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Ben (@bharrow37 on IG) reminds us to "take a knee" - take some time to assess where you are, what's going on in life, and what you need.  And his story is incredible.   Want to know about mental toughness - Ben's story will help you get some perspective!   Born in Brooklyn, New York, Ben Harrow grew up in Great Neck, Long Island. After graduating from the Woodberry Forest School in Virginia, he attended the United States Military Academy, where he was a 4-year letterman on the Lacrosse team that made NCAA appearances in 2003,2004, 2005. His senior year on the lacrosse team he was awarded the “Unsung Hero” Award for his selfless contributions to the team.  He commissioned as a 2nd Lieutenant in the Infantry, attended Airborne School, Infantry Officer Basic Course, and Ranger School. He was an Infantry Platoon leader with 1st CAV division, and deployed to Iraq for 15 months with his platoon. Upon return from Iraq he immediately attended Special Forces Assessment and Selection, was selected and began the Special Forces Qualification Course.  In 2010, CPT Ben Harrow earned the coveted “green beret” and Special Forces tab. He was a Special Forces Detachment Commander, and led two separate Operational Detachment Alphas on deployments to Afghanistan supporting Combined Joint Special Operations Task Force-Afghanistan.  On 15May2012 CPT Harrow stepped on an IED resulting in the amputation of both legs above the knee, two fingers on his right hand, as well as other injuries. During his recovery, he refused to give into his circumstances, and by his own ingenuity discovered a medical procedure to not only get himself up and walking but other wounded service members as well. He resides with his wife, and two children in Bethesda, MD and is the VP of Business Operations at PAM JETS. CPT Harrow was awarded three bronze stars, and a purple heart, amongst other awards.

Killian had a life changing moment... literally dying and being brought back to life... which changed him forever after. Check out Killian on LinkedIn here: https://www.linkedin.com/in/killian-hemmy Contact him to share your story of resilience - killian@reflectionsonresilience.com

Mike Steadman is the Founder & CEO of​ ​IRONBOUND Boxing & Education, a nonprofit organization based in Newark, NJ that provides free amateur boxing training, entrepreneur education, and employment opportunities for Newark youth & young adults. Mike and his partner Keith Colon, oversee the IRONBOUND Boxing Academy, their free boxing gym for youth in Newark, NJ. Mike is also a three-time National Collegiate Boxing Champion from the United States Naval Academy and Marine Corps Infantry Officer, with deployments to Afghanistan and Japan/Philippines. Mike trains CEOs and nationally ranked boxers. Outside of boxing, Mike’s provided consulting services to a billion-dollar corporation around veteran entrepreneurship. He also serves as an advisor and brand strategist to Dope Coffee Company, an Atlanta based e-commerce brand. In conjunction with Dope Coffee, he hosts a weekly podcast entitled “Confessions of a Native Son,” where he shares his perspectives on race, culture, and business. Through his efforts growing IRONBOUND Boxing, Mike has established himself as a high profile veteran advocate, and the new face of social entrepreneurship. To learn about IRONBOUND Boxing and their efforts in Newark, please visit www.Ironboundboxing.org

Clint Blankenship - @the_grill_billy on IG.  Current Navy Surface Warfare Officer - former Commanding Officer.

Welcome to the Veteran’s PATH Podcast - I’m Jon Macaskill your host and today my guest is Sabrina Ciaciura. Sabrina is a Navy Crytpologic Technician (Interpretrive). originally from Minnesota, served in the Navy for 6 years as a linguist. I got out January 2019 and now I lives in Australia. She has her degree in Family Social Science, and have studied psychology. She currently runs her own business as a online mentor for veterans and military members. She strives to provide tools to help those who wish to become free of the patterns and habits that trap them in unhappiness. She has an emphasis and passion on unraveling trauma and childhood wounds. Get a hold of Sabrina here: LinkedIn : https://www.linkedin.com/in/sabrina-ciaciura-3030061b2 Instagram https://instagram.com/sabrinaciaciura?igshid=6d39yucq3m7r YouTube: https://youtube.com/channel/UCLnl-z9yC9jZdjNohrvchSw http://www.sabrinaciaciura.com/

Welcome to the Veteran’s PATH Podcast - I’m Jon Macaskill your host and today my guest is Rob Brinzer . Rob is a former Navy SEAL and fellow US Naval Academy classmate who, since leaving the Navy, has served in multiple leadership positions within corporate America and volunteers for several local charities or nonprofit organizations in Sacrament. He and his wife have four children ... and Rob overcame alcoholism and depression through the use of mindfulness and meditation and is now thriving. You can reach Rob here: Robert.brinzer@gmail.com http://linkedin.com/in/robertbrinzer

