1819 News CEO Bryan Dawson sat down with Noah Galloway, and the two discussed challenges they have been through in life and as parents.
The war hero, "Dancing with the Stars" alumni, author, motivational speaker and charitable giver said he did not have much direction and structure as a child. However, his mother encouraged him to go into the military, and while he was studying at the University of Alabama at Birmingham on September 11, 2001, something life-changing happened.
"I remember watching that unfold on the news," Galloway said on "1819 News: The Podcast." "I remember the beginning of it just talking about pilot error when we were watching and concerned about everyone in that one twin tower. And then, I'll never forget, just like the rest of the world, that second plane hit that other tower. And I remember the screams around the cameraman as he was filming it."
The memory of that day still burned into his brain, and Galloway said hearing about even more attacks and seeing the devastation left behind inspired him to do something. He knew he was physically fit enough to join the military, and he loved the United States of America.
Galloway trained at Fort Benning, Ga., and was eventually assigned to the 101st Airborne at Fort Campbell, Kentucky.
'It was just wearing that uniform and working with those men and training," he remembered. "I fell in love with it."
During his second deployment, Galloway was already applying for special forces. He got the call to report to selection while in Baghdad. However, he refused to leave his team behind after losing some of his comrades in the ongoing fight.
"It really started to break a lot of the guys a lot of us mentally, but we pulled together, and we helped each other," he said.
Just two weeks after being asked to report for special forces selection, Galloway was driving a military vehicle when he hit a trip-wire, setting off a roadside bomb. The bomb hit the driver's door, where Galloway was and threw the Humvee into a nearby canal. The next thing he remembers is waking up on Christmas Day with multiple injuries, including losing his arm and leg.
While many may think the physical recovery would take a long time, Galloway said it was the mental recovery that he really struggled with. He said he lost his marriage during recovery, so he remarried. But that marriage quickly failed because he said he got so down in life.
"I just drank. I didn't take care of myself; I wasn't a good man," said Galloway. "I was in this denial that was putting me in this deep, dark place that I'm glad I got out of."
He knew he had to make changes after realizing he had a much bigger responsibility than he had thought of before.
"Another thing that hit me, and it hit me really hard, was one day I walked into the living room and my three children were young and they were sitting on the couch, watching cartoons," Galloway said. "And as I stood there looking at them, I realized my two boys, I'm showing them what a man is, and that's what they're going to become one day. And to my little girl, I'm showing her how a man is supposed to act, and that's what she's going to look for one day."
Finally, after about six years, Galloway felt whole again. He said it took time but knew the work was worth the win.
"You just have to have that motivation to keep moving forward and one day you wake up and you're like, 'You know what? I am happy with the man that I am today," he said.
Galloway is a believer in counseling and said although it can take time to feel whole again after trauma, even small things can make a difference, such as going for a walk or making your bed. He said he tries to pass on that lesson to his children by helping them develop a structure and routine.
Listen to the 1819 News podcast with Galloway here.
To connect with the author of this story or to comment, email erica.thomas@1819news.com.
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