A MILITARY man who spent nearly three decades in the Armed Forces will make-up part of a walking team hoping to help veterans battling mental health issues.

Brian O’Neill joined the military in 1990 at the age of just 17 and served in the Argyll and Sutherland Highlanders, Royal Military Police and Military Provost Staff Regiment.

After serving in several operational tours in Northern Ireland, Bosnia, Iraq, and Afghanistan, Brian, from Colchester, achieved the rank of Staff Sergeant.

But having spent an impressive 26 years with the Armed Forces, he found the transition from military to civilian life exceptionally difficult and struggled with his mental health.

Brian, now 48, will now next month walk a section of a 400km route on which alongside other veterans in a bid to raise funds for military charity Walking With The Wounded.

The organisation aims to provide support to people like Brian who have struggled to adapt to normal life following lengthy stints working in the Armed Forces.

He said: "It is something that is very difficult to explain personally, but some people would describe it as being institutionalised.

"I thought I was prepared for civilian life after the Army as I completed my resettlement training, but that doesn't prepare you enough for something I had never experienced in my adult life.

"The best way I could describe how it affected me was to give you the example of how I felt in my first job - I felt like a banana at an apple party, it was very difficult to fit in and to adjust."

The Grenadier Walk of Oman team’s first rambler set-off on Saturday from Malmesbury, while Brian will complete his 66km section on December 4 and December 5.

He will walk from Wivenhoe to Lower Caste Park in a circular route, before repeating the walk a day later in support of the charity’s Walking Home For Christmas campaign.

The team, made up seven ex-military men and women and one who is still serving, were due to take part in a three week, 400km trek across the Omani desert on November 20.

Due to the Covid-19 crisis, however, the ramble had to be postponed until February 2021, so the team opted to complete their challenge across the country instead.

Brian, from Colchester, says it means a great deal to him to be able to take part and help support the ex-military men and women struggling with day-to-day life.

He added: "I am really looking forward to doing my section of the walk. I have been training six days out of seven with boots on the feet and a pack on my back.

"It is an absolute honour and a privilege to be part of something that will help fellow veterans and service personnel."

The Walking Home For Christmas Campaign is aiming to support 200 ex-servicemen and women who are struggling with their mental health, homeless or caught in police custody.

To donate visit walkinghomeforchristmas.com.