Welcome to the Veteran’s PATH Podcast - I’m Jon Macaskill your host and today my guest is Peter Durand. Peter is a dedicated father, speaker, a serial entrepreneur, and a podcaster focused on helping leaders and entrepreneurs bring emotional intelligence, empathy and mindfulness to developing teams. Peter can be reached on http://linkedin.com/in/petedurand Email: rivalrouser@gmail.com Here’s his website: Eatingcrow.com

My guest is Naval academy grad ... John Miles. At Annapolis, John was a multi sport Division 1 athlete. After graduating, he went on to serve as a Navy Information Warfare Officer serving at SEAL Team Eight, Naval Special Warfare Unit Ten, as the executive officer of the NSA detachment of the Joint Interagency Task Force South (JIATF-S) as well as on board a number of various ships and in a number of various conflicts all over the globe! Since his time in the Navy, John has led and founded several companies and been on the board of multiple nonprofits; he’s written a book, and he’s a keynote speaker! John also has a pretty wild mental health story - which we will get into in the show. John’s website: www.johnrmiles.com Email John: john@johnrmiles.com

Check out Ben on Instagram at @fromkilltochill

Wendy Emminger is a 2003 graduate of the United States Air Force Academy. She played soccer there and went on to lead and fly in the Air Force. Wendy battled with depression and found parayoga to be what saved and transformed her life. Wendy and I discussed her battles and overcoming them, her finding Four Desires Training, taking care of yourself first so you CAN take care of those you love/lead, and much more. A part of the Four Desires Training Wendy talks about is developing your Dharma Code (life purpose). One main part of the training is identifying your vikalpa, the thing that holds you back, and in Wendy’s case pride held her back from seeking out help - but she exhibits strength when she asks for help.   Check out Wendy’s video on ending veteran suicide here https://youtu.be/RrtdAOUwN9A You can contact Wendy here: Wendyemminger@gmail.com Find her here on LinkedIn: http://linkedin.com/in/wendy-emminger-0b17b67

My latest guest is “Doc” Shauna Springer - Author, Psychologist, and Trauma Expert. In this episode we cover so much - her work in the VA; her childhood; her book; her online education organization - Redefine Your Mission; military transition and the risks associated with that; and Stellate Ganglion Block treatment for PTS. Here’s all her information and information on topics discussed during the episode: Her company’s web address: https://www.docshaunaspringer.com/ Her most recent book, Warrior: How to Support Those Who Protect Us... https://www.amazon.com/dp/1732167818/ref=cm_sw_r_sms_awdb_imm_t1_13TOFbWC83WGE Online Education Page: https://redefineyourmission.com/   LinkedIn: www.linkedin.com/in/docshaunaspringer Twitter: https://twitter.com/Doc_Springer Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/docshaunaspringer/ And here’s a great video summary of Doc Springer’s work... https://youtu.be/qju_0-ayBj4

Enrique Irby Welcome to the Veteran’s PATH podcast. I’m your host, Jon Macaskill and today my guest is Army Sergeant First Class Enrique Irby. Enrique found Yoga and Mindfulness to be the way to a clear and healthy mind and a new and supportive community. In this episode, we discuss: * His Army career * How he got started with yoga * His Instagram account profile highlighting yoga, meditation, and mindfulness IN uniform and how he uses that to break the stigma surrounding mindfulness and yoga * Lessening the stigma around mental trauma * Trauma informed yoga * Getting past the “I can’t meditate” problem * Just doing it and get started! Find out more about Enrique here: Instagram: riq_irby or conscious_soldier Check out our shirts here: https://veterans-path.hashtagplanet.co

Welcome to the veteran’s path podcast. I’m your host Jon Macaskill and today my guest is former Navy Surface Warfare Officer turned painter, Kristin Cronic. In this show we discuss Kristin’s time in the Navy, her dramatic change in career trajectory and how painting helped her to heal from a stressful transition compounded by a new little one and loss caused by Hurricane Irma. Additionally, in the video version of this episode I’m opening up with some pieces of art painted by Kristin and then, during this episode, in the video, you can see some art that hangs at my office painted by a local veteran. You can see just how healing art can be! So if you get a chance check out the video on YouTube and check out Kristin’s work in the notes below: Kristin on IG: @easelonstribling https://www.easelonstribling.com https://www.kristincronicart.com

