The VetsConnection Podcast

Ep. 58 - Sazha Ramos: How One Navy Veteran Overcame Opioid Addiction and Found Her Path to Helping Other Veterans

• Scott McLean • Episode 58

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Navy veteran Saja Ramos shares her powerful journey from military service to addiction recovery, now serving as VP of Military and Veteran Affairs at American Addiction Centers. After a traumatic brain injury and vision loss from a car accident in Italy, she transformed her personal struggle with opioid addiction into a mission helping other veterans find treatment and purpose.

• Joined the Navy in 2008 after high school, working in Information Technology in Sicily, Italy
• Suffered a car accident resulting in TBI, PTSD, and vision loss in her right eye
• Medically transitioned from service in 2011, leading to struggles with opioid addiction
• Completed four months in residential treatment and nine months in sober living
• Earned degrees in interdisciplinary studies and social work using her GI Bill
• Now helps veterans access addiction treatment at American Addiction Centers
• Works with clinical teams to ensure veterans receive appropriate, specialized care
• Advocates for better veteran screening and assessment in healthcare settings
• Challenges the stigma around veteran identity, especially for women and non-combat veterans
• Practices "recovering out loud" to inspire others on their journey to healing

For veterans seeking help with addiction or substance use disorders, call American Addiction Centers at 866-288-1836 or reach Saja directly at 908-239-6417.


Scott McLean:

Welcome to the podcast. I'm Scott McLean Doing this interview from my home studio. Sometimes I'm going to jump back and forth. This will be a video eventually but my One man, One Mic Foundation studio is where I'll be doing most of these podcast interviews from now on One man, one Mic Foundation, where we help veterans learn how to podcast for free, from concept to publication, and we also have a class on storytelling and the power of storytelling, because, well, a veteran's voice is their biggest strength. And now that I get that out of the way, my guest today is Saja Ramos. Saja is the VP of Military and Veteran Affairs at AAC. How are you, saja?

Sazha Ramos:

I'm really good, scott, how are you?

Scott McLean:

I'm doing well. I'm doing well. Thank you for coming on the podcast.

Sazha Ramos:

I'm so excited to be here. I love what you're doing and I think that storytelling is huge and I think that giving voice to our veterans is such an empowering thing and really aligns with some of the work that I'm currently doing.

Scott McLean:

There you go, so I guess we'll be talking after the podcast also. Yeah.

Sazha Ramos:

Yes, absolutely.

Scott McLean:

All right, so you're a Navy veteran.

Sazha Ramos:

Yes.

Scott McLean:

Okay. Well, the next question is when did you go in and why did you go in? What was, what was going on that you said I'm joining the Navy?

Sazha Ramos:

Yeah, so I went in in 2008. Seems like a long, long time ago that I joined right after high school and I knew at that time that I didn't want to go to college. I know that was like the narrative and the norm Right after high school you go to college. And I just didn't know what I wanted to do with my life. Yet I grew up in a very Asian Catholic home, so it was very strict. My folks were like you're becoming a doctor or you're becoming a lawyer, and I'm just like I barely graduated high school. There's no way I'm getting back into school. So I had a friend who joined the Navy at the time and I was like, if you could do it, I could do it, and that's how the process got started.

Scott McLean:

Okay, and what did you do when you were in the Navy?

Sazha Ramos:

I did IT information technology.

Scott McLean:

Ah, were you ever out to sea, or were you landlocked?

Sazha Ramos:

Mostly landlocked. And it's funny, right, because everyone's like you're in the Navy and I was like you. You know we have bases all over the world, you know, and, and I think, uh, the, the, the or the god, the gods of orders, right, our detailers, um, they decide for us. But my, my time in the service was actually between 2008 and 2011 and you know how that goes, if goes, if you're looking for orders and things like that, you get stationed on a ship for a certain amount of years. You get stationed on a base for a certain amount of years.

Sazha Ramos:

So my first duty station was NRTF Nishimi in Sicily, italy. I tell people all the time, if you cut me open, I'm meatballs and marinara. I'm originally from New Jersey, so that's I really feel like in deep, deep down inside, I am Italian because I love Italian food and culture and people, and, being from New Jersey, I am a bit of a pizza snob. But back to being landlocked a lot. I was stationed at NRTF Nishimi and that that was a naval radio transmission facility in the middle of nowhere in Sicily we would drive an hour from the base to another satellite station and very, very rural, and we were managing and observing comms in the Mediterranean hub.

Scott McLean:

All right To touch on something you just said. If you cut me open, I'm chicken, palm and linguine, Just for the audience.

