Just In Time to Save a Life

Ep. 7 - From Survival to Purpose: A Veteran’s Story

• Jessica Greenwalt • Episode 7

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What if the bravest move isn’t silence, but a phone call that keeps you here? We sit down with Dale Fewson from the Arkansas Crisis Center to unpack the quiet reality many veterans face: feeling alone in a crowd. From the Chaplain Corps to crisis response, Dale brings a ground-level view of loneliness, stigma, and the decisions people make at 3 a.m. We talk candidly about why some veterans press Option 2 on 988 instead of the Veterans Crisis Line, and what it takes to meet them with trust, speed, and the right resources the first time.

Across the hour, we connect the dots between immediate support and true prevention. Dale shares how skilled call specialists do more than listen—they map reputable, local resources that fit each person’s needs. We explore spiritual triage, where care centers those closest to death so they are not alone, and how that lens broadens our approach to suicide prevention beyond checklists. We also dig into practical tools: improving sleep to break the stress spiral, movement and cold exposure for nervous system balance, and using neuroplasticity to rewire patterns that keep the brain stuck in survival mode.

Collaboration sits at the heart of real change. Dale outlines a plan to strengthen existing veterans’ services through training, awareness, and upstream partnerships that make belonging and purpose part of the safety net. We highlight why comparison harms recovery—your crisis is your crisis—and why speaking up early is an act of strength. If you’re supporting a veteran, you’ll leave with concrete ways to show up without overstepping. If you’re struggling, you’ll hear a clear message: you’re not alone, and help is one call away.

If this conversation lands with you, hit follow, share it with someone who needs hope, and leave a quick review so more people can find support. And if safety feels uncertain right now, call or text 988. Your story can change. We’re here for it.

If you are in a crisis or feel unsafe, call or text 988 or dial 911 for immediate support. There are people out there who will listen and can help.

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SPEAKER_01:

Hi, I'm Jessica G, and this is the Justin Time Podcast. If you're struggling today, I want you to know this podcast is here for you, but it's not a substitute for professional help. If you're in a crisis or feel unsafe, please call or text 988 or dial 911 for immediate support. There are people out there who will listen and can help. On this show, I'll be sharing personal experiences, mindset shifts, talking with key experts, and sharing real tools that help me go from barely surviving to thriving. This is not about quick fixes or one size fits all advice. It's raw, it's honest, it's what worked for me and what I believe can help others too. Let's walk together from darkness to hope. Hello, hello. Thank you guys so much for joining us on Justin Time. Today I'm so excited to announce we have Del Fusen. Welcome, Del.

SPEAKER_00:

Thank you.

SPEAKER_01:

So Dell is newly uh located and he is working with the Arkansas Crisis Hotline here in Arkansas.

SPEAKER_00:

Yeah, so I uh just joined a couple weeks ago with the Arkansas Crisis Center to help develop a uh veterans program for them to help better support the veterans in Arkansas.

SPEAKER_01:

That's amazing, and I think that's just so much needed. Um, can you tell me some of the struggles that um you've noticed in the veteran community and kind of what they face?

SPEAKER_00:

Yeah, so I uh recently uh left Active Duty Air Force and uh transitioned over to the Air National Guard down here in Arkansas. My wife grew up in Arkansas, so we kind of make coming back home for her. Uh and so my time active duty, it's um definitely you can you get to see a lot of like the struggles that people go through. And you know, a lot of times we say, Oh, it's the Air Force, they've got it easy there, they sleep in hotels when they travel. Like there is the easy part, but you see a lot of isolation, you see a lot of lonely people surrounded by a lot of people. Uh, and so personally, I've uh I worked in the Chaplain Corps, and so we did uh respond to a lot of crises. Uh so people going through their worst times and um having family members calling us up saying that um their their loved one has uh just passed away and kind of dealing with that. And so uh yeah, just seeing the the the loneliness that um is uh is surrounded um in the veteran community, active duty, and also once they um once they leave the service.

SPEAKER_01:

Yes. Well, I know the statistic, you know, for suicide and veterans is really high. Um so thank you for what you're doing and uh the program that you're trying to create and build. Um what would you say is another struggle within the crisis hotline that you have noticed?

