June 20, 2016
Colonel Charles Hamel has served 1,000 days in overseas combat operations.
Story and photo by Kerri Robins
CALGARY — For retired Colonel Charles Hamel, despite more than 42 years’ service with the Canadian Forces and 1,000 days in combat, his toughest battle is the one he fought upon his return home from overseas duty.
“It’s like we go from hero to zero,” he says, “where we had something to offer as capable soldiers in the field serving our country, to the home-front where we feel like a nobody with nothing to give. Re-integration into civilian life was probably the hardest challenge.”
Hamel did a seven-month tour in the Congo in 2003-2004, and two tours in Afghanistan, starting in 2005 and 2011.
After his second Afghanistan tour he was diagnosed with operational stress injury (OSI), which includes PTSD (post-traumatic stress disorder) and major depressive disorder (MDD). He experiences sleep disorders, flashbacks, memory loss and more.
Also contributing to his diagnosis is a lower jaw injury, which required extensive surgery to rebuild, during his first tour in Afghanistan.
“I couldn’t speak for quite a while … so it had a real impact for me from a social standpoint,” says the 60-year-old Calgarian. “I stopped going out, and that’s not a good thing, given it contributes to the isolation I already felt.”
“I felt isolated when I came back because there really wasn’t anybody I could talk to about some of the horrors I’d seen. There is an overpowering feeling of abandonment when you get home; like the army has forgotten about you and you aren’t needed for anything anymore.”
Marney Riendeau, manager of the Carewest Operational Stress Injury Clinic, has known Hamel for years.
“OSIs are complex, and can be challenging to determine the exact causes or triggers,” says Riendeau.
“They are mental illnesses, which may include depression and anxiety, and require a carefully customized treatment plan through a combination of prescription medicine, cognitive treatment, physical activity and spiritual or emotional care. Common co-existing illnesses to OSIs are addictions.”
“While we’re a specialized clinic for retired or active soldiers and the RCMP, the illness affects anyone. Many cases of OSI affect our first responders, such as EMS and our police force. PTSD can also occur due to traumatic childhood experiences, which further complicate treatment.”
The OSI clinic has about more than 300 active files and receives about 200 referrals a year.
Riendeau adds: “Eighty per cent of our clients are men, and about 8 to 12 per cent of people … will experience some form of PTSD in their lifetime.
While there is no cure, per se, recovery is possible.
Hamel says: “It takes incredible mental stamina and effort in the healing process to recover. What you experience in the field is debilitating, not only personally, but has lasting effects on your family as well.”
It’s no surprise then that Hamel finds the physical activity part of his therapy so effective. “It’s satisfying to challenge yourself in a different kind of physical effort than what soldiering demands — and being with a peer group is an added benefit.”
So when fellow retired veteran Barry Ashton — who suffered from mild PTSD after his return from the former Yugoslavia in 1996 — suggested the Buller Mountain Summit for Mental Health and Wellness, Hamel instantly came on board.
A major general with 35 years of service, Ashton, 72, has seen and experienced the devastating effects of OSIs.
After hiking Mount Buller last year — and with an understanding of the benefits of a challenge and vigorous exercise — the Calgarian decided to organize a fundraising climb/hike on the mountain to raise awareness for mental illness, health and wellness.
This year’s climb took place on June 25 and raised $70,000, thanks to a partnership with the Calgary Health Trust, the Princess Patricia's Canadian Light Infantry Foundation (PPCLI) and a major sponsor, Atmosphere, an outdoor adventure store. The mountain is named for First World War hero Lieutenant-Colonel Herbert Cecil Buller, who died in battle in 1916.
This summit also preceded PTSD Day in Alberta, June 27, the first time the syndrome has been formally recognized with its own day in the province.
Climbers and hikers started the summit at the Buller Mountain day use area, located near Spray Lakes in Kananaskis Country.
Three teams and 27 individual climbers climbed the 2,805 metres to the top of the mountain, while 16 hikers took a slightly gentler hike of 2,470 metres to the summit of Buller Pass. Each climbing team member pledged to raise $2,500, while hikers pledged to raise $1,500 for mental health and wellness.
Mountaineer Laurie Skreslet, the first Canadian to ascend Mount Everest in 1982, also took part.
“Climbing a mountain puts us in the moment, and is an accomplishment that empowers and transforms us,” says the 66-year-old. “Challenging physical exercise reawakens our awareness and strength, and focuses us so we can recognize our capabilities and instill resiliency. Healing from emotional traumas takes courage and I’m honoured to be part of this summit.”
Ashton and Jill Olynyk, President and CEO of Calgary Health Trust go back a long way. So when Ashton suggested a fundraiser, Olynyk became the first donor to the cause.
“We are so proud to partner with the PPCLI Foundation on this important initiative,” says Olynyk. “This organization is a true example of visionary leadership and philanthropy in the community, and their support will make a big difference to individuals dealing with Post Traumatic Stress Disorder.”
For his part, Hamel remains optimistic and realistic about his own ‘climb’ back to mental health: “I’m still climbing and it’s been hard at times finding ways to nurture myself. But working out physically, volunteering and promoting family togetherness through physical activities is helping me be a healthy person.
“Everyone has their own mountain to climb, and their own way of reaching the top,” says Hamel, “It’s just drawing the strength and courage to figure out how to make that journey that’s the hard part.”
For more information, to support a team through donations, or to register for the event, visit the Calgary Health Trust website's event listing for Buller Mountain Summit for Mental Health and Wellness.
