Virginia Veteran Reclaims Recovery with Wounded Warrior Project

POQUOSON, Va., Jan. 31, 2017 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- Local warriors recently attended a Wounded Warrior Project^® (WWP) mental health workshop at a mountain lodge and ski park in Pennsylvania. These gatherings are often the first time warriors leave their homes to connect with others in their communities.

"This workshop put me more at ease than traditional counseling," said Jeff Lamprecht, retired U.S. Army pilot from Poquoson, Virginia. "I feel more comfortable and relaxed among veterans than civilians – you know they have your back. That comfort really allowed me to push myself."

WWP's Combat Stress Recovery Program (CSRP) addresses the mental health needs of warriors returning from war. Thanks to generous donors, WWP offers veterans specialized mental health programs and services – tailored to each warrior's needs, free of charge.

One such program is its multi-day mental health workshops that are offered as all-male, all-female, or all-couples. These workshops provide safe, private environments for warriors to express themselves and share their combat experiences. By the end, warriors share lessons learned from the activities that impacted their personal struggles most and set achievable goals for their recoveries.

WWP staff use a recovery model that allows warriors to be vulnerable to the unknown and identify and work through anxieties together. As warriors brave slopes standing as tall as 2,994 feet in elevation at the park, they actively honor the oaths they agreed to at the beginning of the workshop, including "to let go and move on," "to care for self and others," and "to be present in their recovery."

And they tackled the mountain like the warriors they are.

"At the workshop, I had been apart from my service dog more than I ever have been," Jeff said. "I didn't know how this trip would affect me. Every activity tested me in one way or another, but still I put in the work. I set goals and tried everything at least once. I didn't think I would like snow tubing, but I tried it and worked through my anxieties – I haven't laughed like that in a long time."

To learn and see more about how WWP's mental health workshops connect, serve, and empower wounded warriors, visit http://newsroom.woundedwarriorproject.org/ and click on multimedia.

About Wounded Warrior Project
Wounded Warrior Project^® (WWP) connects, serves, and empowers wounded warriors. Read more at http://newsroom.woundedwarriorproject.org/about-us.

SOURCE Wounded Warrior Project