Group helps vets deal with the stress of combat

Dan Taslitz knows all about combat stress.

The former Marine Corps Reserve sergeant was a reconnaissance team leader in Iraq in 2004-05.

Now, the Colorado man is helping other veterans at ONE Freedom Inc. recover from the stress of war and reintegrate into society.

The Boulder-based nonprofit organization offers veterans and their families free training in changing the way they deal with prolonged stress and trauma.

It reframes the way the “warriors” — as these veterans are called in the program — experience stress and guides them with new approaches, he said.

“None of the survival skills apply to being back at home at the same level as they do in Iraq,” Taslitz said.

Director Elizabeth Hawkins said ONE Freedom involves a science-based approach using focused breath, thought awareness, mental stimulation, emotional management and rest and recovery.

“They are trained up to go to war but not trained down to come home,” she said.

Dr. Robert Scaer, a Boulder neurologist and author of books on traumatic stress, works with ONE Freedom clients.

“The trauma is based on feelings of the body that represents the experiences of the flesh,” he said.

“You can’t ‘talk’ away trauma, you have to extinguish the body messages and the cues that drive the trauma response.”

The organization offers seminars, workshops and retreats to veterans, caregivers and professionals.

Upcoming Colorado Springs workshops will be Saturday and Aug. 26, 9:30 a.m.-5 p.m, Emerald Valley Ranch.

For more information, go to www.onefreedom.org or call 888-334-VETS.