Healing on the Water: Veterans, PTSD, and the Power of Purpose

For many veterans and first responders, the hardest battles don’t end when the uniform comes off. Trauma, PTSD, and moral injury can follow them home—quietly shaping relationships, identity, and everyday life. On this episode of Free Thinking with Montel, Montel sits down with Lew and Nicole Duckwall, co-founders of Patriot Anglers, to talk about what healing actually looks like after service. Lew is a military veteran who struggled with severe PTSD after leaving the military. When traditional paths didn’t bring relief, he found an unexpected lifeline in fly fishing. What started as time a...