kids, uh, you know, how to deal with life as it happens to them, you know, the, the traumas of life because things eventually will, will happen to them. Um, how much better off would, would society be, you know, if everybody just had, had this, um, you know?

Uh, I, I feel like it’s a, um, It’s almost like one of those things where it’s like, we shouldn’t keep this a secret. We got to spread this out. And so to your point, you know, when, when you get out there in that community and you’re talking to other people, you’re, you’re helping to spread that awareness, um, not only of the things that first responders and military [00:23:00] folks go through, but also how to deal with those things and grow from those things and, and, you know, Kind of use that as a springboard to something bigger and better down the line, right?

Stephanie Weaver: Right. That’s the, that’s the ultimate goal of when, when Ken Path or Ken Falk and, um, and Josh Goldberg really created this was, um, to go out there and, and make it a common term. Um, and again, there’s, there’s gonna be times that of course, you know, in my opinion, that yeah, people need to go to therapy. They need something a little bit deeper.

They need something there. Um, so again, it’s not, it’s not bashing therapy. It’s not bashing medication. Um, but there’s a better way, um, a different way of doing things.

Scott DeLuzio: Yeah, for sure. And again, just to be clear, this is in no way intended to, you know, bring you on to bash anything like

Stephanie Weaver: Oh, yeah,

Scott DeLuzio: know, those are a hundred percent, um, you know, valid options for people for [00:24:00] full disclosure. I’m still in, I’m in therapy right now. And so like, I’m not. Anti therapy at all, you know, um, but one of the biggest things for me, especially with the show, having, uh, you know, so many veteran, uh, and military connected people listening to the show, I want to provide options and let people know that there are Other things outside of traditional therapy where, you know, you and a therapist sitting on a couch and, you know, going, pouring your heart out and doing all this stuff.

It’s like, there are other options and this is one of them. It, it’s one of those approaches that, um, You may not be aware of, um, if you’re, you’re coming out of the service. I know they, they give you lots of resources and information for things that are available to you now that you’re becoming a veteran.

And, um, you know, you’re still trying to figure out what a veteran is. And you’re trying to figure out, what do I want to be when I grow up after the military? And, uh, you, you, you [00:25:00] have all these other questions and all the information that they give you. It’s like drinking, drinking from a fire hose. It’s so much information.

Um. Um, and if you don’t need it right then and there in that moment, you’re probably going to end up forgetting it. Um, and so, yeah, granted, I have had a lot of episodes and I’m not expecting anybody to sit there and listen to every episode, um, that I’ve had on this show. But, um, I like to highlight some of these resources and hopefully, um, you know, it’s hitting the right people at the right time. Um, you know, but That’s why, that’s why I want to have people like you on, uh, to, to talk about the, these types of resources. Um, now, in addition to the Warrior PATHH program, uh, that you, you, you offer, uh, tell us a little bit more about Camp Southern Ground and, and what that, um, what that, uh, camp is all about and, and what people can expect from that

Stephanie Weaver: Yeah. So, uh, with Camp Southern Ground, um, I [00:26:00] try not to get emotional talking about how, how awesome this place is. Um, so, and I kind of mentioned when I was, when I was really struggling, um, I was lost. I didn’t have any purpose. Um, and I, um, to the point of, of, of isolation, uh, not so much with, with, uh, um, self medication, much so with alcohol, but like with food, with just doing nothing.

Um, I made a plan to commit suicide. And in that process I thought, well, maybe I just need to go back to work. And so I started to search for a job. And we were moving up here to Georgia. We retired, um, me and my husband both retired on the same day. We moved up here to Georgia where he was from. And anyway, I found this job at Camp Southern Ground.

So I was hoping they would hire me for this program that they have there called Warrior Week. Um, but to back up a little bit and to tell you a [00:27:00] little bit what camp is about. So, um, Zach Brown from the Zach Brown Band, uh, he grew up going to, um, to summer camp, that’s where he learned how to play guitar, and so he had said one day that he wanted to have a summer camp of his own.

And so the camp, um, that we run during the summer months is, is an inclusive camp. It’s, it’s for kids with, that are neurodiverse, kids that would never be able to afford to come to summer camp, and kids of, of military members. And so, He creates this camp and it’s a beautiful it’s 400 plus acres It’s absolutely stunning.

