The battlefield changes you, but the real fight might start when you get home.

Ben Sykes went from web designer to Marine machine gunner during the invasion of Iraq, living through relentless firefights, surreal moments in Saddam's palaces, and the strange calm of enemy fire becoming routine.

But nothing prepared him for the turbulence of reintegration. Restless nights, the crash of losing combat's adrenaline, and the struggle to fit into a world that no longer made sense. In this conversation, Ben opens up about the chemical withdrawal of leaving war, the dangerous paths veterans can fall into, and the hard-earned lessons he wishes he'd known during his transition.

Whether you've been in the fight yourself or love someone who has, his story is a brutally honest look at what it takes to reclaim your footing after service.

Timestamps:

• 00:10:40 - Trading Hollywood for the yellow footprints
• 00:12:50 - First firefight on the road to Baghdad
• 00:23:10 - Securing Saddam's palace and the gold they never saw
• 00:28:50 - The chemical withdrawal of coming home
• 00:37:00 - From homelessness to finding a new mission

Links & Resources

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

Transcript

View the transcript for this episode.