Former SAS man helping to heal scars
A FORMER SAS veteran has lost everything in his quest to help former servicemen who have been mentally scarred by conflict.
Bob Paxman, who lives in the Forest of Dean, has set up a treatment developed by ex-servicemen for ex-servicemen called Talking2Minds.
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man on a mission: Former SAS veteran Bob Paxman with Thea Foote from The Marketing Farm.
It helps soldiers deal with Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) and other stress-related illnesses.
Mr Paxman, who suffered from PTSD for more than 12 years after leaving the SAS, claims to have helped successfully treat nearly 80 cases of PTSD since the charity's inception in February 2009.
In order to fund the treatment, Mr Paxman has spent upwards of £200,000 using all of his savings made from work in Afghanistan and Iraq.
He has also sold his old car and now he is on the verge of losing his home.
"It is crunch time," he said.
"But lives are changing as a result of the treatment and I strongly believe in it.
"We have cured people who have had mental health issues for more than 27 years."
Mr Paxman, who served for four years in the SAS, uses a variety of therapy and hypnosis techniques to help ex-soldiers.
"We have a unique system to treat PTSD and there is no other like it on the planet," he said. "We have treated people who have been declared clinically insane and they are now well.
"We have got a product that works, now we just need the money."
The Marketing Farm, a Cheltenham-based marketing and PR consultancy business, has stepped in to help Mr Paxman raise a much-needed £100,000.
Matthew Rymer, managing director of The Marketing Farm, has urged people to back Mr Paxman's efforts.
He said: "Bob is desperate to help these ex-soldiers."
Anyone who wants to offer help should call 01242 222 878.
9 Comments
by JIM Guthrie, Tewkesbury
Saturday, April 03 2010, 11:25PM
“I have spent the past 30 yrs in War Zones not being aware i had PTSD. i have recently returned home from Iraq as a security contractor. I spent 6 years there and witnessed many terrible things. i lost count of the friends i lost after 63.
i have tried to get into Combat Stress, they are willing to take me in but i am being treated for injuries. i have had a knee replaced , a hip replaced and the consultant still has to work on the other side of my body.
Combat stress can not take me in till i am 6 months clear from hospital treatment.
I did not know i had PTSD but my family and friends did. last year i threatened a man with a knife because i had been drinking and taking anti depressants. when i am in the public domain i panic, i feel threatened, and anxious. I want help so much i want to get better, i don't want to be an ex soldier who has lost everything including his family but i cant get the help i need. i don't want to remember the battles, the dead the carnage i want to forget. I WANT TO BE NORMAL AGAIN.
jim”
by Kent Fullarton C. Ht., Southern California, USA
Thursday, December 10 2009, 12:20AM
“It is a shame and a disgrace. We have the tool to help our Veterans now with Hypnotherapy. Direct hypnosis, NLP, Regression, They all work.”
by Sue, fod
Sunday, November 22 2009, 1:58PM
“Once again we see a worthwhile cause, which is prooving to be succesful,(but perhaps this is the problem,) when the conventional treatment for PTSD. is keep taking the tablets,and pull yourself together lad, maybe Talking to Minds is looked on as a threat.If Mr Paxman fails (God forbid) then it is because he has been hampered by the red tape of beaurocracy I too would like to see Mark Harper ask questions in Parliament, but have it on good authority that he is sitting on the fence on this issue,”
by glos, Glos
Saturday, November 21 2009, 9:16PM
“Is this the same manic depressive ex-sas guy that went on a rampage in the wooded forest about 18 months ago. He threatened police officers with a machete and then stated he wanted to commit suicide.....”
by Dean, FoD
Saturday, November 21 2009, 4:38PM
“The government throw money at immigration, drug rehab and there own personal expenses, in other words wasteful causes. This is a true cause by a man who has served his country in a way that politicians couldn't contemplate. Why dont they do the decent thing and help out this man??!!”
by Mal, Local
Saturday, November 21 2009, 10:49AM
“I'm in agreement with Tim and the good Colonel.
Politicians of all colours treat our Troops as dispensable items.”
by Colonel Willowby-Gore St. Johns, Wotton Lawn
Saturday, November 21 2009, 10:48AM
“Well said, Douglas, Dymock ! I for one second that opinion, hear, hear !”
by Douglas, Dymock
Saturday, November 21 2009, 10:42AM
“You are doing a fantastic job and I hope the local MP will see this and raise it in the commons.”
by Colonel Willowby-Gore St. Johns, Wotton Lawn
Saturday, November 21 2009, 10:29AM
“Another shocking example of how this country treats its TRUE heroes, what? In an age that has become obsessed with the cult of celebrity and being famous, a time where style matters more than substance, an era for the slow to think but the quick to buy, this man's efforts shine like a beacon. All power to you and God Bless, Sir !!!”