Ex-soldier Eddie faces new battle

By Leigh Rundle BBC Spotlight

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Watch Leigh Rundle's report on Eddie Craven

Walking my collie, Bear, through the catacombs in Exeter one morning, I noticed a man sitting on one of the tombs looking out over the Exe Valley.

He was thoughtful and judging by his appearance, he could have just come out of the woods: weather-beaten, wearing a red and black lumber jacket, muddy jeans and sturdy black boots.

In all honesty I would probably have just passed the time of day had our dogs not decided to play. An hour passed in conversation before I had realised the time.

He told me his name was Eddie Craven, an ex-serviceman with post traumatic stress disorder (PTSD)and that he was living in a tent in the woods.

The stories of his life came thick and fast - some harrowing, some inspiring and all worth listening to.

He served in Bosnia during Operation Grapple in 1994-'95. During that time, British Forces provided a relief effort for civilians living in the war-torn country.

Watch Part 1 of Spotlight's Warrior series

When he left the army soon after, the images of death and violence haunted him to the point where he could no longer live an ordinary life.

Anger often gave way to violence and fuelled by drink, he found his life and relationships falling apart.

What struck me most about this man was that despite his situation, he somehow succeeded in finding the strength to help others in a similar position, extending the hand of friendship where he could.

Homeless now.... for a while he sold the big issue. It was during this time he met another ex-serviceman who bought a magazine and enquired further about how Eddie came to be where he was.

This encounter sparked Eddie's interest in the Warrior Programme. He had been offered help before from, among others, the Royal British Legion, but the accommodation he was given proved too suburban and he ended up walking out.

He still felt unable to lead what I suppose you would describe as a normal life.

On the day I met him he told me he had built a tee-pee in a secret location in the woods. This was where he lived.

He gathered kindling and fallen trees to make a fire, providing warmth and a means of cooking. There were two other people living with him, an older homeless man and a younger one who had recently been released from prison.

I asked Eddie if I could film a story about him.

Trained to kill

Watch Part 2 of Spotlight's Warrior series

He thought for a moment and then agreed, but he clearly wasn't the type to put himself in the limelight. Not at all.

He made it absolutely clear that his motivation was to publicise what he saw as the unaddressed problem of servicemen leaving the armed forces with no support.

I went to the woods and filmed his home and what sticks in my mind about what he said that night was: "When you join the army, they turn something on. They train you to kill. When you leave, they don't turn it off.

"When I walk down the street people look at me like I am not a person. They don't realise I have got three medals pinned on my chest."

That day his best chance of taking control of his life was something called the Warrior Programme. A four day course using guided meditation, neurolinguistic programming and holistic therapies like tai chi and qui energy.

Having filmed his life in that moment, I decided to ask if I could follow his journey through the Warrior Programme. He reluctantly agreed. He was uncomfortable with being filmed but felt he had some degree of influence to bring the problem of PTSD among servicemen to the fore.

Watch Part 3 of Spotlight's Warrior series

The time in between the first broadcast of his life in the woods, and beginning the Warrior Programme, we had very little contact. On the first day of the Programme, I arrived with my camera and tripod at 9.30am.

Eddie appeared about an hour later, not in the most relaxed of moods. He told me he had almost bailed out. When the car arrived to pick him up, he didn't want to come.

Again though, a little voice on his shoulder told him he should come, more for the greater good than personal gain.

During the next four days I saw Eddie change from a reluctant angry sceptic to a man whose face and body relaxed with the knowledge that things could be different. He now had choices and a means to exercise those choices in his life decisions.

Through this series of films, you will see what influence the Warrior Programme has had on Eddie's life, and others who took part.

Parts two and three of the BBC Spotlight series will be added to this page on Wednesday 9 and Thursday 10 December 2009.