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TOPEKA, Kan. - “It takes the courage and strength of a warrior to
ask for help,” Veterans Affairs motto.
Master Sgt. Lyle
Babcock is a combat veteran who's served more than 30 years in the
Army. He is an avid fisherman. He loves to kayak.
He also
suffers from post-traumatic stress disorder. Fortunately, he has
help from a four-legged friend.
Gunther, a 2-and-a-half year
old, 100-pound yellow Labrador retriever, is Babcock's service dog.
His duty is to be at Babcock's side at all times, allowing Babcock
to live and work through his PTSD.
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Master Sgt. Lyle Babcock, management analyst, Kansas National Guard, lives and works through his post-traumatic stress disorder. Babcock and Gunther, his service dog, are inseparable. (National Guard photo illustration by Sgt. Zach Sheely, Kansas Adjutant General's Public Affairs Office)
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“He's been a godsend to me,” Babcock said of Gunther. “He's
allowed me freedom from my own prison.”
Babcock was deployed
nearly 15 months to Afghanistan as the noncommissioned officer in
charge of the 102nd Military History Detachment, Kansas National
Guard. He returned home to Topeka, Kansas, to his wife Traci and
went back to work at Joint Forces Headquarters as the management
analyst of the Human Resources Office, Kansas Adjutant General's
Department.
On the surface
it was business as usual, but internally, the battle was still
raging.
He struggled to reintegrate with society. He
suffered from anxiety, problems sleeping and concentrating. He had
panic attacks. His immediate instinct, however, was not to seek help
out of fear of a stigma he thought people may place on him. Not
until he started volunteering in the PTSD clinic at the
Colmery-O'Neil Veterans Affairs Medical Center in Topeka did Babcock
realize he wasn't alone, others were struggling with the same inner
turmoil.
“It was good to just sit down and talk with other
vets and realize we're all dealing with the same stuff,” Babcock
said.
Another way Babcock relieved stress was through his
love of being on the water. While researching kayaks to purchase, he
discovered a group called Heroes on the Water, a nonprofit
organization that helps service members and veterans relax,
rehabilitate and reintegrate through kayaking and fishing.
A
few months later, Babcock, along with a group of volunteers, started
the Kansas chapter of Heroes on the Water. Through HOW, Babcock
learned of a group that provides service dogs to veterans and
service members struggling with PTSD and/or a traumatic brain
injury.
Joe Jeffers founded Warrior's Best Friend, Kansas
City, Missouri, with the goal of pairing (a term used when a service
dog is assigned to an eligible veteran) wounded warriors with
trained service dogs rescued from animal shelters throughout the
United States. Jeffers contacted Babcock about the possibility of
pairing an interested veteran from Heroes on the Water with a
trained yellow Labrador.
As Babcock learned more about
Warrior's Best Friend and the service dog available, he realized
that he might be interested in being paired with the dog himself.
After discussing it with family, friends and a Veterans Affairs
counselor, Babcock decided to take a leap of faith and filled out
the application to be paired with Gunther.
“Our pairing was
quite unique,” said Babcock. “He'd never been around water, so the
first time I took him to the lake, of course it was like glass. He
stepped right off the dock, headfirst into the water. His eyes were
huge. I was right down there encouraging him and pulled him out of
the water. That was the instant we connected.”
The two go
everywhere together – restaurants, the grocery store, the lake and
even to work.
However, gaining clearance to bring him to the
office was a lengthy process for Babcock. The most difficult part
was disclosing to his leadership that he needed help.
“You
want me to admit to you that I'm broken and that I want to start
bringing a service dog in,” Babcock said. “That was a road block.
That took me a long time to write that request and actually send it
in. Looking back, it was a hard, but a necessary step.”
Babcock said that there are other service members in the Kansas
National Guard that are living with PTSD, trying to fight it on
their own, afraid, as he was, to admit they need help.
“The
first thing is coming to grips with recognition that you do need
some help and there's no shame or embarrassment in that,” said Maj.
Gen. Lee Tafanelli, Kansas adjutant general. “We all find ourselves
at points in our lives where we do need somebody to lean on and do
need the ability to reach out.”
Tafanelli said the Kansas
National Guard is an “extended family” and that the first step to
getting better is recognizing that you have a problem.
“We
owe it to all of our Soldiers and Airmen to look out for their
wellbeing,” he said. “It really isn't a weakness. In many cases,
these traumatic events have had a lasting impact,” – an impact that
Babcock and Gunther outwardly embody.
