John Coster

“I’m far from perfect, but I know what I’m doing now, and I’m ok with talking about it.”

Retired Commander in the Navy with a 20-year career as an Explosive Ordinance Disposal Officer and Special Operations Officer. When he began his career, he trained to be a diving officer, where he was exposed to many unpleasant experiences, including body recovery missions.  He also experienced 9/11 while stationed at the Pentagon and was burdened with memories of trying to help people who were being burned alive. He tucked these thoughts away and found himself compartmentalizing what he experienced and burying himself in work to escape thinking he was dealing with it, until a close friend suggested he look into programs at MIBH. It was in that moment he realized how much of his past trauma he retained and never properly learned how to deal with. 

But he wasn’t convinced the program would do anything for him. He committed to going for the three (3) day evaluation with the mindset of never really taking it seriously and feeling like there are other people who have much more important issues to deal with than him. He was surprised when the program immediately asked him to come back for the entire three (3) week programs; he made every excuse in the world to avoid going – his job was too busy, the kids, he couldn’t get away – until his wife demanded he take the time to focus on his health.  

John has always been good at caring for people and their problems, but never his own. So, when his wife asked him to go, he asked a friend who had been through the program why he went. That friend’s testimonial of the program changing his life ultimately gave John permission to go and take care of himself. He had no more excuses.

And after three weeks in the program, John’s life changed. “If I hadn’t gone to MIBH, I’d either be divorced or a complete mess. I never realized that what I experienced and buried away during my time in the military had a huge impact on me. I was able to start seeing a lot of that at MIBH. It changed me.”

John learned to listen and to be OK with what he was hearing, even when it was hard, especially when it came from his family. He didn’t have to feel embarrassed, ignore it, or shut it down. He was gaining tools and mechanisms to be able to deal with it. Through art therapy – something he never would have done on his own – he realized he could express himself in a new way when he couldn’t always find the words. And through all the tools MIBH armed him with to handle his triggers, his emotions, and his physical well-being, he now understands how to move forward. He knows not everyone will believe that this program can heal them; all he asks is that if you feel like you need help, simply consider it because if it can change him, it can change anyone. , where he was exposed to many unpleasant experiences,