How a veteran’s personal battle with PTSD became a message of hope for others

How a solo ride through Calgary to honour those lost in war helped a U.S. veteran in his personal battle with PTSD. Kevin Green reports.

A U.S. Army veteran living in Calgary turned his recovery from PTSD into a public show of support on Nov. 9, as riders joined the sixth annual Veterans Transition Network Ride.

Tegh Singh, a former sergeant with the U.S. Army’s 3rd Battalion, 509th Parachute Infantry Regiment who served in Iraq and Afghanistan, led the non-competitive ride. The route began and ended at the Field of Crosses, with stops at Valour Park and Peacekeepers Park, where participants laid wreaths made from bicycle wheels crafted by Singh and his family.

“For me, PTSD came up as anxiety, nightmares, trouble, sleeping flashbacks, panic attacks, my thoughts about myself and the world were just very, very dark,” Singh said.

Singh launched the ride in 2020 to support the Veterans Transition Network and to open conversations about the mental-health challenges many veterans face. He said community support has been critical to raising awareness.

“I’m really grateful that the community is rallied around the cause of more and the highest quality mental health support for veterans. I’m really grateful that they’re supporting VTN and getting the word out so that other vets know that they don’t have to suffer … they can get treatment,” he said.

His wife, Rusveer Jones, said the change in their family has been significant.

“He was in a very dark place. And I have a little one. She’s 10 now, and it was just me and her. He was there, but not there … I felt like my best friend became a roommate,” she said. “Now, he’s so dialed in. Now he has the support, this huge community, the cycling community for one thing, and a community from VTN that stands by him and helps him through his good days, (and) his bad days. Seeing him out and engaged, smiling, riding his bike with me and our daughter means so much.”

Participant Rose Ratliffe said the ride has become a meaningful act leading up to Remembrance Day.

“The act of remembrance is really, really important to me. For years, my family helped with the field of crosses here, and when they got to the point where they were turning away volunteers. We stepped back,” said Ratliffe. “This kind of fell into the hole that that left behind in a really cool way.”

The Veterans Transition Network is a Canadian charity that offers group-based transition and mental-health programs for veterans and serving members. More information is available at vtncanada.org.