About Us – The Rolling Barrage
Raise Awareness to End the Stigma of PTSD
Our mantra “it is not a disorder or a disease, it is an injury sustained from the traumas of one’s duty to protect Canada and her citizens.”
Ultimately, we’d like to change the last letter of PTSD from a “D” to an “I”.
If you have a Post-Traumatic Stress Injury; Operational/Occupational Stress Injury (PTSI/OSI), then you’re not broken; your brain IS wired correctly; you’re hurt from your experiences that don’t align with a proper moral compass.
Therefore, whenever possible, The Rolling Barrage will only use PTSD in our main taglines (“Combat PTSD”, “End the Stigma of PTSD”). Herein, we refer to, and push for the classification, of it as PTSI/OSI. The Rolling Barrage PTSD Foundation also made the focal shift to empower our injured compatriots, by euphemizing “living with or healing from PTSI” vice suffering with/from it.
Foster Inclusivity
“Not all wounds are visible. Not all wounds are military”
The Rolling Barrage will foster inclusivity within the Canadian occupations that are at highest risk of developing PTSD through their service to Canada;
The Rolling Barrage is open to ALL riders and not just military in nature. We support Veterans and Active Duty personnel in the Military, RCMP, and First Responder communities.
We openly invite civilian riders, as a way to show resounding support for our troops and those within the First Responder and the greater Safety Community, who answer the call to protect Canada every day regardless of their attire (a uniform, “scrubs” or civilian clothes).
Generate Funds to Promote Healing
At the end of every ride, The Rolling Barrage Board of Directors and Executive decides how to use the donations raised in the following ways:
Sponsor the recovery efforts of individuals by paying contribution costs for programs that align with The Rolling Barrage’s goals and values for them to get help from organizations we have carefully vetted; or
Donate money, services, and equipment to organizations and activities that are aligned with The Rolling Barrage goals and values, as well as focused on and understanding the needs of “Canada’s Guardians”.
The Rolling Barrage remains true to our grassroots heritage, yet strives for evidence-based results from transparent entities who are aligned with our values.
The vast majority of organizations The Rolling Barrage contributes to support Veteran and Active Duty, Military, RCMP and the First Responder community,
Plans and Goals
The Rolling Barrage’s plan for the future and the goals that we have been established are not inexpensive endeavours. As such, The Rolling Barrage happily accepts support from a wide spectrum of patrons and donors to our organization. We continue to work to partner with a major benefactor.
Anyone is free to donate to us as a private citizen, organization, or company. Major donors are also vetted and reviewed for transparency and value alignment before we put them on our sponsor lists.
To Prevent Suicides
The Rolling Barrage works to prevent the loss of life, due to the suicide of community members with PTSD through connection and a renewed passion for life’s pleasures by conducting an annual coast-to-coast motorcycle ride… The Rolling Barrage.
Many of us have felt the loss when someone is dear (be it a friend, family member or loved one). The empty sense of senselessness is exacerbated when that person passes by their own hand.
The numbers of service personnel who have lost the battle with their PTSIs/OSIs is staggering. The Rolling Barrage encourage veterans, serving CAF members, first responders, and others to get together and engage in positive activities that can promote better mental health and wellness.
In Canada, male veterans are 1.4 times and female veterans are 1.9 times more likely to take their own life than other Canadians.
Statistics taken from the Veteran Affairs Canada 2019 Veteran Suicide Mortality Study
Create a Sense of Belonging
Belonging is significant in any healing process and The Rolling Barrage will show that spirit across the nation. We encourage veterans, serving CAF members, first responders, and the Safety Community to interact during the ride and throughout the year. Our members build strong alliances from our common roots of service and protecting Canada.
The Rolling Barrage have seen these bonds build immediately, as those who were very guarded and introverted open up over the course of a leg, several legs or the entire country. Of course there are those that take longer. At times a person opening up to their surroundings and new people takes part in the whole event or it can happen over a couple years.
Regardless, when the bonds build, they’re as strong as the camaraderie felt during our time in service. Now the service is focused on each other and healing.
Create a National Network of Peers and Mentors
The Rolling Barrage wants to create a national network where peers and mentors are available to provide support and understanding;
Starting within our ranks, we strive to develop certified Peer Supporters.
These valued Peer Supporters will be on hand to provide our participants or those who interact with us as peer support during our annual fundraising ride and during other events and activities that The Rolling Barrage holds throughout the rest of the year.
The Rolling Barrage plans to have support events, not just fundraising, yet some may go hand-in-hand.
The Rolling Barrage will also provide funding for the training and certification of other Peer Supporters for the entities we support.
To Host National Therapeutic Events
PTSI/OSI has a myriad of symptoms and effects. Some of the manifestations are hypervigilance, guarding, negative self-image, poor self-esteem, poor judgement, intrusive memories, lack of feelings, hopelessness, lack of concentration, hopelessness, mistrust, isolation, dissociation.
Recognized therapy techniques for PTSI/OSI are:
- Mindfulness
- Resilience
- Awareness of Surroundings
- Assessment categorization of risks and hazards
- Managing increasing tasks
- Becoming one with the environment.
To Achieve Certification and Accreditation for “Wind Therapy”
“Guess why you don’t see a motorcycle outside a psychiatrist’s office…I’m going for some Wind Therapy.”
Riding a motorcycle encourages a sense of ease and relaxation, has positive effects on mood, and also reduce stress and improve a person’s overall psychological well-being. Motorcycling reduces symptoms of PTSI/OSI including depression reduces feeling of loneliness, which helps riders connect with other riders. Riding with like-minded people helps those with PTSI/OSI build bonds with others.
It puts the hypervigilance to good use; forces mindfulness; improves risk awareness/mitigation techniques; and helps with cognitive difficulties by continuously engaging all five senses.
The above points are what we believe from what we have witnessed throughout our experiences and, in particular, over the past 6 years. We are not clinicians engaged directly in the study of these points or weighing their merits, based upon evidential fact. This is the main reason why The Rolling Barrage PTSD Foundation / The Rolling Barrage is moving to align with a recognized foundation or institute.
The Rolling Barrage would like to participate in such a study that develops motorcycling (particularly Group Riding) and become recognized as an accredited mental health therapy event for the treatment of PTSIs/OSIs.