Sazha Ramos:

And we want to know what other food items you know. If people you know get cut open, yeah, what is your blood made out of?

Scott McLean:

And I am also a pizza snob, so we have that in common also Very good, very good. So you got out in 2011. What was the transition? What was what happened there? How did that go?

Sazha Ramos:

The transition was medical transition. I was placed on TDRL and that's temporary duty retired list, and that was because I was in a car accident when I was in Italy. So because of this car accident I was diagnosed with a traumatic brain injury post-traumatic stress disorder and I lost vision in my right eye. So thank you to my plastic surgeons in the Navy amazing at Bethesda. But if you saw me like up close, you can see I have a pretty gnarly Harry Potter scar right above my eyebrow.

Scott McLean:

That's hey, you know what? That's a good way to relate it to a Harry Potter scar.

Sazha Ramos:

There you go.

Scott McLean:

See how many people can actually claim that.

Sazha Ramos:

Yeah, no, it took a few years, you know, I went from wearing an eye patch which was very like on brand of the Navy to just owning it. You know, I think that's what I love about storytelling we get to decide what, how we tell our story today, and how we get to share the experiences that it shapes me. I was 21 years old, you know. Now I'm in my mid thirties and it's it's absolutely shaped the way my life has gone since that happens.

Scott McLean:

So then you get out medical. You're out now, right, and that's where the rubber meets the road. Now you have decisions to make, especially as a younger person. So where did that take you?

Sazha Ramos:

For the most part, the transition was. It was challenging. It was really challenging. You know, I went from being 18, chatting my shoes, tying my hair up in a bun, wearing a uniform, and totally accepting that this I wanted. I wanted the, the military, I wanted to be a part of something and I wanted to travel. Those were some of the biggest things that I wanted to do and I wanted my own sense of independence. Yes, I joined the military. It has its own rules and regulations, but I wanted to be separate from where I currently was and I wanted to be an adult. So joining the military was a lot about me being an adult and getting a chance to experience life.

Sazha Ramos:

So when it abruptly had to end because of my injury, I was really, really, really devastated. Honestly, and you know, not just because I lost vision in my eye, struggling with PTSD, a traumatic brain injury and a major depressive disorder, but I wasn't a part of the thing that was keeping me going for the last few years. You don't really know how something impacts you truly, until it's gone and you're looking in hindsight. So you know, they told me to go to school. I got an internship at the Pentagon and I was doing the things that I needed to do and looked really, really good on paper. But I was struggling emotionally and that's when I started to really struggle with opioids, which is where that story kind of started, where I was struggling with pain because of my injury and being overprescribed by the military and the VA.

Scott McLean:

Well, let's talk about that, Since my listeners know that I'm I've been sober for going on 34 years in November. They always say don't look ahead like that, but I'm pretty sure nothing is going to get in the way of this. So I I can empathize with you, being a young. When I was it's happened when I was in my early I don't know mid 20s, late 20s. So that's a hard, hard decision to make in your life because you don't know anything at that point. You think you do, but you really don't I barely know anything now we're always learning, sajid, we're always learning.

Scott McLean:

And and then it turns into you're telling me I need to stop this, like what? And so you have that. You know that addiction and what. What caused you to face it and say this enough is enough. Yeah, if you don't mind me asking?

Sazha Ramos:

Not at all. You know I'm an open book when it comes to this. I think people. I think I recover out loud and I'd love to see other people recovering out loud too.

Scott McLean:

That's a great way to put it recovering out loud. I like that yeah.

Sazha Ramos:

Yes, because people those are, you know, just another story people need to hear as well. I was 25. I had a great job. I got my first house with my VA loan. I was doing really big girl stuff.

Sazha Ramos:

But again the opioids they stopped working for me and I crossed my own personal boundaries for myself. The things that I said that I wouldn't do, I was doing and I was putting myself in danger. I was putting myself in harm's way. Nowhere that a young woman or a young person or anyone should be at all. You know trying to pretty much cope with. You know their emotions, their physical pain, and going out onto the streets finding other substances, finding ways just to deal with what's going on inside physically and emotionally. Those are really dangerous scenarios I put myself in.

Sazha Ramos:

So at that time I was dating someone who was also using substances and there are moments of time that we have when we're using that you just look at someone and you just know, like you know deep in your heart, like this is not the path for me and and other people are, I believe other people are a mirror to us. So I was dating a young man at this time. His name was Andrew and I looked at him and he had actually started to transition to use into heroin and that's something that I said I would never do. And I was so close to that point and we had already lost so many folks to overdoses, overdose, deaths from heroin. And you know, I was knocking on the door. I was knocking on the door, I'm like, hey, what are you doing? What are you doing? And he opened. He opened the door and I just saw the, the darkness around his eyes, the, and just the life really just taken away from him his eyes, the, and just the life really just taken away from him.

