Episode 56
Tom and Jen Satterly
Command Sgt. Major (ret.) Tom Satterly served in the Army for 25 years, 20 of those years were spent in the military’s most secretive and elite Special Operations unit, Delta Force. As an Operator and CSM, Tom fought in and lead countless high profile military missions including Operation Red Dawn (Saddam Hussein’s capture) and the Battle of Mogadishu (Black Hawk Down). Although the physical, mental, and emotional toll of war had compounded over the years, Tom never faced his Post-Traumatic Stress symptoms and in 2013 he nearly ended his life. Had it not been a text from his now wife, Jen, he would have joined the 22 veterans who commit suicide every single day.
The Satterly’s founded All Secure Foundation in August 2017 as a resource library for helping warriors and their families navigate the maze of treatments and modalities of healing from PTS. They have worked individually with hundreds of warriors and their families and soon became more than a referral website but also a provider of education, awareness, and programs for healing.
It's not easy to talk about marriage difficulties in servicemembers' and veterans' families, or the battles of the mind, body, and spirit that accompany those problems. But I had a blast talking with Tom and Jen. The conversation ranges from examinations of manhood and femininity, expectation management for both spouses and servicemembers, and some casual put-downs of accountants and cat lovers. It's an eye-opening conversation about how to integrate relationship health into the warfighter's life - and a reminder about the reasons warfighting is often a single man's game - with a couple that has been through an awful lot and come out the other end smiling.
All Secure by Tom Satterly
Arsenal of Hope by Jen Satterly
Follow All Secure Foundation here.