SPEAKER_00:

Uh within the within the crisis hotline. Um I mean from veteran specific.

SPEAKER_01:

Yeah, you mentioned something about dialing one or dialing two.

SPEAKER_00:

So um correct me if I'm wrong, but it's uh you call 998 and if you push option one, you'll get the veterans crisis line. Uh if you push option two, you'll you'll come to to us um the suicide and crisis line. And so what we're finding is that we have veterans uh who are not dialing one to go to the veteran crisis line, but they're dialing two to come to the um just the more the general um suicide and crisis hotline. And so we really want to um dig down into that and figure out why. Um, but more than the why is the how. How do we um how do we support those uh veterans that are coming to us uh and help them uh get the help.

SPEAKER_01:

Why do you think they're um dialing two instead of one?

SPEAKER_00:

Does that yeah, I um I think there's a lot of stigma uh behind uh veterans calling the the VA or the veterans line, and um whether it's anecdotally not getting the help or friends not getting the help they need or something like that is the the and there's a lot of shame as well.

SPEAKER_01:

So like the veteran system maybe not be working as well as it ought to be, is basically what you're saying. Okay.

SPEAKER_00:

At a bad um experience, experience.

SPEAKER_01:

Or didn't get the help or care that they needed. Exactly. Okay, and that's why you're um working along with the Arkansas crisis line to develop a program that can help veterans specifically.

SPEAKER_00:

Exactly.

SPEAKER_01:

Yes, and that's why I brought you on the show today, because I think it's really important and you have lived experience of dealing with that, um, or maybe you not personally, um, but being in the field yourself, you know, you have seen and probably have lost, you know, other fellow fellow soldiers. Um what is one thing that you think that someone like me or uh family members could do to support uh veterans that you know are going through a hard time but may not want to talk about it? Like what would be a way to show support to them uh without crossing a line, maybe?

SPEAKER_00:

Yeah, I I think um I my personal experience has been a lot of a lot of the veterans that I've worked with have had um it's like the I come back to loneliness and isolation. It's that feeling of and you know, where it's it's not just veterans, it's like all of us now in the digital age where um we're so connected yet we feel so isolated. And and it is it is a um a version of that where uh these um friends or relatives that you know you'll see them out um in public um having a good time and but deep down inside they feel absolutely alone, exactly.

SPEAKER_01:

Yeah, uh and so it's really like or are struggling with PTSD, things like that. Um so is there a program um within the veteran community that supports PTSD or one that you could list off that could um someone that's like wanting help with PTSD could um reach out? Would that just be through the crisis line?

SPEAKER_00:

Yeah, through the crisis line to help. Um the I guess the advantage of call like calling crisis uh line is that the uh the call specialists there are equipped to find resources.

SPEAKER_01:

So they'll get that person connected with the right person for them.

SPEAKER_00:

Correct. Okay.

SPEAKER_01:

So it it's more like the So whether they dial one or whether they dial two, they're going the Argonze Crisis Line is going to find the right resource for that individual.

SPEAKER_00:

Exactly.

SPEAKER_01:

Just stay on the line until they get back to you, right?

SPEAKER_00:

Exactly. Yeah, yeah. And um, and it's good to kind of talk it through with um the call specialist as well. And and a good call specialist will take the time to find where you are, what what are the closest resources, what resources have um good reputations as well. So it's not just they're not just trying to get you off the phone. It's it's about finding the best uh resource and support for you and your situation.

SPEAKER_01:

Okay, awesome. Um, and then a little bit more about the program. Really curious about this. Like, so what kind of program are you feeling like are you going to design? Is it going to be like an intensive program that could be online or in person? Or what what is your um goal for that?

SPEAKER_00:

So our goal really is to figure out how we can support and collaborate the great work that's already happening in the in the veteran.

SPEAKER_01:

Okay, so with other nonprofits already that are in that sector. So like just combining and just becoming a big powerhouse and then creating something out of that.

