A MILITARY veteran has urged people to take on a walking challenge to raise vital funds to support ex-forces personnel.

From today, armed forces charity Walking With the Wounded is hoping as many people as possible can support the fundraiser, running until December 20.

For Matt, a Maldon-based veteran who served in the Royal Engineers for 25 years and whose surname has been withheld, the issue couldn’t be closer to his heart.

He joined the army aged 17 having being inspired by soldiers who visited his school, and he went on to serve in Northern Ireland, Iraq, Afghanistan, Kosovo and Bosnia, achieving the rank of Warrant Officer Class 1.

However, he experienced a tragic turn of events following a traumatic second tour of Iraq which, years later, left him diagnosed with mild PTSD with vicarious guilt and anxiety which would impact his family life and self-esteem.

On this tour, Matt was put in charge of trauma risk management assessments for his regiment. He listened to the experiences of those returning from the field and evaluated their exposure to trauma.

For a while, the casualties were high - soldiers were lost every day and the flag flew at half-mast above the camp.

“My second tour in Iraq was particularly tough. We were bombed and shot at every day for months. It seemed there was not one day when the battlegroup did not suffer fatalities,” said Matt.

“I assessed the level of trauma many of the soldiers had been exposed to during the tour. I found these interviews very challenging and every time I was left shaken and emotionally drained.

“I began to dread hearing their stories as there seemed to be nothing I could do to help.”

After 25 years in the army, Matt came to the end of his military career. He admits by then he was no longer motivated and it was time to move on.

But about three years after he had left the forces, he began to experience the symptoms of trauma. He became emotional and anxious, and he was easily upset.

“My deployments had a more profound effect on me than I realised,” added Matt.

“My wife encouraged me to get help as my mental health was having a negative impact on me and my family and friends. For reasons unknown to me now, I had always thought I was okay.

‘The support and advice WWTW provided turned my life around. I still have my down days and I feel challenged every so often, but these are becoming fewer.

“I feel I am the father I want to be to my young children.”

You can get involved with the Christmas fundraiser via www.walkinghomeforchristmas.com/.