For many years, I have worked in the Forensic field of psychology, commencing in the NSW Corrective Services field and for the past decade as a Police Psychologist with the Queensland Police Service.

I have also been fortunate enough to liaise with the Australian Defense Force in relation to the provision of training.

During the course of my career, I have struggled to find a way to communicate with those diagnosed with Post Traumatic Stress Disorder and those most at risk of developing symptomologies.

Then I was handed a book, written by an unassuming ex soldier that changed the way I will practice forever… Your Subconscious Bodyguards: The Good News about PTSD (Dion Jensen, 2016) represents not only a true, gritty story of real life experiences; it provides a blueprint for understanding and dealing with PTSD.

The narrative is honest, genuine and provides the clinician with a solid basis of how to communicate with PTSD clientele. As a Police Psychologist, the terms are easily interchangeable and the roles of the bodyguards are so similar in presentation that all emergency services will be able to relate to them, name their own personal ‘soldiers’ and understand how to adapt them to civilian life.

Dion talks about redeployment to home – a strategy and theory that I will most definitely be adapting to my own practice. It is simplistic and yet ingenious in terms of cognitive restructuring for all emergency service and defense personnel (and their families) in a way that promises clearer understanding for both reactive and proactive interventions.

Dion’s future publication of similar theory applied to Policing offers the promise that our officers will be able to interact on a much more meaningful level and that practitioners will be able to more fully understand the nature of PTSD and how to not only survive, but to thrive.

Dion Jensen presents an interesting approach to the problems of readjustment following return from military service.He presents a personal narrative of his military experience and the continuing psychological hold that experience had on his return to civilian life.

Dion then uses military constructs to interpret, understand and control those negative aspects that otherwise manifest as PTSD.

I know what Dion means. Less so because I am a psychologist conducting research into human responses to extreme environments; but more because I also served operationally in Iraq (2003).

I was on the ground, in uniform, with a weapon.

I remember Baghdad well (also Basra, Majar al-Kabir etc), and Dion’s descriptions brought back some wry memories. I also had recollections of my return to civilian life that I saw in Dion’s descriptions.

This is a practical approach to handling post-deployment problems and, given his target audience, Dion Jensen hits the button.

In his book, Your Subconscious Bodyguards: The Good News about PTSD, Dion Jensen writes about PTSD from the position of a soldier to others in the defence force or police service.

This is an essential topic for people in such services, as PTSD has a higher level of occurrence in these professions compared to many others. In other words, for some (up to 12%), PTSD can become an occupational reality for those serving their country through combat. Written by a soldier for a soldier, Dion is able to reach those from within the military world, effectively applying the highly skilled training they already possess to master the complex issue of PTSD.

The straight and specific language of this book aims at reaching those that understand this world of emergency rendezvous (ERV), section commander, threat assessment, and contact drills to mention only a very few examples.

Dion refuses any victim position, and so applies a sense of mastery, so important for soldiers and police, and as we know, so central in working through PTSD. This is essentially empowering, and that is why in the mental health tradition, the ‘expert experiencer’ is so successful, and why they reach people in pain more effectively. They have been there, survived it, and found a way through it.

The ‘expert experiencer’ has been fully accepted in many areas of mental health, for example in the substance abuse area in the form of Alcoholics Anonymous (AA), or in the area of psychosis, as with intervoice for voice hearers. Dion rightly highlights that soldiers do not find access to mental health services simple or easy for many valid external and internal reasons. Therefore Dion speaks within a long and important tradition in mental health as an ‘expert experiencer’, in this case with the voice of the soldier and warrior 271 Dion Jensen in regards to PTSD.

People who have moved through their own struggles and support others in theirs is an essential part in the varied landscape of mental health interventions. For those that are struggling with PTSD both in the military and in the police service, this book gives you an opportunity to listen to somebody who knows your world, has been where you have been, and applies the very skills you already possess to achieve your goals. To have been in the military and in the police service is in itself worthy, to overcome PTSD will take all your soldiering skills.

It is the path of the warrior to master our own self.

For the professionals and organizations, here are some considerations: As an ‘expert experiencer’, Dion with the language of the soldier and warrior has made PTSD his own. However, more than that, he has also spoken to other experts, a couple of therapists for example, to responsibly access relevant information.

Having myself worked extensively with severe PTSD in many clinical settings, as well as worked with soldiers, this book both empowers and is thoughtful.

The book does not merely share his own story, but more than that, he applies the technique of soldier imagery and warrior archetypes to access more complex and richer emotional material in regards to PTSD. This approach is then enhanced with emotion regulation skills.

It is well documented that safety, mindful desensitization, affect regulation, a sense of mastery and meaning within a supportive environment are central in working through PTSD. All of that is to be found in this book, just translated so that it makes sense to soldiers or warriors.

Like all ‘expert experiencers’, Dion states very clearly that he is not a clinician, but there is no doubt that his story and his way of overcoming PTSD provides a means for others to find their warrior way to a new life.

Dear Dion,

It is with great pleasure that I write this testimonial for “Your Subconscious Bodyguards - The Good News About PTSD”.

As a professional working within mental health, one of the most challenging and important aspects to this area is in my opinion, the appreciation of another person’s worldview. Only then can a therapist use their skills for what might be considered the most appropriate intervention.

This book helps bridge the understanding between practitioner and client.

It does primarily by creating a common language. A concept so simple yet very effective. In particular, what I love most about it is the re-framing of roles that are characteristic of military operations to its potential manifestation of 'shadow' characters or archetypes.

As a result, this can be utilised as a catalyst for healthy integration of the complete self. Second, your writing style is not only authentically entertaining but you also have a clear way of explaining concepts.

As someone who can only imagine what life might be like in these operating requirements, your personal accounts give an insight into what demands might be expected from someone in similar environments.

For this reason alone, I would recommend partners, friends and family members of service men and women read this book. It really is good news… I highly recommend this book to any psychologist working in this field, and for that matter can see how it would benefit anyone experiencing symptoms of PTSD from all walks of life.

I look forward to the impact this movement has on how society as a collective relates to PTSD.