Sazha Ramos:

And I just knew that I didn't want that in that moment. I didn't want that and and I took that moment and I ran with it. You know, still continue to use for for several months. But being able to separate also from someone who is using is is a whole other challenge. You know, in in relationships we fuel each other's addictions, we blame each other. There's so many dynamics that go on with that. But then, when I was separated from him physically separated because I chose to I also saw my own addiction versus blaming another person. So that was really powerful and opioids stopped working and I was able to see myself a little more clearly and see how far my addiction really took me on my own, without someone being in my physical space.

Scott McLean:

Was there a rehab involved? Or was this all self-taught, Like I'm just going to white knuckle it?

Sazha Ramos:

Oh, I couldn't imagine white knuckling it. I had tried to, actually multiple times. I was on Suboxone, you know, as a way to assist it with cravings. So I was already trying to manage my situation by taking Suboxone. When I ran out of opioids, I'd take the Suboxone. I got more opioids, you know, and then I'd wait for the Suboxone to wear out, take the opioids again, trying very hard not to go into precipitated withdrawal, which is terrible, a very terrible thing.

Sazha Ramos:

And I actually the first thing I did is actually I went to the VA. I went to the VA in New Jersey and I told them what was going on. I was sick, I was throwing up and they didn't admit me to the ER and they told me to go to Newark New Jersey VA, which is a whole different neighborhood, a whole different place, to get on Suboxone. The thing is, I was already on Suboxone, so for them to tell me that, you know, honestly felt like a kick in the stomach from the VA and again is one of the reasons why I'm doing the work that I'm doing today because of that exact scenario that's happening to veterans today.

Sazha Ramos:

So I did a lot of research by myself, because I was too afraid to tell anybody that I need to go to treatment. So I'm, you know, checking out online, I'm Googling online and I called a handful of places. I didn't have insurance at the time, the VA did not offer have insurance at the time, the VA did not offer community care at the time and basically, you know, I looked at all, I looked at passages, malibu, you know. I looked at all the fancy places but I ended up going to the Karen foundation as they offered me a discount. My, my family, me and my family, my parents, ended up paying for treatment, by the way, because they didn't have insurance. They offered us a discount for me to go to treatment and it was about three hours from my folks home in New Jersey and I drove myself there with my family, of course.

Scott McLean:

Yeah, yeah, and that's the beginning of a whole another journey that we don't have to get into all that, but I know the inpatient life. How long were you in? How long were you in for?

Sazha Ramos:

I was there for four months. I did 30 days. Yes, that's how sick I was. My friends, my family and my husband like to remind me darling, you were really sick. So you had to be there for four months and I can laugh about it right now because I work in this industry. I know it saved my life.

Sazha Ramos:

And when you've been pretty much running and gunning for several years, the brain takes time. It needs time to kind of stabilize and separate. And then after that I did nine months in a sober living. So I truly believe that if you're looking for long-term recovery and you're looking to really heal, that folks need to be in treatment for up to a year and not saying residential or PHP, but sober living, outpatient programs, therapy. That whole year is so important and one of the things that I'd love to share about is we talk about that year transitioning from the military to civilian life, that year, also for folks who are using substances, transitioning into recovery also very important so you get done with that and then you start your career, or you were already having your career what?

Scott McLean:

what was the next step after the rehab?

Sazha Ramos:

the next step after the rehab. I actually next step after the rehab, I actually started. So one of the things that kept me in the rehab first is that the therapist her name was Jodi, she's amazing, she still works there. She definitely saved my life. She said to me there is a reason why you use, and at that point I believe that I use because it made me feel good. But when it stops feeling good and I'm still using, she posed the question why do you think you use? And that just bust the doors wide open for me.

Sazha Ramos:

I became aware of my inner life and I started to have understandings and start to look at and take pieces apart of where I learned certain things, where I learned beliefs, why I do certain things.

Sazha Ramos:

And at that time I didn't know, I was 25 years old, I didn't know what was running my life or why I had impulses, why I, you know, would throw myself in front of a car or you know why I had these, these thoughts that were harmful and and why I continued to harm myself by using substances and and that's when my life I would say, like my wife, my life really started to change, because I started to look at that.