SPEAKER_00:

Yeah, so so um the Arkansas Crisis Center, we our um our bread and butter is is the the core line, is the crisis line. So it's that it's that person that at three o'clock in the morning is at their absolute lowest and they don't know who to reach out to. Yeah. They just call 988. And um so that's our that's our bread and butter. Um, and what we like to say, that's kind of like the that's at the edge of the waterfall, that aspect. So it's like it's the last stop that people feel. Uh but we wanna we wanna move upstream from that for true prevention, true prevention, yes, exactly right. So we want to work with other organizations that they may have suicide prevention as a pillar of organization, but it's just one pillar. And so, how do we come and support that pillar for them? Yes, um, and provide our expertise with suicide prevention trainings, um, education and awareness um whilst they're promoting um their wellness and community helping veterans find their purpose and meaning once they uh once they fold up that uniform.

SPEAKER_01:

I think that is such a great idea. And uh I was telling you earlier, you know, one of the reasons why I opened up, well, the biggest reason why I opened up just in time was because I wanted to create a program that harnesses neuroplasticity to fight suicide. I had gone to Germany and I did this um intensive and progressive workshop with Dr. Joe Dispenza, and it's nothing to do with suicide, it's just more like self-help stuff. But it comes back to like reprogramming the brain, how you think is how you feel. And if you're feeling a certain way, it's because you're thinking a certain way. And it completely changed my life. And, you know, I don't struggle with suicide ideation. It's not something I I used to think about it every single day. And now I'm finally living a life where I feel empowered. Uh, you know, I'm not just coping with my life. And for me, I was like, I didn't want like coping mechanisms were great and everything. But and and I don't, you know, I don't know, correct, please correct me if I'm wrong, but maybe, you know, veterans, they've been through so much, so much training, this and that. And it's like I feel like maybe they just want relief, you know. And for me, um to kind of like connect the dots here, it was like I was I was in so much pain in my own way, and I was struggling from PTSD. I was a second person to find my brother, and you know, it just kept replaying and replaying, and I couldn't sleep. And once you can't sleep, there's just like so many other, you know, disorders and your mental health start to decline. And so, you know, on the show, we've talked about you know, things that we can do as far as taking care of our body, like cold plunging, working out, taking vitamins, eating, sleeping, all the things that our brain needs. But at the end of the day, we have to reprogram ourselves, and that's basically what I did. I reprogrammed my brain, but it took a long time, and it took this program that I just, you know, um learned about through some of my friends in Germany, and they're like, You need to come and take this course. And I was like, Okay. And it he talks about being in survival mode, right? And I think for veterans, like constantly in survival mode, you know. Um, I don't want to talk about any of the horror stories from some of my friends that have lost loved ones, but when I hear some of the things that veterans have gone through and have seen, that doesn't put you in a place of peace. It it keeps your brain in survival. So I'm wondering if there's something that we could do to collaborate also with everybody else to help create a program, um, like a little part of just in time um with the veterans. So yes, because like that is our main goal. And sometimes, like, you know, we're just we're a small nonprofit, but we partnered with AFSP, and that has been just amazing education. And and um I think it's helped so many people. And for me, it's not like that just in time needs to do everything. It's it's like you said, it's collaborating with all these other forces that already have you know put all this effort and energy into building it and then building from there. And I think that's where you know true change can come from. So I am so excited to have met you and um brought you on the show. Um, and you've only been in Arkansas for a month, right?

SPEAKER_00:

I know, yeah.

SPEAKER_01:

So as an Australian, wait, you were in Washington, DC before, right?

SPEAKER_00:

Washington State. Or Washington State, yes.

SPEAKER_01:

Um, so that what you mentioned, like that's freezing cold. So Arkansas is not as cold, but does it get cold in Australia at all?

SPEAKER_00:

Not where I grew up, um in Perth. It was just it's a warm climate.

SPEAKER_01:

Like all year round, right?

SPEAKER_00:

Pretty much. Like the winters are are like Is like California? Yeah, I think someone told me like San Diego is is similar to Perth. I don't know if that's true, but it's 114 in the summer and like Oh wow, like the winters are like 55.

SPEAKER_01:

I think Australia's a might be a little hotter. Okay, yeah, yeah, a little warmer. Um, did you surf or anything?

