“Sharing Truth” by Matthew Deese

Matthew Deese has been making a difference in the veteran community since his return from war. Matthew offers a glimpse of the rich authenticity of his life, as well as his words, in a piece he wrote called “Sharing Truth.” Here is Matthew’s piece that will offer readers some insight into the themes in Barbara Garshman’s play, After Burn.

My name is Matthew Deese and I’m a former Marine. I did two tours in the Global War on Terror (GWOT), going once to Iraq and once to help evacuate American citizens from Lebanon.

After I got out of the United States Marine Corps (USMC), life became incredibly hard for me to deal with. I found myself experiencing nightmares/terrors, long periods of depression, extreme bouts of anger and rage, difficult-to-regulate emotions and so on.

I began to spiral out of control, and in 2009, I ended up homeless for a couple of months. I knew I had to get the help I so desperately needed. I spent more than two months in two separate inpatient programs for PTSD. With the help of some really great people, and a second chance in life, I was able to work through many of my issues.

Today, I live in New York City and currently go to St. John’s University in Queens, where I’m working on my MBA in Management. My dream was always to move to NYC and pursue acting, writing, directing, producing and such. I started my own production company in 2015, called Truth Artists Productions. We’ve had a couple pieces win awards in different film festivals. We’re currently trying to sell a show that we created to major studios, in hopes that they’ll buy it and produce it.

Through my career, I met Barbara Garshman. She had written a pilot for a TV show about veterans returning from war, and the struggles they faced with PTSD. I found it riveting and incredibly well-written. I knew I wanted to be a part of the future of this project. Along the way, she decided to turn it into a play instead of a TV show. She entered the NYC Fringe Festival and it was accepted.

I’ve been helping her coordinate various aspects of the play, as well as helping her make it more realistic in regard to what veterans with PTSD go through in their day-to-day lives. I think she’s really hit the proverbial nail on the head! She’s been able to encapsulate the raw emotions of how hard it is to live with PTSD and navigate the many obstacles it presents, especially when it comes to family and work.

This project is a passion project of mine. It really speaks to my soul and hits home for me. I hope that it’ll continue to go well. So many war veterans are suffering from this monster that is PTSD. I hope it’s able to reach a wide audience, so we can show the world how great these people are and how much they sacrifice for the love of their country. I hope it inspires those who need help to get the help they need as well.

After Burn play times

If you are interested in seeing the play After Burn, check out the NYC Fringe International Festival. The play will be shown in Manhattan for the festival.

Oct 12 (Friday)              7:00 – 8:30 pm

Oct 14 (Sunday)            1:00 – 2:30 pm

Oct 17 (Wednesday)     7:00 – 8:30 pm

Oct 19 (Friday)              4:45 – 6:15 pm

Oct 20 (Saturday)         9:15 – 10:45 pm

Please visit AfterBurntheplay.org for more information.

This article is part of a weekly column exploring spiritual transformation for veterans. To read the previous article in the series, visit THE ROAD LESS TRAVELLED: A Veteran reflects on the road he chose [Part 2]»