‘If You Feel Like You Have a Problem, Come to VA and Get Help’
Some kids want to be doctors. Some want to be lawyers. When Bryan Aguirre was 5 years old, he wanted to be a Marine.
In 2003 Aguirre became one of the few and the proud, joining the Marine Corps and deploying to Iraq as part of Operation Iraqi Freedom. “I got to live my dream, and I went all the way,” Aguirre said, doing two tours of duty and even receiving presidential honors for his combat heroics.
Unfortunately, after leaving the service, things began to crumble for the highly decorated Veteran. After years in a self-described “rabbit hole” of mental health challenges and substance abuse, he found West Los Angeles VA Medical Center, where compassionate staff helped him get back on his feet.
These days he uses boxing as a tool to share his journey and help his fellow Veterans. He finds that the sport teaches critical life skills. “Just because you go down doesn’t mean you’re finished,” he said. “You have the option to get back up.”
From Fallujah to the DOM
Aguirre did two tours of duty as part of Operation Enduring Freedom and Operation Iraqi Freedom in 2003 and Operation Iraqi Freedom in 2004.
He initially went in as a water technician in the engineering field, but cross-trained in an array of different areas, learning how to be an electrician, a heavy equipment operator and more. In 2003 he volunteered as force protection in Kuwait and received advanced training by seasoned soldiers. He was part of the initial invasion into Iraq. While there, he did convoy security and worked as a sentry and a scout “outside the wire” (meaning outside the protection of the bases). He lost brothers in arms along the way.
On his second tour, he and his unit were a part of the historic Battle of Fallujah, for which they received a Presidential Unit Citation (PUC) for extraordinary heroism in action against an armed enemy.
In 2010 Aguirre decided to leave the service to spend more time with his family. It wasn’t long before he started having nightmares about the war. Posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD), traumatic brain injury, anxiety and depression led to alcohol and drug abuse and a divorce, which derailed his life.
For six years, he struggled.
Eventually, he decided to seek help, and ended up on the combat track at the Domiciliary (DOM), a Mental Health Residential Rehabilitation Program (MH RRP). His time there changed his life.
“In the beginning it can be a little hard. You have your addictions, you have your inner demons, you don’t believe in yourself,” he said. “Finally, once you get through the first few months you start seeing a light at the end of the tunnel. You start loving yourself. You really start to believe in yourself. When that moment happens, you’re ready to take on whatever’s next.”
The staff at the DOM helped him process his trauma, including facing some incidents from his childhood. Physical activity, meditation, breathing techniques – different coping strategies helped him through.
Recovery Through Rec Therapy
Recreation Therapy was incredibly beneficial, Aguirre said, including doing boxing drills at the Veteran’s Center for Recreation and Education, going hiking and engaging in other forms of recreation for healing.
One of the DOM’s recreation therapists, Army Veteran Stephanie Simon, served as his running coach. During his time at the DOM, he went from barely being able to jog a mile to becoming a recognizable figure on campus with his lengthy morning runs.
After his time at the DOM, Aguirre worked with the Department of Housing and Urban Development – VA Supportive Housing program to secure permanent supportive housing. Aguirre was also connected to VA Lead Peer Support Specialist Noe Tejeda, who helped him scout out an apartment near the beach in San Pedro.
“He’s a go-getter,” Tejeda said of Aguirre. “He’s a role model as far as where he’s been and where he is now.”
These days Aguirre trains youth, amateur fighters and even some pro fighters at Markey’s Boxing and Fitness in San Pedro. He also received his peer support certification from Loyola Marymount University, so he can help other Veterans adjust to civilian life.
“A lot of us Veterans feel like we’re the only ones who may be struggling,” Tejeda said. “Bryan’s story demonstrates and shows, ‘hey, I’m not the only one.’”
Staying TUFF
Part of Aguirre’s coaching happens through TUFF (The Unlimited Fitness Foundation), a Veteran-focused boxing nonprofit that meets outside the DOM three times a week.
Founder Jeff Dordick and his partner Roberta Shorman have worked one-on-one with thousands of Veterans since TUFF’s inception in 2010. Dordick, who’s been in the fitness world for four decades, wanted to give back to those who protect our freedoms.
“When you’re boxing, hitting the bag or sparring, your brain is locked into that moment,” Dordick said. The process helps Veterans come into the present and step away from their problems, he said.
TUFF is free and designed to help Veterans with boxing, fitness, weightlifting, wellness and nutrition. The team works with Veterans of all abilities, including those in wheelchairs. It’s a no-contact, non-confrontational environment, so while the Veterans participate in boxing drills using bags and boxing pads, there’s no punching allowed.
Aguirre believes boxing helps Veterans in many ways, including by teaching them how to take a step back rather than react instinctively. “It helps you mentally and physically feel stronger,” he said. Exercise has long been touted for its physical and mental health benefits. A 2019 study review found that aerobic exercise may improve PTSD symptoms.
Dordick calls Aguirre “an extraordinary man.” “He is one of the top examples in our whole program of how you can overcome your past and create a good future for yourself,” he said, adding that Aguirre has the gift of getting through to the Veterans he trains with.
“Boxing trains you to believe in yourself,” Aguirre said. “We’re [Veterans] not getting any younger. We’re getting older, we have our injuries. Coming back from whatever war or trauma you’ve had, getting out and now being older, you start asking yourself, do I still have the stuff?”
Boxing helps fill that void and gives Veterans another tool to help in the healing process.
Supporting His Peers
Currently, Aguirre is in school. His long-term goal is to be an alcohol, substance abuse and mental health counselor for Veterans who are struggling just like he was. “I think God’s putting that in my path,” he said. His daughter, Abrielle, is a top priority for him.
As far as his advice for his peers who are having a hard time, it’s pretty simple: “love yourself.” He also gives credit to the Semper Fi & America's Fund and the Veterans Crisis Line for their assistance.
“Understand that you’re something special,” he said to his fellow Veterans. “You’ve done something that not a lot of people can say they did. You signed that dotted line saying I will put my life on the line for this country. It would be a shame for you not to get the help you deserve coming back from any of these traumas. If you feel like you have a problem, come to VA and get help.”