For troubled Army veteran, Bend retreat leads to a new path — and new home

'When guys tell you that suicide is no longer an option, then we've done a good job.'

BEND, Ore. (KTVZ) -- A group of veterans are in Bend this week on a crucial, personal mission, getting help with fighting one of the toughest battles they will ever face in life: to find strength, purpose and a future worth living for.

Life Aid Research Institute is hosting a week-long retreat that goes beyond mental health and suicide prevention to help members of the military, veterans and first responders improve their "whole health ... empowering resilience to restore hope, to give America's finest LIFE."

Veterans attending the retreat have been hiking, biking, doing yoga and gaining access to treatment therapies, such as brain mapping.

Matt Crawford, who owns Mindwell Systems, explained to NewsChannel 21 on Monday how brain mapping works.

“We hook up different electrodes, through a helmet -- it’s a non-invasive process -- where we check each lobe, and we check basically the frequencies, the brain frequencies, as well as the strengths,” he said.

John Wordin, the founder of No Vet Alone, is with the vets in Bend this week.

"We have a much bigger group," Wordin said, "and especially in this COVID time, where isolation really is detrimental -- especially for guys dealing with PTSD (post-traumatic stress disorder) and TBI (traumatic brain injury)."

One worker at the hotel where the Bend retreat is being held is Eric Bagwell, a 14-year Army veteran.  The former Oceanside, Calif., resident attended the retreat last year and actually decided to stay and work full-time in Bend.

He talked about some of the improvements he's experienced in his life since attending last year's event.

"I'm actually able to leave my house," he said. "I'm able to make more eye contact with people that I wasn't able to make before. Having the camaraderie and fellowship with other veterans is really big in my life. It's made a big difference to have people I can call, people I can spend time with and feel comfortable."

Bagwell said the brain mapping technology the professionals use at the retreat was helpful in his recovery.

"(It) allowed me to kind of visualize the things that were already going on in my head," he said. "I could feel that I was having issues with depression and anxiety."

For John Wordin and the Life Aid Research Institute, the mission is ongoing.

Wordin explained his measurement of success: "When guys tell you that suicide is no longer an option, then we've done a good job."