SPEAKER_00:

Uh I grew up bodyboarding.

SPEAKER_01:

Oh, cool.

SPEAKER_00:

And never got the ha uh hang of stand-up. Like I just I my balance, I don't know what it was.

SPEAKER_01:

But all right. Well, my husband and I we have a boat. We're gonna invite you to Beaver Lake and we're gonna teach you how to wake surf.

SPEAKER_00:

Dude, it's so someone told me about that and said, Oh, it's just so surfing. Yeah, that'd be that'd be awesome.

SPEAKER_01:

I mean, your wife and me will both be pregnant. Uh-huh. Well, no, I next summer we'll already have the baby. So it'll it'll be great. That'll be awesome. Yeah. Exactly. We'll let the guys drive and uh my husband can teach you, so that will be really cool. We'll have to do that. Yeah, awesome. Well, welcome to Arkansas.

SPEAKER_00:

Thank you.

SPEAKER_01:

Um, thank you so much for all the work that you do. I'm really excited. Um, is there anything else that you want to talk about today that you can think of that you'd like to share with everyone? Or a piece of information um like or something personal that maybe helped you when you maybe had struggles with mental health or anything like that?

SPEAKER_00:

Yeah, I I think the like the notion of like, oh, what I've gone through, like people have gone through worse. And if we talk about um I was part of a mass casualty team um at Fairchild F war space and we had um I can't remember the exact term. It was uh it was a the for triaging um the folks and it was it was medical, but then we as the religious support team um would come in and help spiritually triage, which is like those that those that are most closest to uh to death, we look after them first. Whereas medically, you look after those who survive.

SPEAKER_01:

So spiritual triage?

SPEAKER_00:

Yeah, spiritual triage. So it's kind of spending spending that time with with members that um as closer closer to death.

SPEAKER_01:

The end, yeah.

SPEAKER_00:

And so um, but when we do that, yeah, it's I know. Um and it it is kind of a a bit of a um mindfucker, as it were. Yeah. Um, because you're like, well, medically you want it those that are most likely to survive, but spiritually, you're like, okay, these are the these are right at the end, you want to be with them in that time because that that is uh for a lot of people very tough time. Um but like when we're when you're triaging, they talk about uh possi a possible it used to be a traumatic event, and that's what it was. And that could be a you know a plane crash or something like that, and then more recently it's been redefined as a possible traumatic event because what someone goes through, two people can go through the same thing and have a different experience, different experience.

SPEAKER_01:

So, like your crisis is your crisis, um it's not always the truth of exactly what happened, exactly, but it's a different experience because the brain can just decompartmentalize and yeah, and and then you also remember incorrectly too. Exactly.

SPEAKER_00:

And so the real piece of encouragement that I have um that I share with everyone is just talk. Like don't don't go, well, I know I know my mate went through so much worse. Um but if you're having feelings that you're having, talk about it.

unknown:

Right.

SPEAKER_00:

Um, don't just isolate yourself.

SPEAKER_01:

So comparison is something that you saw a lot of guys do.

SPEAKER_00:

Exactly.

SPEAKER_01:

Yeah, and there's a quote that I go by too. It's comparison is the thief of joy, too, you know. Um so don't make yourself small, even if somebody else went through something harder, still validate your feelings, is what I'm hearing you say.

SPEAKER_00:

Yeah, exactly. Yeah, exactly. And and that's huge. Find that help, that um the resources are there. Um just just look for them.

SPEAKER_01:

Wow. Spiritual triage, that is just like mind-blowing. Like I'm just like imagining you on the field going through that. I mean, how was that?

SPEAKER_00:

Um so for me, um, like I never really was involved in, you know, thankfully never involved in real-world um mass casualties. But going through the training for it was intensely training. Yeah, is definitely um being able to to understand that that uh mindset of you know, with spiritual fitness, it's about yeah, purpose and meaning. Yeah, it's like why why why are we on this earth? Um, we're not like you said before, like we're we're not a bunch of islands, like all of these little nonprofits, we're all one big island, yeah. Um pursuing one big meaning. And so it's that what is your purpose? What is your meaning? And sometimes we go through big things that help us find it, and other times it's just intrinsic, and we're like, okay, and so yeah, it's helping people find that.