Today, my guest is Marine Veteran and Veteran advocate Gavin Tice. Gavin has such an interesting background - from traveling chef to Marine to to working in the VA to working with US Military Endurance Sports (USMES) member to teaching and practicing mindfulness and meditation. (He’s also got a very unique LinkedIn marketing tip - listen to the pronunciation of his name there to find out more!) We talk about: * his getting “lost in the sauce” at the VA * Working in the veteran nonprofit space * Man’s Search for Meaning, by Victor Frankl * Art Therapy * Properly reviewing your DD-214!! * Losing your tribe * The stigma surrounding mental health and the use of mental prep by our ancient warriors. * Military Endurance Sports Find out more about Gavin and some of the things we discuss here: Gavin on LinkedIn: http://linkedin.com/in/gavin-tice US Military Endurance Sports: https://usmes.org. (Gavin says get out there and give it a shot!!) Man’s Search for Meaning, by Victor Frankl, https://www.amazon.com/dp/0807014273/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_api_glc_fabc_30q0Fb6QYY08Q

Welcome to the Veteran's PATH podcast. Veterans PATH is a nonprofit introducing veterans to the life changing and life saving practices of meditation and mindfulness. I'm your host, Jon Macaskill - a Navy SEAL Commander turned mindfulness teacher. Check out https://www.veteranspath.org or find us on social media to find out more! Today, my guest is fellow Navy SEAL and Executive Director for the C4 Foundation, Nick Norris. The C4 Foundation provides support and resources through science-based programs to active duty Navy SEALs and their families. Nick is also the Co-Founder and CEO of Protekt Products, a wellness company that is committed to positively impacting customer health via both personal care products and nutritional supplements. Both Protekt and the C4 Foundation value the power of time spent in the outdoors and the positive impact it has on overall well-being... which, as you know is right in line with what we teach at Veteran’s PATH... and Nick recommends getting outdoors into nature as much as possible as there is so much healing in nature! Find out more about Nick, Protekf, and C4 here: https://c4foundation.org @nick_norris1981 on Instagram https://protektproducts.com

Welcome to the Veteran's PATH podcast. Veterans PATH is a nonprofit introducing veterans to the life changing and life saving practices of meditation and mindfulness. I'm your host, Jon Macaskill - a Navy SEAL Commander turned mindfulness teacher. Check out https://www.veteranspath.org or find us on social media to find out more!  . Today, my guest is Army veteran and mindfulness teacher, Ben King. Ben is an Iraq War veteran and Purple Heart recipient who has helped hundreds of veterans “armor down” with mindfulness, meditation, and yoga practices. Before the pandemic Ben’s work teaching mindfulness to Veterans and honoring our nations fallen warriors could be found in such notable publications as National Geographic, the Washington Post and numerous other books and publications. Since COVID Ben has continued his work teaching mindfulness online.  .  Mindfulness helps you solve the problem before it becomes the problem.  First you recognize it  Then, you realize the whole picture is not what you’re feeling. There’s more to it.  The interaction with the breath - your ultimate weapon.  You’re doing it to get back to the open hearted space  Connect with Ben here: http://linkedin.com/in/benjamin-h-king-7b325846  See Ben every morning on Armor Down on Facebook, YouTube, or Twitter:  https://www.facebook.com/Thriveasacivilian/  https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCslH9qbMnjUTIBgA7NqTuxA  https://twitter.com/ben_armordown?s=21  http://www.armordown.com  http://www.mindfulmemorialday.org

Welcome to the Veteran's PATH podcast. Veterans PATH is a nonprofit introducing veterans to the life changing and life saving practices of meditation and mindfulness. I'm your host, Jon Macaskill - a Navy SEAL Commander turned mindfulness teacher. Check out https://www.veteranspath.org or find us on social media to find out more! Today, my guests are Dr. Erik Won and fellow retired Navy SEAL Commander, Ned Mason.  The audio on this one started a little rough but we got it fixed! (Note: I recorded this episode 20’ from a dumpster!!)  Dr. Erik Won is a Harvard trained doctor turned Navy flight surgeon and is now the President and CMO of Wave Neuroscience. Ned is a retired Navy SEAL Commander and is now the Director of Operations at Wave Neuroscience, responsible for the company’s commercial operations and revenue generation. His mission is to democratize access to cutting edge mental wellness technology – the same technology that saved his life four years ago.  Erik, Ned, and the team at Wave Neuroscience are the some of the world’s leading experts in Brain Health, Brain Injuries, PTSD, Depression & Anxiety among others. The tech they’ve pioneered involves using computational analytics to solve problems that have never been tackled before in the mental health space and are doing it with no medications of any kind.  Find out more about Waveneuro here: Waveneuro.com  Dr. Erik Won: http://linkedin.com/in/erik-won-86941614 Erik_won@waveneuro.com  Ned Mason: http://linkedin.com/in/ned-mason-29934a2 ned@waveneuro.com

