Ian Mearns did two tours in Iraq. The first one was bad, the second one was worse, but his greatest challenge was dealing with the leftover fear, rage and anger once he got home.

1 | Mearns

A raw look at the combat and homecoming experience from American veterans who have been deployed in Iraq and Afghanistan. “This Is War” chronicles the trials of combat vets both abroad and at home.

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Introducing Sword and Scale Nightmares! True Crime for Bedtime. Your nightmare begins now...The first three episodes will drop on 3.2.23 at 3:23pm EDT. In the meantime, please take a moment to subscribe on your preferred podcast listening platform...SUBSCRIBE NOW: https://link.chtbl.com/sasnightmaresApple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/sword-and-scale-nightmares/id1657802345Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/08GhRV98AIgR0st3oUQRpaiHeartRadio: https://www.iheart.com/podcast/269-sword-and-scale-nightmares-109465564/Google Podcasts: https://www.google.com/podcasts?feed=aHR0cHM6Ly9yc3MuYXJ0MTkuY29tL3N3b3JkLWFuZC1zY2FsZS1uaWdodG1hcmVzAmazon Music: https://music.amazon.com/podcasts/094b065e-48ef-48ff-ba18-02c6d106d403/sword-and-scale-nightmaresAudible: https://www.audible.com/pd/ITEM_NAME-Podcast/B0BWP1PC94Castbox: https://castbox.fm/channel/id5326540Pandora: https://www.pandora.com/podcast/sword-and-scale-nightmares/PC:1001058998Stitcher: https://www.stitcher.com/show/sword-and-scale-nightmaresPocket Casts: https://pca.st/8pl80b4fRadioPublic: https://radiopublic.com/sword-and-scale-nightmares-8QwEVPPodBean: https://www.podbean.com/podcast-detail/ikr6g-2a4841/Sword-and-Scale-Nightmares-PodcastPodcast Addict: https://podcastaddict.com/podcast/4290345Castro: https://castro.fm/podcast/935d7ee3-514a-4b2f-997a-dbd0ee1f48f4PlayerFM: https://player.fm/series/sword-and-scale-nightmaresDeezer: https://www.deezer.com/us/show/5766517

Introducing - Sword and Scale Nightmares

Justin Dunning wanted to tell the story of guys he cared about who were lost, as many of the people I’ve interviewed for this show have, because he wants it known.Google “Killed in Iraq” or “Afghanistan” and you’ll find thousands of links to thousands of obituaries and each one of them affected the people who served with them. Sometimes in this series we have named the fallen, other times we haven’t our of respect for the wishes of the people closest to them, but what is critical to remember is that their friends and comrades remember their names and keep their stories alive.Episode SponsorsBespoke PostNorton360 with LifeLock

45 | Dunning

Control often feels like safety. You have a weapon, some buddies and a mission and feel like the only difference between living and dying is execution, but there’s always also luck, or chance. For Jeffrey Sabins, learning to deal with the lack of control, over both his life and the lives of others was a lesson in humility and patience because even when you’re no longer worried for your own life, you want to live up to your promise to be a protector.Jeffrey Sabins' blog: From Tumor 2 AutismJeffrey Sabins' Amazon Author PageThis episode was sponsors:KeepsNorton with LifeLock

45 | Sabins

For someone who joined the Army specifically to get into combat dealing with an unseen enemy is more than merely frustrating, it can introduce the insidious notion of pointlessness into your life. When there’s no enemy to fight back against, the best you can do is hold on, be prepared to take care of your buddies and pray you get a chance for some payback.Episode SponsorsBespoke PostNorton360 with LifeLock

44 | Ardito

There isn’t one factor that makes combat so transformative. Instead it is a combination of reactions. To external peril and internal aggression, to personal empathy in the face of the horrible, to your expectations in light of your experiences. For Nate Didier, a lot of the transformation came from seeing the world as it was and losing something of a sense of what it could be.Episode Sponsors:ZipRecruiterKeepsNorton 360 with LifeLock

1 | Mearns

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