"Left to your own devices": A young Mid North Coast veteran on the transition back to civilian life

The Mid North Coast is home to more than 8,400 military veterans.  

The wellbeing of a person who served in the armed forces of their country during a war or peacekeeping mission is rarely given the focus it deserves, but at election time the matter returns, if not to the spotlight, to at least a position of some prominence.

The federal poll on May 3 has led to candidates from across the Mid North Coast making promises to better support veterans and respond to the Royal Commission into Defence and Veteran Suicide.

The royal commission made 122 recommendations that it said were aimed at “enabling actions to address suicide and suicidality among serving and ex-serving ADF members”.

The key pillars were to prevent harm; intervene early; improve communication, coordination and collaboration; build capability and capacity; and strengthen oversight and accountability.

The Mid North Coaster spoke to Nambucca Valley veteran Steven Cale, about his transition to civilian life, mental health challenges, and why he believes holistic and flexible approaches to veteran support are needed.

A long history of service

Cale was 20 when he joined the Australian Army in 2012, following in the footsteps of family members. His great grandmother and four of her siblings served in World War II and his great uncle fought in the Vietnam War. Cale’s uncle was a Commando Sergeant in the special forces in Iraq and Afghanistan.

Cale, 33, moved around with the Australian Defence Force (ADF) during his four years of service. He went through infantry training in Singleton, where he sustained a severe knee injury that changed the course of his career.

He was taken out of the infantry just months before his unit was deployed to Afghanistan – a setback that took Cale a long time to recover from. His dream of fighting for his country was over.

“My unit got a trip straight out of training, they had the best of the best set up for a career from the eyes of a soldier at the time,” Cale said.

A turning point

“It was a massive hit because it was all the same guys I trained with from the day I turned up, and we had our heads shaved right through training to be infantry [soldiers] and then I got taken out.”

Cale said the experience “wiped him out mentally”.

Eleven months of rehab 

At Holsworthy Barracks in Sydney, Cale spent nearly a year in the physical rehabilitation centre - and so began his first hand experience with ‘the system’.

After rehab, Cale was retrained in transport and became a specialist truck driver in Townsville until 2016, when he was able to be voluntarily discharged after serving his four years. 

Cale’s career with the army may be in the rear view mirror, but he remains a staunch advocate for improving the way in which veterans are helped to transition back into civilian life.

Gaining access

“The system can be difficult to engage with, and even amongst the good programs that exist, knowledge of them and access to them is limited,” Cale told the Mid North Coaster. “If you don’t know a program exists, you can’t do the program.”

He said the Department of Defence and Veterans’ Affairs (DVA) can be efficient in getting people through rehab programs, but lacks a review process to ensure long-term outcomes.

“Are they still in a job, or are they unemployed? Are they still housed, or are they homeless now? How many are back in psychological care? The system’s processes are severely lacking,” Cale said.

Transition back to civilian life

Cale says it was not unusual for veterans to feel lost when they return to civilian life.

“You go from a system and a career that you know and understand, and that you believe in and want to be a part of, and then you’re left to your own devices once you’re out.” 

During his first years back in civilian life, Cale self-managed an injury that was at times debilitating. 

He admitted that frustration over what he saw as an unnecessarily long initial rehab for the knee injury meant it took five years until he was “willing to engage” with the DVA to have his treatments funded.

He described the DVA as “the Centrelink of Defence” and said that processes were “slow and out of date”.

“[It] sort of feels like a legal battle to go through what should be a treatment provider.”

A holistic and flexible approach needed

Time has seen Cale’s view on treatments evolve. In the Australian Army in his early 20s, he said he would have laughed at non-mainstream treatments for veterans as hippie nonsense.

Today, he believes in a holistic and flexible approach that accommodates less mainstream therapies.

“Right now, it’s heavy doses of anti-psychotics,” he said.

Cale said that a new generation of younger veterans required “a new generation of thinking as far as veteran treatment and transition back”.

Ultimately, he said, “I’ve been blessed, and it’s not from the system looking after me, it’s from having loving people around me”.

Veteran issues a “political football”

As the election draws near, veteran’s issues are back in the spotlight and Cale wants  promises to turn into actions in parliament. 