SPEAKER_01:

I can see why they brought you on the team now. Um, I think like in life in general, I mean, even people that aren't struggling, sometimes they just feel lost in general because they're not tied to their purpose, or you know what is the meaning for them there, you know. So I think that's I think that's huge. And I think when people do, especially for someone that is, you know, struggling when they do find that and tie themselves to that. Um that does when you have more purpose, it does give you more um drive and will to want to live, you know. Um I was gonna ask you one more question. Oh, yes, what was it that made you get into this um career field?

SPEAKER_00:

Um so I guess like serendipity is what actually got me into the career field. Uh so I'm I'm old, I was an old recruit into the Air Force. So my wife she joined, then I met her. Um, I had a previous career in running coffee shops and coffee roasting. Uh that was kind of my passion, that was my passion. Uh, and then I met my wife, and I was like, I can't move coffee shops when we move bases. So I was like, I um let that go. And then my one of my best mates, uh, he was uh EOD, which is like the bomb disposal in the Air Force. So yeah, he was a total badass. Uh I'd train with him, we'd work out together, and so I told him, Hey, I want to join the Air Force. I'm 35, and um he's like, Well, um, go EOD. And I'm like, no, I'm not crazy. Like, I can't just like where's that bomb?

SPEAKER_01:

Like, I'm not you're the crazy one.

SPEAKER_00:

Um, and so he introduced me to uh, but I wanted to go special warfare because yeah, I'm just one of those dudes that like I have to do the hardest thing I can find. So um he told me about SEAR, which is the survival uh instructor uh training uh for the Air Force, and so I joined um Seer to begin with in the Air Force, and then my wife uh she's short notice deployed. And so I was in in the middle of training, it's pretty intense training. Um it's like you know, 12, 14 hour days. And then you get homework to do, and so it's intense.

SPEAKER_01:

I I know a guy actually um in California, it was in San Diego, um that had a government job, and he helped basically train how to um how do you say it disemble the like so the bomb doesn't go off? Uh-yeah, what is it called? Bomb disposal or bomb disposal, yeah. Yeah, and disarm, yes, disarm a bomb, and like training for you know the Air Force and every and like all the Marine Corps, everyone and uh that that can be really intense too, yeah, um, and situations and they actually sent him over, he was in the army, they sent him over, I think it was Afghanistan, and some of the things that he came back and had to deal with. And my heart goes out to this person too. Um, because I've seen him struggle, you know, up and down with alcoholism and just trying to like numb that pain. And he's gone to um the veterans community and is is try to get help. And you know, I just keep telling him, like, don't give up, like keep trying. Um, because I know after going through something like that, it it's it's really, really hard. Yeah. So I have a lot of compassion for him.

SPEAKER_00:

Hopefully, it clicks one day.

SPEAKER_01:

I'm hoping. Actually, after this podcast, I'm gonna call him and check on him because I haven't checked on him in a minute.

SPEAKER_00:

But be a good friend.

SPEAKER_01:

He's such a beautiful soul, too, you know. But sometimes life just can get you really can get you down, you know? And but that's why we're here. We're just in time to save alive, and we've got the crisis hotline. So call 988 if you're struggling. And um, thank you so much for being on the show. No worries, we appreciate you.

SPEAKER_00:

It's glad to be here.

SPEAKER_01:

And I'm holding you to the surfing session next year.

SPEAKER_00:

Oh, yeah, definitely. I'm gonna face plant, I know it.

SPEAKER_01:

That's okay.

SPEAKER_00:

Awesome.

SPEAKER_01:

Awesome. Oh my gosh, that was cool. That is awesome. If you're struggling, remember how you think is how you feel. If your feelings feel heavy, start by shifting the thought. You're not stuck, your brain can change, so can your story. I'm Jessica G. This is the Justin Time podcast, and I'll see you next time. Until then, keep going. Never give up. And remember, the world is better with you in it, whether you believe it or not. To help reach others, please share this with your friends, family, and don't forget to like, subscribe, and donate.