Sazha Ramos:

So I stayed in there to start to understand what was going on. And then, once you start to look at your inner life, I think that you are provided with messages. And you're provided when you ask the questions of where do you want me to be and where should I go or where can I serve? We get answers through other people. We get answers through messages. We get answers through meditations. That's how I get them, and I started dreaming of the Red Rocks in Arizona and I would see them everywhere. I would draw them. You know, like you have a lot of downtime in rehab, you rehab, so there's a lot of time to spend with yourself.

Sazha Ramos:

So I'm like I pick up knitting, I pick up drawing, all these different hobbies, all the things that I didn't get to do before, and the red rocks keep coming to me, keep coming to me. So I start looking at sober livings in Arizona. And while I'm looking at sober livings in Arizona, I let my therapist know and we explore about, like why do you want to go here? What's there for you? I'm like I'm not going back to Washington DC, I'm not going to go back to the hustle and bustle. I'm not going to go back to the person that I was trying so hard to be that I don't want to be anymore. Like that's gone and that's changed and I want something new for myself.

Sazha Ramos:

So I was accepted into a collegiate recovery program in Arizona Prescott Arizona, northern Arizona. I fell in love with the desert. I fell in love with hiking. I fell in love with nature. I fell in love with crystals.

Sazha Ramos:

You know, I never thought I was going to be that kind of person, but it was this other part of life that I was like people enjoy this. Like when I was using I was like how do people enjoy this stuff? Like how do people go out and enjoy walking in nature. Like that doesn't make any sense to me, but that's where I learned how to do those things. So I started prioritizing that like in my life. I have my background in information technology. I had a top secret security clearance, you know. I had all this big Washington DC stuff. But I moved to Arizona and I was like that doesn't make me happy anymore and I want to follow my joy. I want to follow my happiness, because for too long I've watched people die of overdoses and I've been in pain and now I want to live my life in a new way that is conducive of my recovery and also is conducive to my lifestyle. So I went back to school On my GI Bill.

Scott McLean:

And that's where you got your degrees. You went to. You have two degrees.

Sazha Ramos:

I have two degrees. Yes, I did my bachelor's for interdisciplinary studies at Northern Arizona University in Prescott in Arizona, and then I did my master's in social work at Rutgers, and all of it was done on my GI Bill.

Scott McLean:

There you go. Yeah, what was your relationship with the VA at this point? Was it, did it exist or was it like? I just don't and I'm not knocking the VA? Everybody has a different relationship with the VA, so what was your relationship with the VA at this point?

Sazha Ramos:

At that point, when you're in treatment, you are considered homeless. And it was true I didn't have an apartment in DC anymore. I went to treatment for four months and I was living at a sober living. So you are considered homeless and I went to the VA and I actually tried to get on the voc rehab program. And you know you may or may not know this, I know some folks know our voc rehab program, but voc rehab allows a veteran to utilize additional benefits to go to school and continue on based off of what they were doing in the military, and then they change into something that would be more fruitful, more productive and more effective for them.

Sazha Ramos:

I was denied that program with the VA, so again felt like another kick in the stomach from them and just another challenge of you know, here I am trying to get sober, here I am trying to change my life. And I wasn't able to get those services at that time. Thankfully, I still had my VA disability and that's how I was living. I was able to live off of my VA disability because sober living isn't paid for by insurances and I didn't have anything. I didn't have anything to show for myself at that time. Ah, okay.

Scott McLean:

And I didn't have anything. I didn't have anything to show for myself at that time. Ah, okay, so fast forward. You started getting into. How did you testify or present before Congress, Am I?

Sazha Ramos:

putting the cop before the horse or you don't want to lead up to that. No, no, no, we could go into it and it's because it's all a part of the work that I do now. Right, and it was informed by what happened to me as a veteran, to all the different types of advocacy that is required. It's not required, but I think is important when we're talking about substance use. So before I got into what I was doing now, I was really involved in recovery housing. I worked for the past Joint Chief Staff of the United States Navy. His name was Admiral Winnefeld and him and his wife, Mary Winnefeld, started a nonprofit called Safe Project, stopping the addiction fatality epidemic because they had lost their son, Jonathan Winnefeld, to an opioid overdose. So I call this my second tour of duty in Washington DC, because I go back to Washington DC and you know if your Admiral calls you and says, Sasha, we need you down in DC, yes, sir, you know, and the mission just completely aligned with what I was, what I was, what I was doing. You know it's unfortunate that he had lost his son to an overdose, but I could relate and they were very involved in wanting to help college students get sober and it's a very niche kind of group. So I went down there and started helping them with their projects around recovery housing. So one thing about recovery housing is, like I said before, not paid for by insurance. They are trying to get them certified for different levels of care so you can have an Oxford-like style of recovery house and then you could have a level one which has peer support, Level two has more support, more clinical support, and level three is basically a PHP with housing. And level four is you know some could say already like this is a treatment level and those are standards by the National Association of Recovery Residences. So I got very, very involved with them and during the pandemic they were.

