Five years of Peers - Kristy

When Kristy was medically separated from the Navy with a fractured back at just 19 years of age, she found it very difficult to accept that her dreams for a military career had also been shattered.

For many years afterwards, she experienced ongoing physical and emotional trauma which eventually led her to seek help from Open Arms.

“After having my third baby, my mental health nosedived and I was at breaking point,” she said.

“There was a lot of unprocessed grief and trauma from my military experience that had sort of compounded. I reached out for support for the first time in my life and an incredible world of support services opened up for me.”

The support she received had such a positive impact on Kristy, she joined Open Arms’ Community and Peer Program to provide others with the same life changing support she had received.

She now uses her lived experience to help veterans, including those who also had their career aspirations cut short at a young age.  

“I help them to understand that just because they don’t have a long service history, it doesn’t make them any less of a service person,” she said.

“It is important that their contribution is recognised and valued.”  

For Kristy, her military story began when she joined the Navy straight out of school.  

“When Defence recruiters came to the school and gave their spiel, I was pretty sold,” she explained.

“I thought it was a great opportunity to pursue a career in nursing, travel the world and have some world-class experiences.”

Just two weeks into her training, she fractured her sacrum, when she fell 1.5 metres off the ground during a training exercise.

“I attempted to complete the exercise but had to withdraw due to excruciating pain,” she said.

After undergoing two years of rehabilitation, which included many setbacks, the medic in-training medically separated. Still a teenager, this was a very bitter pill for Kristy to swallow.  

“It had a huge impact on me,” she confirmed.

“I concentrated on my young family for about 10 years. It took a really, really long time to find a new path.”

After a few false starts, Kristy completed a Certificate IV in Community Services and realised that helping people in need was “her cup of tea.”

“I was always very veteran-centric and supporting people in that space, so when the opportunity came up to join Open Arms I didn’t hesitate,” she said.

“I love what I do. While it’s sometimes challenging to support people at the most vulnerable times in their life, I can provide that lived experience perspective, share their journey and make sure they know they are not alone.”

And if she had to choose one of her most memorable moments as a Community and Peer Worker in the past four years?  

“It would have to be escorting a 97-year-old WW2 veteran and his family to the Australian War Memorial in Canberra in 2022,” she said.

“There is something indescribable when you’re in the company of someone that has sworn the same oath as you. The uniform may be different, but the mutual respect, and understanding of what that symbolises, is timeless. No matter how many generations or experiences separate you, that connection, and knowing what it’s like to wear the uniform is really quite profound.”