Mar 06 2025 61 mins
Dedicating your life to the safety and freedom of your country is a massive sacrifice military veterans across make every day. One of the largest challenges for these heroes is working through the barriers and stigma of PTSD following service and navigating their path of readjustment and recovery. Kurt Grant, author of “Shiny Side Up: On the Road to Recovery”, used a cross-country motorcycle trip to help integrate and calm some of the chaos in his mind following military service as an infantry sergeant.
Listen to our conversation with veteran & author Kurt Grant as we talk about his healing journey, what life looks like after service, and the rocky path to recovery.
Kurt Grant is a 32 year military veteran of the Canadian Forces and author. Apart from his service as an infantry sergeant with the Canadian Forces, he also worked as a researcher and writer at the Directorate of History and Heritage and was an editor at the Canadian Army Journal. He has published in multiple books and peer reviewed journals. Grant himself was diagnosed with PTSD (post-traumatic stress disorder) back in 2011 as a result of his military service.
This book is a personal memoir of his journey leaving military service after a diagnosis of PTSD. With his motorcycle and a fly-fishing kit in hand, Grant set off on a long cross country-trip. His healing journey is wonderfully detailed with a deep dive into a healing journey that helped him reconnect with his past and his present.
If you are interested in Kurt Grant’s story and the realities of life as a military veteran, this podcast is for you.
Links & Resources:
- Book: Shiny Side Up: On the Road to Recovery Amazon.ca : shiny side up, on the road to recovery
- Book: TRANSITION: Adjusting to Life After the Uniform Amazon.ca : transition, adjusting to life after the uniform
- To purchase the book visit: https://www.amazon.ca/Shiny-Side-Up-Road-Recovery/dp/1988932068
- To learn more about Kurt Grant’s other books: https://www.amazon.com/stores/author/B001K8XYT0
Materials to Reference:
- Learn more about PTSD and related symptoms: https://www.psychiatry.org/patients-families/ptsd/what-is-ptsd
- To help support veterans in need of transition services: https://vetscanada.org/
- To help support veterans mental health: https://woundedwarriors.ca/
- To help support veterans in need of meals: https://www.hearttohomemeals.ca/?remembersite=true