Sazha Ramos:

Recovery houses are businesses. They're owned and operated by people. Some people are in recovery, some people are providers and that's the problem with them. It's a lot of folks call it the wild, wild west because they're not something that's regulated, they're not something that's overseen. So that's how I ended up actually testifying in in front with with congressional members it was actually for a congressman in Maryland, with the top researcher from National Institute of Drug and Alcohol. When you're in DC it's really close. You're really close to knowing folks, and when your boss is the admiral. He had testified multiple times. I testified on the importance of recovery housing and that after treatment, that recovery houses should be accessible to people who need it.

Scott McLean:

Yeah, so you're the vice president of military and veteran affairs for AAC. What does AAC stand for?

Sazha Ramos:

AAC is American Addiction Centers and we are eight facilities across the nation that provide SUD substance use residential American Addiction Centers and we are eight facilities across the nation that provide SUD substance use residential. And recently we just opened up a primary mental health at River Oaks in Tampa, florida.

Scott McLean:

Tampa. Okay, do you know offhand the eight places?

Sazha Ramos:

Yes.

Scott McLean:

Let's hear them.

Sazha Ramos:

Okay, so we got Laguna Treatment Center and Elisa Viejo. We have Desert Hope in Las Vegas. We have Greenhouse Treatment Center in Grand Prairie, texas. We have Oxford Treatment Center in Etta, mississippi River Oaks, in Tampa, recovery First in Hollywood we have AdCare Rhode Island Treatment Center and then we have AdCare Hospital in Worcester.

Scott McLean:

Massachusetts, my old stomping grounds, boston, right around there. When you say Hollywood, is that Hollywood Florida or Hollywood California?

Sazha Ramos:

Hollywood Florida.

Scott McLean:

There you go. I used to live in Hollywood, florida, before I moved to Pernapoca.

Sazha Ramos:

We're going to have to have you over to recovery first.

Scott McLean:

You know what, if I'd be more than happy to help out any way I can.

Sazha Ramos:

Well, we have two veterans there right now, and one of the things that I do in the work that I do now is that we want to make sure our veterans are having a good experience right. If they, and whatever level they, stay with us, you know, we want to make sure that we can connect them to the VA. If they would like to go to the VA, we want to make sure we can connect them to resources like yours and people like you too. I mean, how many veterans do you? I mean there are now being sober for, knock on wood, almost 11 years. Right, I do know a lot of veterans in recovery, but in the beginning I didn't know any other veterans.

Scott McLean:

Yeah, Anything you need from me, we can talk afterwards if you want me to go down there and just talk to them, veteran to veteran, and you know, also in recovery and in the you know they're walking in my shoes, really, if you think about it, right? So yeah, let's talk afterwards. We got a lot to talk about after this interview, but I would be more than happy to help out any way.

Sazha Ramos:

I can Thank you so much.

Scott McLean:

Yes, so what was it that got you into AAC, like, how did that happen?

Sazha Ramos:

So this is actually the third company that I've worked for that has now that I've now been assisting with helping military and veterans find treatment and their families. You know, the family is a huge part of the military units. They're a part of a person getting into recovery, whether it's a spouse getting to recovery, whether it's the service member or the veteran getting to recovery. Once one person recovers, the family starts to recover as well, and it's really beautiful stuff. So I thought when I got my master's in social work that I'd go right into private practice. I was like this is awesome. I know exactly what I'm going to do. I'm going to do one-on-one therapy. I want to do trauma groups. Honestly, did not want to work with veterans and at that point in my life.

Scott McLean:

Why not? Let's stop right there. Let's stop right there, and I might understand, but why did you not want to work with veterans?

Sazha Ramos:

Well, I was struggling with identifying as a veteran.

Sazha Ramos:

Yeah, that's a whole thing in itself being a young woman not being in combat but having my own struggles with an injury, I just didn't feel like I had a place for. There was no place for me as a woman veteran. And you know, lo and behold, as the, our creator and universe kind of provides for us, you know, the the opportunities that I was afforded were because I am a veteran and so more and more I had to say I am a veteran and identify as a veteran because I was forced to do so by my circumstances. I am grateful for today, but I really, you know I've been, I've been to therapy about it, because I struggled with calling myself a veteran. I struggled with calling myself a veteran.