Well, what do we do in the months that we’re not doing summer camp? and so then they created these warrior programs because of Zach’s passion to serving the veteran community and And so Warrior Week, going back to Warrior Week, so when I went to Warrior Week, Warrior Week is, um, it’s not so, it’s not as structured as PATHH, um, and what is Warrior Week, um, going to provide is, is what makes me awesome, [00:28:00] now that I’m no longer serving, now, now that I don’t wear this uniform, what is great about me, and how can I go and use that in whatever profession I go into, whatever, it may be a job, it may be volunteering, whatever it may be.

So we do, um, CliftonStrengths coaching, um, when you come to Warrior PATHH, um, which has been amazing for me to go and, and focus on my strengths, not like what, what I’m not so great at, but what am I really good at and what I enjoy doing. And then we do, um, your Enneagram, so the, one of the oldest personality assessment and how you can relate with others, which is again very helpful because in the military you just kind of.

Hey, here’s your team and you just go. So, um, so, um, that’s what the, the Warrior Week program, um, and it was very helpful for me because that’s when I learned about PATH. Um, so then, um, we obviously do Warrior PATHH, and then we also do, um, Warrior Song, which is for, uh, [00:29:00] veterans that, uh, that song write, that play the, an instrument that are out there and they just want to connect with other members that are doing the same thing.

So we do that once a year, and we also have Family Camp. About four times a year where we bring out families, um, over a weekend that come and they can just connect, learn how to connect with each other, learn more about camp, so and all of our programs are free, no cost.

Scott DeLuzio: That’s amazing, because there’s a lot of, um, resources there, a lot of programs that you offer, um, and a huge facility that you just mentioned, um, you know, and having such a huge facility, I’m sure there’s costs, and so I’m, you know, amazed to hear that, you know, there’s no cost to the participants who go through these programs.

That’s pretty amazing.

Stephanie Weaver: Well, and let me backtrack real quick. Summer camp, there is a cost, but there’s a tiered system, a tiered system with that, and um, [00:30:00] and so, but we work with every single family member with, with summer camp costs and stuff like that, because it can be pretty expensive.

Scott DeLuzio: Yeah. No, and that’s wonderful too. Um, you know, because, uh, like I think you said with the summer camp program, uh, there’s some kids who may not ever be able to attend a summer camp because financial, you know, other resource, uh, reasons that, uh, they are not able to, um, working with them makes that possible.

And, uh, You know, I think that’s a great thing, too, for those kids and, you know, getting that social interaction and, you know, connection with other people. Um, I think that’s pretty great, too. Um, and, you know, that’ll grow into bigger, better, stronger people, you know, down the line, too. So, yeah.

Stephanie Weaver: right.

Scott DeLuzio: um, you know, hopefully working yourself out of a job, you know, making it so that, you know, all these people that, you know, have they, uh, you know, obviously they’re not going through the Warrior PATHH program or anything like that.

It’s, you know, more of a traditional kind [00:31:00] of summer camp, um, you know, versus a, you know, that, that other kind of program. But, um, you know, it’s, it’s still, you know, building some, some better, uh, better people along the way, right? Um,

Stephanie Weaver: Yeah, my son has autism, and so he’s been to camp, Two years in a row, and just for him to be able to go and be welcomed as a normal kid is huge for me, um, and then of course then I want to give back even more so I want to go and spread our, tell everyone about our programs just because how much it’s had an impact with me and my family, so yeah.

Scott DeLuzio: absolutely. Now, I know you’re, you’re in, uh, you mentioned you’re in Georgia.

Stephanie Weaver: Mm hmm.

Scott DeLuzio: who are not in that geographic area, um, are they able to, uh, travel there to, to participate in the program or are there other locations, uh, you know, around the country that, that have some of these programs, uh, that they’d be able to participate in as well?[00:32:00]

Stephanie Weaver: Yeah, so with Warrior Week, we will fly people in wherever. So we’re the only site that does a Warrior Week program. For Warrior PATHH, there’s 13 sites around the country that teach Warrior PATHH, and we have, of those 13, two of them are mobile training teams. And we all work together, we all, it’s the same curriculum, it’s just different locations.

