About

About me and this site SteveOutdoors,

my name is Steve, and I am ex-forces (British Army) and having served for over 15 years including private specialist security (close protection) I discovered I had a chronic illness and PTSD. This site is about my journey and finding peace within myself and despite disabilities and limitations I now have, how I go about getting the best out of life and carrying on pursuing my passions. My main passion is living outdoors & my dogs, camping and being at one with nature in all its glory.

To me camping in the wild is a true therapy in itself and allows me to reset myself by going back to who I really am. Many people today see nature as a separate entity to them but what many forget is that we are all part of nature, we are made of the same forces and atoms as everything in nature, it’s just how we are assembled. Going into nature allows natural energies to flow and heal you. Putting the illusions of a forced reality to the side and going back to basics again. Putting yourself outside of your comfort zone also inspires you though the experience.

Although I always have some backup and support not far away to ensure my safety, I like to take on challenges myself challenges that not too long ago would have been simple and taken for granted. My military training and experience certainly set me up for this and although I struggled at first to transition from a military mindset I now cope well and put some of the skills learnt along the way to practice. Of course I have help with the support of my therapy dog Pagan.

I was in the 1st Gulf War and as a result have Gulf War Syndrome (read more about this here) which is chronic and only gets worse as time goes on. I was also diagnosed with PTSD but a few years ago suffered a stroke a few hours after my fist COVID jab. As the bleed was at the base of the brain stem it has now left me with Ataxia.

Acquired ataxia – where symptoms develop as the result of trauma, a stroke, multiple sclerosis (MS), a brain tumour, nutritional deficiencies, or other problems that damage the brain or nervous system. See link to YouTube video here

This left me paralyzed down my left side and although I made a fast recovery, I did not make a full recovery and today have mobility problems, speech problems and worse of all balance problems and my left side of my body is significantly weaker. For a while I shut down and did not do a lot but after I had some help mentally via Staffordshire Mntal Health Network and their Military Mindset program, I started to get motivated and along with being inspired by a young lady on YouTube: WildBeare and of course with support from my loverly wife Sabina and my family I have changed my life for the better and accepted my limitations and no longer compare myself to the young soldier that I was and that could take anything on.

It has been a tough journey and an eye-opening experience, but I am where I am today and so thankful for all involved.