New Members

Relief and Support for Veterans

Old Boots is structured to provide relief and support for veterans who find themselves near the upper end of that spectrum; veterans who, for the most part, are engaged and functional within civilian society, but who sometimes have difficulties in dealing with the challenges inherent in such things as on-going medical treatment, feelings of isolation, anger, hopelessness, as well as employment related issues, family issues, and civilian life in general.

Safe Structured Meetings

For people within this portion of the spectrum, Old Boots offers a structured, safe, and regular means of venting, questioning, learning, and laughing, all within the context of a group of peers who can relate to these issues.

First Steps

A commitment from all group members to respect the needs for privacy and physical and emotional safety of all other members is essential to the effectiveness and well-being of the group. It is crucial to ensure that anyone who would like to become a group member is able to fully support that aspect of the group meetings.

To ensure this, the first step in becoming an Old Boots group member is to have a private meeting with Liz Massiah. As a licensed and very experienced psychologist with a long history of working with veterans who suffer from OSIs, Liz will assess whether or not Old Boots would be a “good fit” for potential new members based upon where within the spectrum of OSI symptoms and depth of disability they may find themselves, as well as how Old Boots may impact on any ongoing medical treatments that potential new members may be involved in. In all cases, her primary focus is on the well-being of the individual, and if Liz feels that Old Boots would not be a good fit, she will certainly assist in connecting veterans with types of support which would be more appropriate for them at that time. She is a kind and caring person who speaks “militarese”, and who has great credibility among veterans.