And so when you apply for Warrior PATHH, your application may go, you may apply through us, but it may get sent to the site in Texas, um, just based on, you know, the needs and, you know, what availability looks like. Um, um, but again, no matter where you apply from, it’s free, no cost to come to Warrior PATHH. We pay for your flight, um, and then provide all meals and everything and lodging when you come.

And so, yeah.

Scott DeLuzio: that’s excellent, too, because I, I, I wanted to bring that up. I suspected that was what the answer was going to be, but I just want to make sure, especially for the listeners who might be sitting there [00:33:00] thinking that I wouldn’t be able to afford to make it to Georgia or, you know, to some other place. Um, but you know, all of that is covered.

So there’s, there’s really, you know, meals, uh, you know, all the flights and all, all the, the things that are associated with it, all that stuff is taken care of for you. Um, there’s really no downside, right? Um,

Stephanie Weaver: No, it’s just a lot of times when I’m doing the calls with people before they come to camp, I hear so many times, um, I don’t want to take a spot from somebody who really needs it. And I’m like, you need it. The spot is yours. The hardest part is for you to apply to do the interview and then show up. That’s the hardest part.

So just getting people to apply and, and know that this program is for you is the biggest hurdle I think I face.

Scott DeLuzio: I’m glad you mentioned that, actually, because I, I know, just through talking to veterans You know, even something with like their VA [00:34:00] disability benefits, they have that, Oh, I don’t want to take, uh, you know, any, any benefits away from somebody else. Well, besides the fact that that’s not how that works, uh, but that’s the mindset that a lot of us have is that, well, I know there’s somebody else who’s worse off than me.

Um, and that person deserves to go to this to get better.

Stephanie Weaver: Mm-hmm

Scott DeLuzio: And get healed and whatever and I’ll, I’ll sit on the back burner and I’ll wait for, for my turn. Um, but there’s, in our minds there’s always somebody who has it worse than us. And so we’re never going to go if we use that mindset. And we’re never going to get better.

And going back to that community, uh, mindset that you mentioned, uh, earlier. If, if I go. Let’s say, just say, use me as an example. If I came and I went through the Warrior PATHH program, whether it’s at your facility or, you know, some other facility around the country, uh, I go through the program. Now I have, [00:35:00] um, these skills in, in my back pocket that I’m carrying around with me and I can utilize throughout my, my day. And I see somebody else who’s struggling and I can maybe, you know, offer them that same advice and help them work through whatever it is that they’re working through. So not only Is it helping me, but it’s helping me help somebody else. And so, you know, for those listeners who are still like, well, yeah, sure.

But somebody else has it worse. You’re right. Somebody else probably does have it worse. And you may know that somebody, it may be someone who’s close to you. Maybe someone who, uh, you, you really care for, and they may come to you for help. And what if you don’t have those resources and you don’t have that, those skills to help them?

Um, where are you going to send them? How are you going to help them? You know, get them, uh, you know, on the right, on the right path for lack of better terms.

Stephanie Weaver: yeah, yeah.

Scott DeLuzio: So, so by doing that, you [00:36:00] become that resource for somebody else. And, and this network kind of blossoms and grows. And you, you now have that ability to help someone if they’re, if they’re at that point where, where you described you were, um, before going through all of this.

Um, You know, if you know somebody like that, why wouldn’t you want to be as good as you could be for that person? So, you know, even if you don’t think you’re as bad as the worst person who, you know, who has it the worst, okay, fine, but maybe you can help that person. So why not, right?

Stephanie Weaver: Yeah. You know, here, well, you know, I have my arms, I have my legs, so I’m not that bad off. And I’m like,

Scott DeLuzio: Yeah,

Stephanie Weaver: okay, well, we, we don’t, there’s not a, there’s not a trophy that we give to like, who’s been through the worst. If you’re struggling and you’re stuck, then why wouldn’t you take a chance? And it’s [00:37:00] all, and you talked about that service mentality as, as, as warriors for, you know, first responders, veterans, even active duty.

Um, we, most of us joined the service because we wanted to help others. We wanted to give back. And so you’re absolutely right. We call them expert guides. Once they leave PATH and they go out there in the world, they’re the expert guide. They’re the ones that are going to be there. That’s right. And the majority of our referrals are from people that have been to the program and that say, Hey, I see you’re struggling.

