Normalize PTSD

54_Matt Domyancic a Medically Retired Officer, SWAT, and Chaplain

• Jonathan

Share episode

Matt Domyancic is a Medically Retired Officer, SWAT, Chaplain, Former Police Officer and Strength Coach, Police Chaplain, Spiritual Director, & Peer Support and Wellness Advocate.

Social Media:

Matt Domyancic is a medically retired police officer that worked patrol, Peer Support, SWAT, and as full-time police academy instructor for fitness and officer survival. While a police officer he was also concurrently a D1 strength and conditioning coach at Yale and Georgetown universities and led campus ministry for athletes. After his retirement, he was a strength coach and sports psychology consultant for professional and Olympic athletes at Velocity Sports, including NFL combine preparation for top round draft picks. 

Now Matt is also a Chaplain and Peer Support for various nonprofits that proactively support first responders dealing with stress and trauma. Police psychologists refer officers to Matt to do wellness activities along with peer support such as cold plunge, sauna, breath work, and sensory deprivation float tank. His approach integrates fitness, nutrition, sleep, self-regulation, and holistic self-care as a path to proactively grow mentally, emotionally, physically, and spiritually - rather than the common reactive-only approach to after someone has begun experiencing breakdown with PTSD, addiction, divorce, or suicidal ideation. 

This is a cool story. I’m so grateful to have been connected to Matt. His father challenged him academically and athletically growing up, leading to him developing discipline and structure that would become the core of what is Matt. This led him to be a D1 football player at the Air Force Academy, later graduating from Colgate. Then forensics, SWAT, strength and condition coach at Yale, chaplain and now a mentor and advocate for our first responders.

I love it when I meet someone who has a life I admire. I want to know how they did it. What cheat code did they use? The more people I talk to that have lives I admire the more I realize the cheat code is simple: Being disciplined, prioritizing mental and physical health, being mindful of what you fuel your body with, and having a goal. The other little commonality is how they view challenges. The cheat code is to see challenges as a positive thing - don’t fear failure. If you fail, you still learn, you still grow, and you become more enlightened or knowledgeable. Chase those dreams. The more I talk to the amazing people, the more that I’m only afraid of living an unchallenged life.

Resource

We’re incredibly grateful for the support of this community and would love your help in growing our reach. A like and share on Instagram, Facebook, YouTube, LinkedIn, and Twitter would mean the world to us. I’m always looking to connect with veterans and first responders with PTSD who have found ways to improve their quality of life—your story could help shorten that journey for others. If you support, provide services for these groups, or have extensive knowledge of available benefits, I’d love to chat and share your insights with the community. Let’s work together to make a difference.


If this podcast has impacted you, a friend, or a loved one, and you want to help us support those struggling with PTSD, please consider making a donation today at www.normalizeptsd.com. 100% of all donations go to sponsor veterans, first responders, and organizations supporting them.

Contributor

Jonathan Sheridan

Host