Welcome to the Veteran's PATH podcast. Veterans PATH is a nonprofit introducing veterans to the life changing and life saving practices of meditation and mindfulness. I'm your host, Jon Macaskill - a Navy SEAL Commander turned mindfulness teacher. Check out https://www.veteranspath.org or find us on social media to find out more! Today, my guest is former Navy SEAL Mike Donnelly. As a former Navy SEAL, Mike knows what it means to put mileage on your body. Now he’s the CEO of a CBD company, CBD PATH... which donates a portion of their profits to a veteran-focused non-profit organization. Mike also gives back to the community on his own time. Between operating several successful businesses, serving as a board member for the National Navy UDT-SEAL Museum and the Trident House, Mike volunteers throughout the year in fundraising events across the country to raise money for the families of fallen SEALs. Links/contact info discussed on this episode: * www.thecbdpath.com * Contact Mike: mdonnelly@thecbdpath.com * Follow Mike on IG - @mikedfrog Stay tuned as we’re going to find out a lot more about Mike here in today’s episode of the Veteran’s PATH podcast.

Welcome to the Veteran's PATH podcast. Veterans PATH is a nonprofit introducing veterans to the life changing and life saving practices of meditation and mindfulness. I'm your host, Jon Macaskill - a Navy SEAL Commander turned mindfulness teacher. Check out https://www.veteranspath.org or find us on social media to find out more!  Today, my guests are husband and wife team Tom and Jen Satterly. Tom is a highly decorated combat veteran from one of the US military’s most elite units, Delta Force. He has been involved in and led some of the country’s most important military campaigns to include the battle portrayed in Black Hawk Down. Jen was an award winning filmmaker and photographer for 15 years spending the last three as Director of Film and Photography of an elite Special Operations training company fully embedded with the Navy SEALs, Green Berets, and Army Rangers. Tom and Jen cofounded All Secure Foundation - a 501(c)3 helping special operators and their families heal and reconnect on the home front after the trauma of war. We’re going to find out a lot more about Tom and Jen and All Secure Foundation here in today’s episode of the Veteran’s PATH podcast.  https://allsecurefoundation.org  All Secure: A Special Operations Soldier's Fight to Survive on the Battlefield and the Homefront https://www.amazon.com/dp/1546076557/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_api_i_6nZMFbD197RT9.  Arsenal of Hope: Tactics for Taking on PTSD, Together https://www.amazon.com/dp/1642936790/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_api_i_FpZMFbBWZYRXY.

Welcome to the Veteran's PATH podcast. Veterans PATH is a nonprofit introducing veterans to the life changing and life saving practices of meditation and mindfulness. I'm your host, Jon Macaskill - a Navy SEAL Commander turned mindfulness teacher. Check out https://www.veteranspath.org or at any of the social media links below to find out more! Today, my guest is Army Veteran Hugo Gonzalez (picture credit Andrea Bruce Woodall - Washington Post). Hugo was severely injured in combat in Baqubah, Iraq on June 21, 2004. He was on patrol in a Hummer bucket truck when his unit was ambushed. The vehicle took a direct hit from an improvised explosive device (IED) and a furious gun battle broke out with insurgents. The blast wave caused Hugo to suffer a traumatic brain injury, after fragments ripped into his head. He was evacuated to the base camp where he was placed in a medically-induced coma, and underwent a craniotomy to remove a piece of bone from his cranium to relieve the pressure of the swelling of his brain. He suffered internal bleeding, a sinus bone fracture, a crushed optic nerve in his right eye and a hole in the left retina. He is legally blind. In 2005, he underwent a cranioplasty to repair his skull defect. The procedure went well, but he suffered multiple seizures requiring long term therapy with anti-epileptic medications. I pulled that bio off the Buildinghomesforheroes.org website because it was perfect and covered a lot of what I want to speak to you about so I just quickly wanted to give them a shoutout and give them credit for the bio too. Building Homes for Heroes gifted Hugo, his wife, and their three children a home in Florida in October of 2015. Stay tuned as We’re going to find out a lot more about Hugo here in today’s episode of the Veteran’s PATH podcast. Learn more about Building Homes for Heroes here: https://www.buildinghomesforheroes.org Connect with Hugo on Facebook here: https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=100020314457684 ******** Follow Veteran’s PATH here: YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCPvJnrurdnXxdlaE7v3uoMA Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/veteranspath/ Facebook: https://facebook.com/veteranspath LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/veteran's-path Twitter: https://twitter.com/veteranspath