You need to go to this program. That’s, I mean, Facebook, social media, everything doesn’t do anything really just as compared to somebody that’s been to the program and that says, Hey, you should go.

Scott DeLuzio: Well, and especially when you hear it from somebody who you, you trust, who you know, you have a prior relationship with that person. Um, you know, if you, if you had a Facebook ad or, you know, Instagram or, you know, whatever, social media ad, and it just popped up and said, Hey, warrior, go to this thing if you’re feeling to, you know, blah, blah, [00:38:00] blah, blah, blah. I’m probably going to scroll right past it. Um, you know, to be perfectly honest, because you see so much crap that’s out there. And. How do you filter through all that noise? And you tend to start ignoring it. But, if I had a buddy, if I’m really struggling and I’m having trouble with things, and I have a buddy who comes over to me and is like, Hey, uh, you know, I went through this program and, uh, really, I was dealing with some very similar issues, um, this is what it did for me, this is how it helped, you know.

Um, and be like, okay, well, yeah, sure, maybe I’ll give it a try, you know. What’s it going to hurt? You know, if I go through the program, even if worst case scenario does nothing for me, okay, fine. You know, I got, I got a trip to, you know, for a few days to wherever it is that, uh, that the program is located at.

And, um, you know, okay, fine. Check that, that [00:39:00] box and move on to something else. Right. But, um, don’t just do nothing. Right. So,

Stephanie Weaver: Which is easy for us to do. And, and we do, um, we have this, I call it an umbrella of hope is the way I kind of describe it. Um, cause with the PATH sites and the PATH program that we have, um, under Avalon Action Alliance, um, um, we have, um, seven sites around the country that assist with TBI. And so that’s another kind of piece to the puzzle as we kind of look at it, uh, because with, with, with TBIs, either you were diagnosed with one, and then you get like a yearly checkup, or you get some medicine, or something like that to help with migraines, but there’s really not a lot of treatment out there, and so now we have these TBI centers that you go for a three day evaluation with a three week treatment, again, free, no cost to you.

And then we also have a substance abuse called Warrior’s Heart that we work with. So it’s [00:40:00] three pillars that fall under this Avalon Action Alliance. So with Warrior’s Heart it’s substance abuse and PTSD treatment. So and there’s two sides around the country that do that.

Scott DeLuzio: Well, excellent, because again, not everyone’s dealing with the same thing as everybody else. There’s some people who are, have more complex issues. They, they have other things going on that may be layered on top of

Stephanie Weaver: Mm hmm.

Scott DeLuzio: is that they are dealing with. And you’re right, you said this before, there’s no trophy for who has it worse.

Stephanie Weaver: hmm.

Scott DeLuzio: We all have it different. Um, and I, I’ve used this analogy before too. If, if you and I are both drowning and you’re in 10 feet of water and I’m in a hundred feet of water, it’s not like I drowned worse than you did.

Stephanie Weaver: Right. Exactly.

Scott DeLuzio: It’s, it sucks. And we both are going through the same, you know, similar, terrible situation.

Um, one is not worse than the other. They’re just different. And, um, you know, I think [00:41:00] it’s okay to, uh, just recognize that they’re different and that we, we might have different needs. Um, you know, I might be further off from shore. So, okay, fine. You gotta, you gotta get a boat to go get me. And you’re a little closer.

You might just need to throw a life raft or something to, uh, to, or a life ring, you know, with this lifesaver thing. So, um, you know, that those are two different things that, that might be happening. Um, The resources may be a little bit different. Like you said, there’s, there’s those pillars, um, you know, underneath and, um, that, that allows those folks who have a little, little different needs to be able to get the help that they need.

Stephanie Weaver: Right. Absolutely.

Scott DeLuzio: but I think the important thing to take away is that there is help out there, um, that, um, You can try something and, uh, it’ll help get you to that growth mindset versus that stuck in the mud mindset. And, uh, I think that’s where we want to be. Uh, we want more people to be that way, right?[00:42:00]

Stephanie Weaver: Absolutely. We had a participant off of this last program and he is 60 years old and he’s like how come I’m just hearing about this program now

Scott DeLuzio: Mm.

Stephanie Weaver: and I’m like great question. And he’s like, and I’m like, okay, we’re not looking back. We look back to understand and not to blame. But he was like, I wish I would have had this years ago.