Gunther wears a service
vest akin to a uniform while he's on duty. A patch on it reads “PTSD
service dog – ask to pet.” Babcock does allow people to pet Gunther,
if they ask which, according to Jeffers is not the case with most
service dogs. Jeffers compared service dogs to other medical tools,
like a wheelchair or crutches – their purpose is to help their user
to live as normal a life as possible.
“This is something I
spoke to the trainer with during the pairing process,” said Babcock.
“I decided that as long as Gunther would maintain focus on me, I
would allow others to pet him with my permission. He has always got
an eye on me. When I say something, he's up and moving and he's
focused strictly on me. If I start getting nervous, or anxious, or
loud, he's right there.”
At work, Gunther soon became one of
the “employees.”
“I know my co-workers had some apprehensions
about me bringing a service dog into the work area,” said Babcock.
“Most of them had never been around a service dog before. I think
some of them thought that Gunther would be like their pets at home –
constantly seeking attention or being a distraction at work. I think
they were shocked at how well trained Gunther is and most of the
time they don't even realize he's there with me.
“When
Gunther walks into the office with me, my co-workers greet him and
tell him good morning. They look after him – the way they look after
me. I understood that by taking this step there was a chance it
would have a negative impact on others around me, which is the last
thing I wanted. But the opposite has been true. They have been very
accepting of Gunther and of the fact that I am receiving counseling
for PTSD.”
Gunther didn't only have to integrate at work, but
also at home with Traci, the family's Pomeranian, Pookie and their
three cats.
“We laid a few ground rules,” Traci said. “I
don't need the added work. It's his dog, but Gunther is definitely
part of the family. He's really grown on me. He's a real likable
dog. He's well-mannered and well trained.”
“I learned, during
the pairing process, that having a service dog is a lot of work and
responsibility,” Babcock said. “They are 100 percent dependent on
you, from feeding to cleaning up. They become dependent on you as
much as you become dependent on them. A service dog is not for every
service member or veteran dealing with PTSD, but he's changed my
life for the better.”
Gunther's training was provided by
Warrior's Best Friend. Jeffers said the organization looks at
200-300 dogs to every one dog that they deem a service dog
candidate. The dog has to demonstrate a certain level of focus and
eagerness to learn in order to be considered for service. The dog's
training alone can take up to 14 months.
“It's important
that we get the dogs as early as possible,” said Jeffers. “The dog
must be able to work in a minimum of three-hour segments and respond
to roughly 25 commands, including block, wait and release.”
Once trained, an eligible veteran applicant is selected and is put
through a familiarization process with the dog, which can take three
to six months.
“When you think about PTSD in terms of the
symptom clusters (avoidance, intrusive, negative thoughts/emotions
and hyper arousal) the ways in which a dog can help are many,” said
Dr. Chalisa Gadt-Johnson, licensed psychologist, Topeka VA Medical
Center. “The companionship is great for those who feel a sense of
isolation, along with helping with those who may be avoiding people
and/or places.”
While Gunther has helped him, Babcock
acknowledged that a service dog may not be the best treatment option
for all. Gadt-Johnson said there are other treatment options
including peer-to-peer, group and peer-to-counselor counseling which
can teach better coping strategies. The VA Hospital in Topeka offers
many education groups and treatment programs for substance abuse,
addiction and psychiatric disorders, including a seven-week
inpatient stress disorder treatment program, open to affected
service members and veterans from around the country.
PTSD
is not a new affliction, nor is it new to the Kansas National Guard,
but for those suffering in silence Babcock shared this advice.
“The first step in reclaiming your quality of life is to seek
out help,” he said. “There are a lot of veterans and service members
struggling with PTSD every day. We think the only solution is
avoidance, isolation, drinking, drugs or even suicide. Sometimes the
biggest step is admitting to ourselves that we can't do it on our
own, putting our pride aside and asking others for help.”
“I
was afraid to take that first step,” Babcock admitted. “But now that
I have, I wish I'd done it sooner. I'm starting to feel more in
control of my life. My battle buddy, Gunther, is by my side, helping
me get through the rough spots in my day. I don't know what I'd do
without him, but it took admitting that I needed help in order to
get where I am today.”
Article by U.S. Army Sgt. Zach Sheely, Kansas Adjutant General's Department
Provided
through DVIDS
Copyright 2015
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Master Sgt. Lyle Babcock's story |