Scott McLean:

That is not uncommon. Since I started my foundation and being in the veteran space, I talked to a lot of veterans and a lot of them Now this is a different generation of veterans. So when I came up it was the Cold War and then halfway through my 10 years, the Gulf the first Gulf War kicked off. So it was the Cold War and then halfway through my 10 years, the Gulf the first Gulf War kicked off. So it was a whole new thing, like no one really understood it. But now you have for the last 20. There was a 20-year war and it's a different veteran that comes out.

Scott McLean:

You're going back to the Vietnam type veteran that came out. You know combat or not combat, and and I found that a lot of veterans don't identify as a veteran because they didn't see combat, they didn't see action, they might not have gone over the desert. And what I say to them is the bottom line to this whole thing is you signed your name on the dotted line, as they say. You joined, you gave your life you know that time of your life to the military, good, bad or indifferent. You did it and you were always susceptible to go. You know it wasn't like you had this guarantee that you weren't going to go over there. You didn't know. So you are a veteran, just like every other veteran.

Scott McLean:

I've run into veterans that have said I don't have a story, just like every other veteran. I've run into veterans that have said I don't have a story, you know, and because somebody else's story is bigger than theirs and they feel not less than, but they don't feel competitive when I tell them your story is yours, singularly yours, and your story matters. Every veteran has. They don't have just one, they have at least 10 stories, you know.

Scott McLean:

And so when you said I didn't really identify as a veteran because of the time you were in, everybody wants to hear oh, did you see combat? Oh, what was it like? Well, you're going to tell them what I didn't see combat and you think they're going to look at you and go well, you're not really a veteran. That might've been the case back in the seventies and the sixties, you know. But today I think there's a better appreciation for veterans, regardless of how they served. But that stigma still exists and it will exist and that's unfortunate and that's unfortunate. But it's good that you found that and you said you know what? I'm a veteran, damn it, I'm a veteran, that's right, I did my time, did you know?

Sazha Ramos:

I'm a veteran, there you go so I interrupted you.

Scott McLean:

So let's talk about being a female veteran.

Sazha Ramos:

Yeah, my experience. I think about it a lot actually because I'm in a part of a lot of women veterans groups on Facebook and MST is a hot topic military sexual trauma and MST is a hot topic military sexual trauma and I saw a post earlier this year and this woman said it took me 15 years to say I have MST. And that wasn't the shocking post, it was the comments after that. There were hundreds of comments from other women who had said for me it was 20 years or keep going, I'm not there yet. And just hundreds of women in one state commenting their experiences with MST. And that really just shocked me and made me very sad.

Sazha Ramos:

And I go back and I reflect on my experiences. You know, it's a male-dominated for me at that time when I was in, it was a male-dominated time and I don't know what it would look like to have a woman have more women support or more women mentors at that time. So I often think about that and when I go back and I think about my story, I think about how do I want to be treated and how do I want to show up today, and those are some of the things that helped me continue to look at my life, who do I want to be today? And because I can go back in my story and I look like, okay, how did I handle myself around several men or how did all of those men treat me? And that's the stuff that either gets me really fired up and upset, because there were experiences that were things that I would hope that wouldn't happen for any child or any young person or you know one of my children, and that's kind of the stuff that that makes me look at like, okay, what was the situation really about?

Sazha Ramos:

So it's, I think it's nuanced for every person. I think every experience is is going to be different for for women, because there are, like you said she was a dog handler whole different vibe. I was in information technology, right, so kind of everybody that was in my space like gamers, nerds, you know, like kind of introverted, honestly, like these were it folks. So you know, everyone, everyone's experience is different and I, I and I love that. You know that more and more I see the VA. The VA has departments for women, for specifically women, and there's more and more kind of groups coming together where women can share their experiences and be supported by one another. So I love what's happening.

Scott McLean:

It's amazing how time and distance gives you perspective. It's amazing how time and distance gives you perspective when you were closer to it, when you first got out, and when the first x amount of years you just look at it like it was what it was. But the time passes and you get further away from it and you see you all of a sudden look back one day and you're like that shit wasn't Like, the shit just wasn't right. You know it's like wow, but I didn't see it. Or you didn't want to see it.

Sazha Ramos:

Right. There wasn't time to see it.

Scott McLean:

No, no, but it's important that veterans do see it, you know, and that goes for men also, which is an even smaller percentage.

