Empowering the spirit to prevent Veteran suicide

Empowering the Spirit, an evidence-based curriculum, is combining the compassionate care of chaplains and nurses into a unique spiritual care bundle to help Veterans at risk for suicide.

Launched as a 12-week pilot program in March, the initiative invites Veterans to explore their spirituality and discover how it can bring them hope, healing and connection.

Led by a chaplain and a nurse at the Houston VA Medical Center, participants come together weekly to find meaningful tools for healing and growth.

A Veteran's journey

Army Veteran Jason Ayala, one of the first graduates of the spiritual care bundle, joined the program with a little skepticism. Having spent years in therapy dealing with PTSD, Ayala was unsure how a chaplain and a nurse could offer him anything new; however, after being encouraged by VA staff to participate during a tough holiday season, he took the leap.

"I thought, 'What are these two guys going to tell me that I haven't already heard?'" Ayala said. To his surprise, the program offered him more than just words; it provided him with hope, forgiveness and the strength to repair fractured relationships in his life. As a father of seven, the weight of his military experiences led him to feel isolated and lost from his faith. Through the Empowering the Spirit program, he began to feel more hopeful; he reconnected to his spirituality, even returning to church with his children.

Dr. Emmanuel Thompson, Houston VA's board-certified clinical chaplain and the mastermind behind the new spiritual bundle, understands the struggle of Veterans firsthand. Having grown up in Sierra Leone during a revolutionary war, he arrived in the United States in 2000 with a lot of healing to do. His personal experiences and expertise in moral injury fueled his passion for helping Veterans navigate their crises.

"It's incredibly rewarding to witness the transformations happening in Veterans right before our eyes," Thompson said. "We're helping them find clarity and reclaim their hope for the future. It's truly heartwarming."

Connecting with Veterans

VA Nurse Jedidiah Duran, a key player in implementing the program, shares a similar background. As a former Navy hospital corpsman who faced his own battles with PTSD, Duran knows the path many Veterans walk. He experienced a dark period where he contemplated suicide. He vividly recalls a moment when he was driving his motorcycle without a helmet, teetering on the edge of surrendering to a crash. It was in that moment of vulnerability he found a renewed faith in God, leading him to seek help at VA.

Duran's desire to give back to his fellow Veterans led him to work at the Michael E. DeBakey VA Medical Center in Houston, where he began to channel his experiences into helping others. After transferring from the main medical center to the VA Clinic in Conroe, Texas, he teamed up with Thompson to launch the program, going out of his way to share his personal story and struggles with participants. His authenticity resonates deeply with Veterans like Ayala, who said he appreciates the connection and understanding Duran brings to the table.

"It took a lot of guts for Mr. Duran to share his story with us," Ayala said. "He not only understood where I was coming from; he had been there himself."

The program's hybrid model allows Veterans to join in person or remotely, ensuring the widest reach possible. Duran and Thompson work closely with the suicide prevention staff at Houston VA to identify those who could benefit from this transformative experience.

A Veteran success story

Navy Veteran Brett Blackburn is another recent graduate of the program. After a suicide attempt earlier this year, he joined the program at the encouragement of a VA chaplain. Now, he's "100 percent glad" he did. He's currently in seminary school at Houston Christian University, filled with hope for the future.

"At first, I was apprehensive about joining the program, but everyone in the group came from the same place. It was a safe space to share with other Veterans and not feel alone. I connected with the Veterans in this group in a way I just wasn't expecting. It has truly changed my life," said Blackburn.

For Ayala, the journey is ongoing. While he still battles nightmares and the effects of his service, the hope and forgiveness he's found through reconnecting with his spirituality brings him joy.

"I thought it was refreshing that when I signed up for this program, they didn't promise to fix me," he said. "They met each one of us where we were and helped inspire us to surrender to God for healing. It's all about empowerment-embracing the spirit within us."

A passion for helping Veterans

According to Thompson, a team of VA employees volunteered to research scientific and data-based articles and work with clinical experts to develop the best evidence-based curriculum for the new program. "At Houston VA, we are passionate about suicide prevention and are committed to doing everything we can to help our Veterans," he said.

Plans call for the program to expand to meet the needs of Veterans throughout southeast Texas.

"The link between spirituality and healing is clear," said Thompson. "Our job at VA is to do all we can to help Veterans find their path forward."