At Fort Jackson, stories abound of civilians who are mostly strangers to each other, working together to overcome adversity and strife and become Soldiers in one of the largest fighting forces the world has ever known. The 10-week transformation process, called Basic Combat Training, is physically and mentally demanding; pushing trainees to become the best versions of themselves.
Unfortunately, not everyone is able to complete the transformation process and are instead sent to Company E, 120th Adjutant General Battalion, where they are processed out of the Army and sent back to their hometowns.
Although they will no longer fill the ranks at Fort Jackson and other Army units around the world, their leadership and Fort Jackson are dedicated to showing them they matter, and their mental and physical health is imperative as they re- turn to the civilian world.
Danielle Hanson, a volunteer and 500-hour registered yoga teacher was asked to help them restore balance and peace to their lives as they prepare for their up- coming transition.
“I was asked by leadership to support the mental readiness do- main for Echo Company about six months ago, because the Soldiers were suffering from depression,” she said. “They are on their way back to civilian life and many of them were and are quite over- whelmed and sad.”
According to Military.com, about 15% of individuals fail training every year.
“They joined the Army to become something better, something different than what they were and now that feeling is fading away,” Hanson said. “I agreed to support on a volunteer term on Saturday mornings and the Fitness Training Company joined us about three months ago. The FTC Soldiers are there to recover from an injury and what better way to heal than to focus 100% attention on your breathing and flow so you can grow?”
Hanson said she has subconsciously practiced yoga her entire life but began officially training in Oct. 2021 and obtained her 500- hour certification in April of this year.
“In October of 2020, Field Manual 7-22: Holistic Health and Fitness was published, and I was working for the 7th Mission Sup- port Command in Kaiserslautern, Germany. My leadership thought I would enjoy reading it because I brought us through COVID in a holistic way by providing weekly wellness trainings that supported the domains,” Hanson explained.
“I fell in love with the thought that we could look at a Soldier’s wellness this way, so I found a way to plug myself into all the domains - Physical, Spiritual, Mental, Sleep, and Nutritional,” she elaborated. “This is Yoga.”
Pvt. Angelica Arteaga-Felix is currently being separated from the Army and had little expectations of echo company but was excited to hear about the opportunity and volunteered to participate.
“I hope that it will teach me to do a couple of exercises when I’m alone and going through things,”
Arteaga-Felix said. “I feel like it will help me ease my mind a little bit.”
Pvt. Kathleen Dubecky, another Soldier in the process of an entry-level separation from service, echoed Arteaga-Felix’s sentiments and said that it makes her feel like the Army cares about her.
“Even though we’re not part of BCT and we’re about to be out of the Army, it’s nice know they care,” she said.
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