Denise Hepburn served as a Canadian Forces combat medic for 13 years (including a seven-month tour in Afghanistan) before an accident in 2010 left her physically injured. After losing her job, her mental health began deteriorating as well. She now shares her story in hopes of raising awareness for mental health.
It was a regular field day at the Canadian Force Base (8-Wing) in Trenton, Ont. in 2010. Hepburn was assigned senior medic of the day for a unit of troops. She was given the responsibility of making sure the troops landed safely when they jumped from airplanes at 12,500 feet into the Bay of Quinte.
The unit鈥檚 annual water recertification is protocol, however, this time around, they were also hosting troops from Germany, Poland and the United States. The weather was hot and the troops decided to perform a helocast in order to go in the water and cool off. Helocasting is an airborne technique performed by small unit special operations forces in which the helicopter lowers to 10 feet above sea level at 10 knots or less and the troops jump into the water one by one.
Hepburn was the last of eight to jump and by the time it was her turn, the helicopter was close to 40 feet above sea level at 20 knots. The jump ended up breaking her neck and ending her career.
鈥淚t鈥檚 been a long road, almost nine years now. It seems like a long time ago but in that time frame, I did lose my job in the military because of the physical injuries and my mental health started to decline quite rapidly after that,鈥� Hepburn told 麻豆影视 Channel from Toronto.
Hepburn says she鈥檚 very fortunate to have good Veterans Affairs Canada (VAC) workers, however, she鈥檚 disappointed in the lack of mental health support from civilian psychiatrists opposed to military psychiatrists.
鈥淲hen I was released from the military, I was really, really mentally unwell. I was suicidal at the time. I was obviously very depressed, [I had] a lot of anxiety, I didn鈥檛 want to go outdoors. I just wanted to stay by myself and at that point it was going to take me 19 months to see a local civilian psychiatrist.鈥�
Hepburn has come a long way since then. She is surrounded by a strong network of friends and family. She attended a program called 鈥� a Canadian Armed Forces program committed to supporting veterans to adapt and overcome permanent physical or mental health injuries through exercise and sport. She won four medals at the 2017 Invictus Games in Toronto鈥攁n international adaptive multi-sport event designed for injured veterans and armed services personnel.
Hepburn says that talking to someone with mental health issues could potentially save their life. She spoke at the 50th anniversary Community Champions Dinner for the United Way in hopes that someone would benefit from her story.
鈥淚鈥檝e had a lot of people reach out to me after the Invictus games that want to know how I overcame my mental illness. That was really awe-inspiring for me, to be in a position where I can point people in the right direction.鈥�
Wednesday, January 30 is Bell Let鈥檚 Talk day. It鈥檚 a day dedicated to raising money and ending the stigma surrounding mental illness. Visit for more information.
