Military veterans make huge sacrifices for their country when they put their lives on the line to protect our freedoms by serving overseas.  Sadly, when they return home, they often find themselves suffering from post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), which makes it difficult for them to readjust to life in the states.

Symptoms of PTSD include stress, anxiety, and depression, and it’s very difficult to overcome it. That’s why we’ve decided to share a few ways that veterans have managed to beat their PTSD stateside.

This Purple Heart Recipient Got Help And Is Now Giving Back To His Community

Troy Peterson is a combat veteran who received a Purple Heart for his bravery. He also is a former addict who suffered from PTSD after returning home from serving, and he now surrounds himself with positive people.

“Over the last 2.5 years through my journey with sobriety and learning to thrive with my PTSD I put myself close to people who could improve my physical fitness level, but they have provided me with a lot more [than] that,” he wrote. “I am going to take those lessons and apply them to give Veteran’s an opportunity to feel how I do. I asked for help and I got it, it’s time to give that back to my community. To be continued…..”

This Veteran Teaches Yoga To Help Others With PTSD

Charles Stevenson is an Afghanistan war veteran and integrative trauma therapist who used yoga to overcome PTSD. Now, he teaches yoga to other PTSD sufferers to try and help them do the same thing.

“8 years later after years of struggling with PTSD I’m now a yoga therapist and yoga teacher who specializes in trauma recovery,” Charles wrote on Instagram. “The most important thing I have learned: we’re all in this together.”

This Veteran Lifts Weights To Overcome PTSD

David Keto is a power lifter who used lifting weights to help him through the PTSD he suffered as a veteran. He now tries to motivate others to value themselves, saying that helping others has helped himself.

“I quickly diagnose dysfunction and keep it moving, you learn the value of people,” he wrote. “And for a psycopath like myself learning value in others is amazing. It also elevates you…you can’t become more to others than you are to yourself so relationships become valuable energy. Yeah getting older, it needs to be the new thing.”

Hiking Has Helped This Veteran

Meet Andrew, a Marine Corps combat veteran who spent twelve years serving his country before he was medically retired for Post Traumatic Stress and a Traumatic Brain Injury. Hiking has helped him overcome his PTSD, and he is now hiking the Florida Trail.

“Another healing adventure begins. 1,100 miles on the Florida National Scenic Trail (FNST),” he said.

This War Veteran Runs To Deal With PTSD

Major Gediminas Grinius served in Iraq under the NATO Force Integration Unit Lithuania, and he suffered from PTSD when he returned home. Since then, he has overcome his PTSD by running.

“Running, it helps your brain to relax. Post-traumatic stress disorder, for me it means loneliness,” he said. “It means fear, confusion. Surrounded by threat all the time. In the head there are a lot of things going on, and it feels like the head can explode.The running just cleans it out.”

Please pray for all war veterans who suffer from PTSD!