Recreation and Creative Arts Therapy Expo

The event was held to inform and educate Veterans about programs and services available to them. Veterans can request a recreation therapy consult through their primary care provider if they want to access the recreation and creative arts therapy program. 

“I wouldn’t have reconnected with people I served with if not for this program,” said Ret. Lt. Col. Edna Higa. “I feel it’s so important to make connections and renew connections once you are out of the military. As Veterans, it’s good for our mental and physical health.” 

Many Veterans have shared stories of being helped by VAPIHCS recreation therapy.  Veterans who are wheelchair-users have felt empowered by being able to train with the recreation therapy program and compete in games. Some Veterans describe having significant mental health challenges before becoming involved with the program.

“The recreation therapy program reduces stress and helps people with physical and mental challenge,” said Ret. Air Force Veteran Garrett Kuwada. “For me, sports saved my life. I look forward to training and competing, and to talking with people at events. It’s better therapy for me than talk therapy.” 

Veterans who join the recreation therapy program will be assessed in five areas: physical, cognitive, emotional, spiritual, and social. They may struggle most prominently with a physical issue, such as learning to walk on a prosthetic after losing a limb. Or, they may struggle with cognitive deficits after a Traumatic Brain Injury (TBI) or a stroke. Veterans may struggle with feeling depressed after leaving the military and losing the camaraderie they felt there, or they may be depressed after an injury. Whatever the reason, recreation therapy will find them options that may help. 

“There’s so much that Veterans can participate in, and that’s really what we wanted to show at the Expo today,” said Recreation Therapist Leslie Revilla. “We like to ask them what their goals are, and then help them meet those goals. If they want to improve their fitness so they can play with their grandkids, we have options. If they need to work through emotional or spiritual struggles, they can try things like art therapy or dance and movement.” 

Veteran suicide continues to be a serious and ongoing issue in the United States. There are many drivers of Veteran suicide -but as Veterans will tell you themselves- one of the biggest is loneliness. Recreation therapy is often thought of as a way for Veterans to heal after an injury, but it is also a good way to make friends. Veterans compete in friendly pickle ball games or race on bicycles, and they feel part of a group again, like they did in the military. 

“It’s imperative that Veterans have access to programs like this so that we don’t get isolated,” said Army Veteran Bryson Amaral. “If you tell me to just go out and meet people, I won’t. And if I’m alone, I go to a dark place. But when the VA organizes something, it feels safe. I trust the VA. I know I’ll be with other Veterans like me. I feel like I can do that.”

VAPIHCS has also organized the Koa Challenge Veteran Games in Hawaii, and the Toa Challenge Veteran Games in American Samoa. Veterans can’t always travel to games in the mainland due to time, money, or difficulty with air travel. Having games locally allows more Veterans to participate, and to be motivated to train because they know they will be able to showcase their skills in competitions. For less competitive Veterans, there are options like Dance and Movement Therapy (DMT). 

“My favorite part about working with Veterans is how I don’t have to teach them to move with each other in a group,” said Dance and Movement Therapist Genevieve S.R. Dunn. “They learned to march and move together during their time in service, so they have an advantage over civilians in that way. Some of them come with their families, and their wives and children might need more practice to move in unison with others.”

Whatever skills Veterans learn in the Recreation Therapy program, they will have options for putting those skills into practice. Veterans who train in a sport might go on to the National Veteran Golden Aged Games (NVGAG) or the National Veterans Wheelchair Games. For Veterans who find their joy in art therapy, they may enter the Veterans Creative Arts Festival. Veterans who enjoy paddling might join the next Wounded Warrior Regatta. There are many possibilities, but it all starts with a consult put in by their primary care provider for the recreation and creative arts therapy program.

Veterans who are not enrolled in VA may call 1-800-214-1306 to sign up for care at VAPIHCS.