On the surface, you might think there’s little in common between a military veteran and a professional athlete.
But think about it: Many times, they both suffer injuries that stay with them the rest of their lives and both start and end their careers early. When the uniforms are put away, where do they turn?
With a new program in Las Vegas, they’re turning to each other for help. It’s called MVP, which stands for Merging Vets and Players.
The program combines physical training with talk therapy to help veterans deal with their emotional and physical injuries.
Jose Isaac Saldivar III is in the program. He is a Marine veteran who served two tours in Iraq and Afghanistan.
Saldivar joined the Marines right out of high school. During his tour in Afghanistan, the truck he was in was hit by an improvised explosive device. He suffered a traumatic brain injury. When he returned home, he was diagnosed with post-traumatic stress disorder.
Saldivar said his marriage dissolved as he was either depressed or angry all the time. He also became hooked on painkillers that he used to treat the pain from his injuries and he was abusing alcohol.
He also lost his sense of purpose, which he had had since he was in 7 th grade and he decided to join the Marines.
Now, after being in the MVP training program and going to a professional therapist, Saldivar said he doing much better.
Instead of getting into fights, he releases his anger by hitting the heavy bag.
“It gives you that feeling of being safe along with your brothers and knowing that all these people are trying to achieve something similar to me,” Saldivar said.
Eric Nicksick is a Las Vegas native who played for the JC National championship in football and has since become an MMA coach. He is one of the trainers for the MVP program in Las Vegas.
He said getting that release is what many of the veterans need.
“What it does is it just allows these men and women to come in and just get some release,” Nicksick said.
The program also helps fill the gap of purpose that Saldivar noticed when he returned home. Nicksick that is how athletes can relate to veterans. Both groups of people are used to being part of a team.
After an hour of mixed-martial arts training, the group sits down for what they called ‘campfire’ talks where people can talk about what they’re going through. It is that portion of the program that Saldivar has found the most helpful.
“I’ve noticed that the more I speak about it the easier it’s been for me to deal with it,” he said.
Saldivar also said that speaking up about his personal issues helps other veterans do the same.
Editor's note: this story originally aired in May 2017.
Eric Nicksick, MMA coach; Jose Isaac Saldivar III, former marine