“There's a hot minute where things are paid attention to and some changes happen, and then that time passes and we just crack on in the middle as best we can. It’s a well recognised pattern among veterans,” Cale said.

“Veteran’s issues become a political football sometimes and that doesn’t help. I hope that in the next parliament, veteran issues will be taken seriously. I’d love to not worry about it and look forward to hearing the good stories.”

Cale is hoping whoever is elected ensures all 122 recommendation in the final report of the Royal Commission into Defence and Veteran Suicide are implemented in full and “not cherry picked.”

What are our MPs and candidates promising? 

The Mid North Coaster asked those running in the upcoming election what they pledge to do for veterans living on the Mid North Coast.

COWPER

Nationals - Pat Conaghan (sitting MP) 

Conaghan told the Mid North Coaster that if the Liberal and National Coalition is elected, it will sink $2 million into a permanent site for a Port Macquarie Veteran Wellbeing Hub.

Conaghan said the nearest alternative hub was in Taree.

“I’ve been working closely with veterans across the Mid North Coast for the past six years, discussing their real and critical needs and how we as a government can better support the men and women who have fought for our country,” Conaghan said.

Independent - Caz Heise (candidate)

If elected Heise said she will fight for all 122 recommendations from the royal commission to be implemented with “proper funding and oversight”.

“We must commit to every recommendation — not just the easy ones — so no veteran or family is left behind again,” Heise told the Mid North Coaster.

She will also prioritise expanding mental health services for veterans and families, including access to trauma-informed and alternative treatments.

“Mental health care isn’t a luxury — it’s a necessity. We need tailored support and access to promising new treatments that actually work,” She said.

Heise said more staff were required to process claims at the Department of Veterans’ Affairs. 

“Veterans shouldn’t feel like they’re on trial when they ask for help,” she said.

Greens - Wendy FireFly (candidate)

“I believe if we are sending our sons and daughters to risk their lives for our country in horrible war conditions, we need to give them the care and support they need on their return,” Firefly told the Mid North Coaster.

“We need to be working towards world peace and not be spending trillions to kill millions. It’s such a waste of life and the money that is spent on war fare could be better used helping Australia and Australians.”

The Greens say the royal commission “exposed disturbing levels of abuse, assault and neglect within Defence, leading to tragic and preventable harm. Accountability and action are urgently needed to address these systemic failures”.

Labor - Greg Vigors (candidate)

Vigors said it is “thanks to the Albanese Government’s investments that the [Department of Veterans’ Affairs] DVA is now better resourced than it has been in decades”.

“This has helped clear the backlog of claims and means support can be rolled out to veterans more quickly.”

Vigors said supporting the veteran community is one of his key priorities.

LYNE

Nationals - Alison Penfold (candidate)

“Veterans have served our nation with honour and distinction,” Penfold told the Mid North Coaster. “Thanking them for their service for me includes prioritising veterans welfare and actively working with veterans and their advocates.”

Penfold hosted Shadow Veterans’ Affairs Minister Barnaby Joyce in Taree in late March, where he met more than 50 veterans.

She said a Coalition government was “committed to addressing the unacceptably high rates of suicide among the Australian Defence Force member and veteran communities in Australia”.

The Greens- Tom Ferrier (candidate)

“The Greens believe that the welfare of veterans is of utmost importance,” said Ferrier.

“Veterans should be respected not only because of the service they provide to our nation, but also because their experiences of the horror of war have lasting and long-term effects on their mental and physical health.”

He echoed Cale in saying a holistic approach was required.

“We need to better understand if current entitlements are sufficient, and whether current eligibility criteria are fair, including access to health cards, disability pensions…”

He said The Greens “would require Defence and DVA to report annually to the parliament on the ‘state of mental health’ of current and former Australian Defence Force (ADF) members”.

The Mid North Coaster has sought comment from candidates across Cowper, Lyne and Page and will update this story as required. 

If this story has raised any issues for you, please contact a 24-hour helpline:
- Defence all hours support line: 1800 628 036;
- Defence Member and Family: 1800 624 608;
- Safe Zone Support, Open Arms: 1800 142 072 (a free and anonymous counselling line for all current and ex-serving ADF personnel, veterans and their families);
- Lifeline: 13 11 14;
- MensLine: 1300 789 978;
- Beyond Blue: 1300 224 636.