I wish I would have had it, you know, as soon as I was getting ready to depart the service. I think of all of the, the tough times had kind of caused my family, my friends, myself, if I would have just had this, wow, I can only imagine what have would have been different. And here’s this individual that’s 60 years old, that is like, I can’t believe I’m just hearing about this now.

And I’m like, it’s never too late. You know, you, you can, if you want to. You have to just take that step. [00:43:00] Right.

Scott DeLuzio: it was, uh, you know, recently in the more recent Iraq, Afghanistan wars, or Vietnam, or, you know, even older Korea, you know, and things like that. Um, you might be carrying around some pretty heavy baggage. Um, you know, let’s someone help you carry that, right?

And figure out how to deal with it. So, um, Well, I think it’s been, uh, you know, amazing speaking with you about everything that, um, you know, the Warrior PATHH program has to offer, Camps on the Ground, uh, the other programs that, uh, are available, uh, through there, um, I, I think, uh, again, this provides another tool, another resource for, for people to use, to, get the help that they need.

Um, it’s, it’s not something standard and typical that, um, everybody thinks about, you know, okay, I guess I gotta go to the VA and go to therapy or get medication or things like that. Those [00:44:00] are the things that I think pop in people’s minds right off the bat, but that’s not the only thing that’s out there.

And so, um, you know, again, highlighting programs like yours is, to me, it’s very important because, um, again, if people don’t know about it, they may not know. that it exists. They don’t know what they don’t know. Um, and so shedding some light on this, at least to put that in the back of their head, maybe they don’t need it, but maybe a friend or a family member needs it.

And they, they, they hear about it and they, they can mention it to them and kind of lead them to the right direction to get the help that they need. And so, um, I do want to. Thank you for for coming on and sharing about it. Before we wrap up though, where can people go to find out more information about the programs that you offer and, you know, Warrior PATHH and everything else?

Stephanie Weaver: Yeah, so, um, we kind of, like I kind of mentioned, there’s 13 sites around the country. So, you could [00:45:00] go to our website, you can go under Warrior PATHH, Uh, you fill out this request for information and then what will happen is that you will get then a secondary email that you, fills out the longer, um, application.

Um, so you could start there. If, if anything, you could go to Boulder Crest’s website and fill out an application through WarriorPath that way. Um, again, you know, if you come to Camp Southern Ground, you could fill out also, uh, The application for Warrior Week, the same way, request for information, you’ll get a secondary email and then you can fill out the application from there.

And then what happens from there, um, again, with Warrior PATHH, your application, if you’re in California, it may go to Washington State, because that’s where we have a site, or down to Arizona. Um, it’s never a guarantee you’ll come to Camp Sand the Ground. Um, but then what will happen at, no matter what site you go to, Then, the next step is an interview, and the interview isn’t meant to, to dig up the past, it’s just to tell you a little bit more about the program, answer any questions that you have, and then just see [00:46:00] if that’s something that they’re still interested in.

And after that, we do, we look at the schedule, and get you scheduled to come, and then that’s really about it. So, yeah, that easy.

Scott DeLuzio: Yeah, it sounds very easy. And I like that too, because, you know, especially people who are on the fence, you don’t you don’t want to make it unnecessarily difficult to, to get into a program like that. And so, yeah, So wonderful. And I’ll, I’ll put these links that you mentioned in the show notes for the listeners.

If, if they’re interested or know somebody who might be interested, uh, those links will be there for you. You can, you can grab those, click through or copy and paste them to send them to somebody else, whatever it is that you need, uh, check out the show notes for all of that. Um, but again, uh, Stephanie, I want to thank you for coming on the show.

Um, really do appreciate, uh, not only you coming on the show, but also the, the things that you do with, the Warrior PATHH program and all the programs that you have to offer, um, you know, to help facilitate that post traumatic growth [00:47:00] mindset that, uh, that really will help, um, encourage people to seek out better things in their, their future.

So, uh, thank you again. Uh, do appreciate it.

Stephanie Weaver: giving us the time. It’s, uh, my boss always says that it’s the one thing that we all have the same amount of is time. So, so thank you so much for that. And, uh, I hope to see you come to PATH someday. So

Scott DeLuzio: it.