Pubdate: Sat, 18 Jun 2016
Source: Guardian, The (CN PI)
Copyright: 2016 The Guardian, Charlottetown Guardian Group Incorporated
Contact:  http://www.theguardian.pe.ca/
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/174
Author: Teresa Wright
Page: A1

TRAUMA AFTER WAR

Afghanistan veteran Dennis MacKenzie opens up about how losing six
friends overseas caused PTSD and how medical marijuana has helped him
heal

His face was grief-stricken, streaming with tears, as he carried the
coffin of one of six friends killed by a roadside bomb in
Afghanistan.

Dennis MacKenzie's emotions gripped the country in April 2007 when he
was photographed taking part in a ramp ceremony in Kandahar for his
friends and fellow soldiers, killed by an improvised explosive device
in their LAV-III armoured vehicle.

Sitting in the quiet study of his parents' home in St. Catherine's
earlier this week, MacKenzie's eyes filled with tears as he recalled
that tragic Easter weekend in 2007.

He was on a day patrol about seven kilometres away. He heard the
explosion but thought nothing of it.

"It wasn't out of the ordinary. We heard explosions dozens of times a
day. It wasn't until it came over the radio, we heard "VSA" which
stands for vital signs absent."

The explosion killed Sgt. Donald Lucas, 31, Cpl. Aaron E. Williams,
23, Pte. Kevin Vincent Kennedy, 20, Pte. David Robert Greenslade, 20,
Cpl. Christopher Paul Stannix, 24, and Cpl. Brent Poland, 37. Three
others were injured in the attack. The Guardian published a story in
2007 telling the story of how MacKenzie almost did not make it to the
ramp ceremony when he was told he could not be spared from the field.

After an intervention by Gen. Rick Hillier, he did make it there. And
his anguished face was captured by a camera and shared with the media,
allowing the country to witness the tragedy of war.

But after his tour was over, he began to realize he was not adjusting
to life back home.

He was angry, depressed, anxious. But the worst symptom, he recalls,
was a loss of empathy.

He was diagnosed with post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD). He sought
help, but he still couldn't feel anything. Even the births of his two
children did not evoke the emotions he wanted.

"They put me on pills. I went and saw a psychologist. I thought things
helped. It didn't ... I was just really numb."

Eventually, it became so bad he could no longer cope with the simplest
of tasks.

He recalls one incident in which he went to a grocery store and spent
two hours just walking in circles.

"I had a list in my hand and left with nothing and don't even remember
walking around the store."

He was released from the military and came back to
P.E.I.

Then, he was confronted with more tragedy.

His sergeant, Ronald Anderson, who he had followed into battle in
Afghanistan, took his own life in 2014.

That's when MacKenzie says he realized he was still "a mess" and
needed more help.

"It just really opened my eyes to how vulnerable we all are, because
this man you'd never, ever, ever assume. He was the life, he was what
made us smile, he's part of the reason we got through it," MacKenzie
said.

"It was pretty eye-opening for me."

MacKenzie says the first time he tried medical marijuana, he had the
most restful night of sleep in years.

The next day, while washing dishes, he broke down into
tears.

"I'd gone through PTSD, released from the military, my wife left, I
became a single father in school full time and I just realized I
hadn't felt anything, I hadn't processed anything, well, since
probably that picture in 2007," he said.

"It was probably the last emotion that I truly showed and
felt."

Since then, he says his life has been transformed.

Medical marijuana has helped ease his anxiety and has helped him
become a better father to his two young sons, he says.

That's why he is now opening a Prince Edward Island chapter of
Marijuana for Trauma - an organization that provides support for
veterans suffering from PTSD.

MacKenzie says he hopes Marijuana for Trauma (MFT) will help end the
stigma of cannabis as treatment for veterans, first responders and
others, as well as offer peer support, counselling and healing to
those suffering from the debilitating effects of PTSD.

"When I started this, I was not a cannabis user. I didn't believe for
one second that a soldier was getting relief with cannabis. I thought
for sure these guys were just out to get stoned," he said.

"I'm now bringing MFT to P.E.I. because I believe in it that much. It
has given me my life back 100 per cent."

MacKenzie and representatives from MFT met with Charlottetown Police
to explain their organization, noting it only offers supports to
veterans and does not dispense drugs.

Deputy police chief Gary McGuigan told The Guardian police have no
issue with any organization working within the confines of the law
regarding medical marijuana.

MacKenzie says he hopes Islanders will keep an open mind about his
organization and not just see him as a "long-haired guy who smokes
weed."

"I want them to remember they grieved with me," he
said.

"I had so much response from that photo (in 2007), people just saying
that picture put it into perspective for people, that it made them
understand the feelings of war. And I just want people to remember
that before throwing stones."
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MAP posted-by: Matt