Scott McLean:

You know that that category of sexual trauma I just met a man who a male veteran, who said they had um, had mst when I first heard that I was, I was amazed in a bad way, because it's nothing that we ever think about, like it's such a uh, you know, the world is very male dominated in there and like you never think like I could have friends. I have a lot of friends. I was at four different bases, from the philippines to new mexico couple in california, and I have a lot of friends still and I who knows right that someone's not talking about something you know, but it really is. That's a whole nother conversation. Yeah, for another episode if we ever want to do that.

Sazha Ramos:

But it's a very important topic.

Scott McLean:

yes, it's a very important topic, as the VP of Military and Veteran Affairs for AAC give us a week in the life of.

Sazha Ramos:

Yeah, so two parts of my role is that there are more parts, but I'd say the primary is I run a national team and my national team is out there, boots on the ground, looking for veterans who need SUD treatment or just need resources. They're also connecting with the VA, they're connecting with organizations, letting them know that we exist. And also we understand that the process is challenging, that you know that window of you wanting to get help could be this small and VA can VA or any other organization, insurance whatever can make it challenging because our system still isn't set up to support people who are looking for treatment. And when you're looking for treatment, by this time it it's probably a life or death scenario. You know it's. It's gotten so bad that you're asking for help. So we're with them through the whole way. You know we have veterans on our team, we have family members of veterans on the team and we are talking them through the whole process. We are, you know, if VA says no to no, they are not referring out to the community. We help them find other resources. So we're walking alongside our veterans every day.

Sazha Ramos:

And then also that second part is I work with our clinical team, so at all of our eight facilities we can have veterans, depending on how many veterans are at the facilities, and I go through each one of those cases with our clinical director, the therapist and their case manager and we say we go, okay, what's going on with this veteran? So I was just on actually with the recovery, first in Hollywood, where we have a few veterans. You know, I hear the stories of how the veteran is struggling through a detox or I hear that they're not engaging through groups. So we look at, you know, okay, what are things that we can do for the veteran, you know, do we need to look at their medication? Do we need to involve the family? Do we need to involve the family? Do we need to call the VA? Are they at risk to harming themselves? All those things are things that we look at.

Sazha Ramos:

And so I meet with our eight facilities every week and we go over it and we get a chance to talk a little bit more in depth about what's going on with the veterans and see if there's any additional support we can provide. The third part of it is I get to talk to folks like you and share the message of what we're doing at American Addiction Centers, but also how we can better support our veterans. So later today I'm talking with the American Nursing Association. They're interested in how we can screen better for veterans screenings and assessments. I think that's really important too in healthcare. I read a study that only 16% of civilian providers had training for military and veterans. And that's crazy right, because not only are veterans going to the VA, they're going to regular civilian hospitals, they're going to other doctors and if I had MST or if I went through combat and I had a primary care doctor and they didn't assess me for that, that provider is not doing their job.

Scott McLean:

Yeah, no, they're not. They're not. If there's a veteran out there listening that might be interested in this. And this goes out to civilians too. Civilians to regular, everyday people, non-veterans. Somebody told me, like I called. I'm just so used to calling people civilians because for 22 years I was also, in, you know, a law enforcement, federal law enforcement officer, so everybody's a civilian that's not in that world. But I was told to call them non-veterans, right.

Sazha Ramos:

In this case non-veterans.

Scott McLean:

If there's a non-veteran out there, actually, that might be interested in getting assistance from the American Addiction Center, how would they do that?

Sazha Ramos:

They can call us. We have a number that I can share with you. It's a call center. So our call center is available 24 seven. We have teams that are veterans and non-veterans. Actually because because actually at American addiction center, something that we implemented is that we ask them are you a veteran or are you a family member of a veteran? Because when we identify them, that means we can treat them, treat them in a different way. We can treat them if they want and there are veterans that we have that don't wanna program with other veterans, and that's fine too. That's absolutely okay. We wanna be. If you do identify and you wanna work with other veterans, we have that ability for you. So our phone number, 24 seven you can call us is 866-288-1836.

Scott McLean:

Say it again 866-288-1836. I wanted to make sure they hear that that's right and website.

Sazha Ramos:

Yes, americanaddictioncentersorg. I'll also share my information with you. I am very accessible. I am answering the phone for our veterans 2 am, 2 pm, family members. I get calls from Okinawa, from active duty service members looking for treatment and I'm in the trenches and just as available as anyone else. So I mean it when I say that we walk alongside our other veterans.

Scott McLean:

And do you want to give the phone number for them if they want to reach out to you, which is great.

