Drive On: Helping Veterans Navigate PTSD & Life After Military Service

There's often pain behind the person who makes everyone laugh. TK Moyer shares what it was like to be separated from his family as a child, how he turned to humor when honesty felt risky, and how the Navy helped him find confidence and a new outlook.

This conversation touches on something many veterans understand: the weight carried before service, the weight from service itself, and the challenge of holding it all in without burdening others. TK uses humor, poetry, and a belief in human connection, and he's learned that asking for help is an act of trust. He also talks about how his book, Survivor's Guilt: A Memoir In Verse, came from facing and writing through the hardest parts of his life, turning them into something meaningful.

You'll hear how comedy can help people connect, how focusing on your breath can bring you back to the present, and why simply being there for someone can matter more than having the right words.

Timestamps:

00:05:32 - The ten-minute poem

00:17:31 - When laughter became a way to survive

00:29:55 - How the memoir in verse took shape

00:32:30 - The breath that brought him back

00:37:53 - Why reaching out is never a burden

Links & Resources

Veteran Suicide & Crisis Line: Dial 988, then press 1

Follow TK Moyer on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/tKeithm

Follow TK Moyer on Instagram: https://instagram.com/tkmoyer88

Follow TK Moyer on LinkedIn: https://linkedin.com/tkmoyer88

Many military and veteran families are facing tough times. Groceries are more expensive, paychecks do not go as far, and reaching out for help can feel discouraging. This conversation addresses those challenges and offers hope for a better path.

Vicki Sarracino, Vice President of Programs at Soldiers' Angels, explains how the group supports service members, veterans, and their families. They provide food distributions, food pantries, help at VA hospitals, hygiene kits, transportation, housing welcome kits, care packages for those deployed, and more. The main focus is dignity. Veterans are treated as individuals, not just numbers. They are recognized, valued, and supported by people who truly care.

You will learn why even active duty families sometimes struggle with food insecurity, and how leaving military life can lead to isolation. Taking the first step to ask for help can lead to community, stability, and a new sense of purpose. There is also a real need for volunteers, businesses, and local communities to get involved, because their help makes a difference right away.

Timestamps:

00:02:54 - Why Soldiers' Angels shifted to food first

00:06:55 - Veterans choosing between groceries, rent, medication, and gas

00:13:46 - The hidden struggle of military transition

00:21:47 - The veteran who came for food and found a connection

00:34:42 - Why asking for support is a strength

Links & Resources

Veteran Suicide & Crisis Line: Dial 988, then press 1

Website: https://www.soldiersangels.org

Follow Soldiers Angels on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/SoldiersAngelsOfficial

Follow Soldiers Angels on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/soldiersangelsofficial/

Follow Soldiers Angels on Twitter/X: https://x.com/soldiersangels

Follow Soldiers Angels on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/c/SoldiersAngelsOfficial

Follow Soldiers Angels on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/soldiersangels

Follow Vicki Sarracino on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/vicki-sarracino-3333671b7/

HUD VASH VA Homeless Programs: https://department.va.gov/homeless/hud-vash

Some men leave the military and still notice the empty seat at the table. The mission has ended, the unit is no longer there, and civilian life often lacks the honesty they once shared with fellow service members.

Historian and Marine veteran Bryan Rigg offers a unique perspective on this struggle. He draws from his research on World War II, Holocaust history, his time in the Marine Corps, and his efforts to save stories that might have been forgotten. He discusses unopened Iwo Jima records, German primary groups, the silence after war, and how veterans can lose their close circle of support when they come home.

This conversation covers both battlefield history and the daily challenges veterans face after service. It offers veterans practical ideas for building connection, finding meaning, seeking therapy, learning from older veterans, supporting family, and making small check-ins that help them keep going. You will come away with a better understanding of why isolation is so hard, how to rebuild connections on purpose, and how sharing pain with the right people can help you heal.

Timestamps:

00:01:38 - How a Marine veteran kept serving through history

00:06:45 - The World War II files no one had opened

00:11:00 - Primary groups and why men fight harder together

00:26:15 - Why veterans lose their tribe after coming home

00:46:15 - Finding the why that keeps a man moving forward

Links & Resources

Veteran Suicide & Crisis Line: Dial 988, then press 1

Website: https://www.BryanMarkRigg.com

Follow Bryan Rigg on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/bryanmarkrigg/

Follow Bryan Rigg on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/bryanmarkrigg/

Follow Bryan Rigg on Twitter/X: https://twitter.com/bryanmarkrigg1

Follow Bryan Rigg on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/bryanmarkrigg

Follow Bryan Rigg on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UClvYbh1DdUB-k5DBuQ_yFFw/videos

A solid transition plan does not guarantee a clean landing. Guest Taamir Ransome left the Army with advanced education, real-world experience, and a strong résumé, but he still felt the loss of identity, purpose, and daily mission after taking off the uniform.

This conversation follows Taamir from joining the Army after 9/11, serving in the 82nd Airborne, moving into EOD, supporting special operations, and becoming the first Black Tier 1 EOD operator. From there, the focus turns to the part of service that follows veterans home: the pressure, the silence, the missing pack, and the struggle to explain combat stress to people who only know the military through movies.

Taamir also breaks down ideas from his book Mind of a Soldier, including why the uniform is not your identity, why veterans need people who will call them out when they are slipping, why "thank you for your service" can shut down a better conversation, and why filing for benefits or walking into a VFW can be part of fighting for yourself. This episode gives veterans a practical reminder that help exists, but you may have to approach it the same way you approached the mission: gather information, find the right people, and take the next step.

Timestamps:

00:07:13 - Transition looked strong, but still hit hard

00:11:53 - The uniform is not your identity

00:15:51 - Why veterans must fight for themselves

00:19:51 - Why PTSD may not explain everything

00:22:36 - Why combat can be hard to leave

Links & Resources

Veteran Suicide & Crisis Line: Dial 988, then press 1

Website: https://blog.sixeight.io

Follow Taamir Ransome on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/ransomemindofasoldier

Follow Taamir Ransome on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/taamir-ransome

Silence can linger long after a veteran has returned home and taken off the uniform. For Eric Gillis, one of the toughest challenges after leaving the Army was learning to function in a world without the structure, purpose, and brotherhood that once held everything together. He kept his inner struggles to himself, feeling he had no right to speak up because others had paid a higher price.

That silence nearly cost him everything.

This story follows Eric's journey through post-military chaos, hypervigilance, family struggles, therapy, and the moment a doctor said something that changed his path: "You can be better." From that point, Eric started rebuilding his life as a husband, father, teacher, author, and creator of The Rebuilt Warrior. He shares how veterans can turn their military strengths into civilian success, rebuild trust, take responsibility, find purpose, and create the structure they miss after service.

What you’ll hear is a relatable message for veterans feeling stuck, ashamed, angry, isolated, or unsure of where they fit now. It’s a reminder that struggle doesn’t have to be the final chapter, and that a new mission can be built, one honest step at a time.

Timestamps:

00:03:27 - Leaving military structure behind

00:06:25 - The night everything almost ended

00:12:27 - Turning private pain into Rebuilt Warrior

00:19:03 - Breaking down the STRUCTURE framework

00:37:30 - A message for veterans in silence

Links & Resources

Veteran Suicide & Crisis Line: Dial 988, then press 1

Website: https://www.therebuiltwarrior.com

Follow Eric Gillis on Facebook: https://facebook.com/TheRebuiltWarrior

Follow Eric Gillis on Instagram: https://instagram.com/TheRebuiltWarrior