CNRH Navy Wounded Warrior Program Helps Sailor Experiencing PTSD

Official Statements

• Commander Navy Region Hawaii, November 10: “When Navy Counselor 1st Class Ronald Kaopuiki, who is assigned to Navy Talent Acquisition Group (NTAG) Pacific, started experiencing Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) symptoms, he tried to manage them on his own. A demanding work environment required all his attention, enabling him to suppress negative thoughts and emotions.

  “It helped me push a lot of my negative thoughts aside at first,” said Kaopuiki, 56, who has more than 32 years of combined active duty and Navy Reserve service.

  However, his condition gradually worsened.

  “During one of my recruiting assignments, my PTSD symptoms started to feel uncontrollable, and it got to the point where I just snapped,” he recalled. Kaopuiki first started noticing signs of PTSD after returning from a 2010 deployment to Iraq.

  The turning point for Kaopuiki came after a certified Periodic Health Assessment health care provider asked about his well-being over the phone.

  “I opened up to her, and I told her I was struggling with sleeping, having constant headaches, and was dealing with thoughts of survivor’s guilt,” said Kaopuiki. “She set me up for an appointment with a psychiatrist the next day at Makalapa Clinic who referred me to Navy Wounded Warrior and my treatment continued from there.”

  Through Navy Wounded Warrior, Kaopuiki was able to get the support he needed.

  Navy Wounded Warrior is a non-medical care management program that supports Sailors and Coast Guardsmen who have serious, non-combat or combat-related injuries, and physical or psychological illnesses. The program helps tailor support for service members and their families, connects them with resources, and explains complicated processes in a more personal way.

  “The program pulls you away from whatever stress you’re dealing with in your day-to-day life and just lets you vent,” said Kaopuiki. “It gave me the opportunity to settle down into the community again and helped regulate my mood by doing things like working with clay and volunteering on a taro farm.”

  Mark Puco, the region program director for Navy Wounded Warrior, encourages Sailors to seek help for mental health issues they may be experiencing.

  “We provide support to service members so they know that the Navy still cares about them,” said Puco. “We’re going to lower that anxiety about the treatment process if they’re going through the medical board by answering their questions and making sure they understand the Veterans Affairs (VA) programs and Navy programs that are available to them.”

  Navy Wounded Warrior Offers Healing

  “What’s great about our program is that if a service member is injured, ill, or wounded, whether they get into a vehicle accident, they get cancer, or PTSD, they can rest assured knowing that there’s a team that’s going to provide them support,” said Puco.

  Puco said Navy Wounded Warrior has many great programs available to active duty Sailors but not everyone takes advantage of them.

  Master Chief Michael Ramey, the non-medical case manager for Navy Wounded Warrior, explained that Navy Wounded Warrior services are vital to the command and the community because they allow Sailors to prioritize their recovery and well-being.

  “When I was a young Sailor, we used to have a motto: ‘Mission first, people always,’” said Ramey. “Of course, we want to keep the mission going but in order to do that we’re going to have to take care of our people.”

  Kaopuiki said there will always be obstacles preventing someone from seeking help such as pride, embarrassment, or fear but no matter the reason, treatment is far more important.

  “Because I’ve gone through treatment and I know how much it helps, I advocate for any Sailors I come across who I think are struggling with their mental health to get help when they need it,” he said.

  In addition to helping him with medical referrals and managing his VA claims, Kaopuiki said Navy Wounded Warrior helped him obtain a primary care manager who helps oversee his health and recovery.

  For Kaopuiki, the message is simple: seeking help can change lives.

  “Not everything is easy,” he said, “but the help that Navy Wounded Warrior provided made me feel a lot more at ease.”

  To date, Navy Wounded Warrior has helped more than 13,000 seriously wounded, ill, and injured service members throughout the country. An estimated 830 Sailors and Coast Guardsmen are currently enrolled in the program with 68 Navy Region Hawaii enrollees.

  Resources Available to CNRH Sailors

  For information about PTSD resources and the Wounded Warrior Program, visit navywoundedwarrior.com, call (855) 628-9997, ext. 6 or email navywoundedwarrior.fct@navy.mil.

  Mental Health Playbook: The Navy’s Mental Health roadmap outlines a wide range of helpful resources. Support often begins with the chain of command and peer-to-peer programs such as the Expanded Operational Stress Control program, which focuses on building resilience and helping Sailors manage stress.

  Visit https://www.mynavyhr.navy.mil/Support-Services/Culture-Resilience/Leaders-Toolkit/Mental-Health-Playbook/ for more information.

  Command chaplains: Chaplains provide 100 percent confidential counseling and spiritual guidance ensuring that there are no reporting requirements or health record documentation.

  For more information on Chapel or Religious Ministry Programs visit https://jbchapel.info/.

  Military OneSource: The program offers free, confidential counseling around the clock.

  For more information, visit https://www.militaryonesource.mil/ or call 800-342-9647.

  Military and Family Support Center (MFSC): Available to active duty Sailors and dependents, the MFSC provides assistance with clinical counseling, financial management, deployment support, employment services, transition assistance, and family advocacy.

  For more information, visit https://jbphh.greatlifehawaii.com/support/military-family-support-center or call (808) 474-1999.

  Wounded Warrior Project: Eligible active duty Sailors, transitioning service members, and veterans who served on or after Sept. 11, 2001, may qualify for a variety of Wounded Warrior Project programs that provide mental health support, resilience training, and personalized resources to help service members and veterans navigate challenges and improve their overall well-being.

  For more information on the Wounded Warrior Project, visit navywoundedwarrior.com, or call Phillip Billiot, outreach specialist at (904) 776-9684.”