Scott McLean:

I always let me stop you, I'm always. I ended up doing this recently. I was actually on the other side. I was in your seat, for it's weird for the host to all of a sudden be a guest, right. It's weird for the host to all of a sudden be a guest, right, and I'm always slightly apprehensive. But people are always willing to give their phone numbers, and so I'm sitting there in your chair and I just said you know what? Yeah, if you're a veteran and you want to talk to me, here's my phone number.

Sazha Ramos:

I joined the gang.

Scott McLean:

I just threw it out there, so I'm sorry again to interrupt you, but I thought that was pretty interesting.

Sazha Ramos:

So if somebody wants to reach out, they can reach out to me at 908-239-6417. And I will gladly chat with with veterans. I love the work I do and, just like you, I'm like you know what. If they want, you can find it.

Scott McLean:

You can find it you can find it anywhere, you know like, call me.

Sazha Ramos:

Call me, I want to talk to you If you have ideas about helping veterans. You know a veteran who needs help. I'm here.

Scott McLean:

I, I let me ask you this Is there a a story that stands out like a success story that you might have been a part of in this, that you might want to tell us about?

Sazha Ramos:

Oh my gosh, there's been so many success stories that have just been so heartwarming and so amazing. You know, recently I had spoken After doing this for six years. You know they're just. I've had the same number. There are veterans that'll just call you. They'll call you, and a lot of the veterans that we treat are actually unhoused veterans and veterans who aren't able to get resources.

Sazha Ramos:

So I had this unhoused veteran call me and we actually weren't able to get him treatment through us. But he we got him VA disability basically, and if you have any sense how to use a computer and kind of upload documents I've done it before and I've taught many veterans how to do this he didn't even know that he was eligible for VA care. He had been living his life unhoused, had no idea he was eligible for VA care. And when we got him enrolled we tried to get him through treatment with us and they denied him and they said you know what? We haven't seen you before. Why don't you come see your primary care doctor and we'll get you into residential treatment with us?

Sazha Ramos:

And he went through residential treatment with them. He got off the streets and he's been sober now for a year, residential treatment with them. He got off the streets and he's been sober now for a year, so that to me it makes me so happy to hear that you know. One, they get their benefits, and two, they're in a safe place. And then, three, they get to come back and share with me that hey, they, you know, they say things like you saved my life, and to me it feels like I'm just doing what I have to do, but then I get reminded of like, oh my gosh, I did save someone's life today and that's, to me, the best thing and you're 11 years sober and you're just a baby in this world.

Scott McLean:

Right, it's a great 11 years, but you got a long way to go right. But do you remember your first year of sobriety? Do you remember your anniversary Like I was one year sober today?

Sazha Ramos:

Basket case.

Scott McLean:

You hit the one year mark and you look back. You're like Holy shit, like wow, I did this Right.

Sazha Ramos:

Yeah.

Scott McLean:

Little. Do you know that hopefully god willing or the universe is willing? Yes you got a long, nice, straight path ahead of you straight, not sure, but some ups and downs for sure.

Sazha Ramos:

But absolutely yeah, but definitely a life beyond my wildest dreams, for sure.

Scott McLean:

There you go. Yeah, well, saja one more time the website. Americanaddictioncentersorg and my phone number 908-239-6417. And your number one more time 908-239-6417.

Scott McLean:

All right, all right. Thank you so much for coming on. I'm glad we finally got this done. The stick-to-itiveness to get this done was great. It was matthew, yes, yeah, yeah, he did a great job at following up and keeping it going. I had a lot going on my foundation and stuff, people my father died, my brother died and things and he's like I'm, I'm with you, let's do this, we're going to get this done. So we finally got it done and it's the beginning of, I think, a good relationship, because I would love to do anything I could for you guys in this South Florida area.

Scott McLean:

Thank, you so much, I'm looking forward to more chats with you and would love to get you connected with some of our, with some of our veterans, and we might be getting you podcasting through the One man, one Mic Foundation. See how that works out. All right, let me do my outro and stick around and we'll we'll talk again. Well, we built another bridge today. This was a really interesting bridge rehab for veterans and I love those bridges. Those are are, those are near and dear to my heart and, as I always say, I want to thank you for watching, thanks for listening. You'll be watching.

Scott McLean:

When this becomes, I'm opening my video channel, I'm fighting it, but I'm getting pushed in that direction. So I will say now thanks for watching, thanks for listening, if you like to share it, you, the listeners and future viewers, the engine that runs this machine. Without you, I probably wouldn't be doing this. So thanks for all that you do for keeping this podcast going the views, the downloads, it's all good. And stick around. There is a 30-second public service announcement. It's relevant to veteran suicide, veteran assistance and non-veteran assistance, not civilian assistance. No-transcript.

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Scott McLean

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