From A Dark Place To The Crest of A Wave

A former soldier from Cornwall believes that discovering surfing has turned his life around – and he’s now helping others to discover it for themselves 

Tim Stevens, 50, from Saltash, admits he was in a dark place after a life-changing incident in 2016, before Help for Heroes introduced him to surfing.  

At just 16, Tim joined the Royal Signals before transferring to The Devonshire and Dorset Regiment and served in Bosnia and Northern Ireland during his 10 years of service. After leaving the Army, in 2002, Tim spent five years in the prison service, at Dartmoor prison, before moving into the police.

Emotional fallout from an unprovoked attack

Unfortunately, in 2016 his life was turned upside down. While he was taking his dog for a walk, Tim was attacked by a complete stranger. The emotional and mental fallout left him in a very dark place with his relationships with his wife and children falling apart. Tim’s mental health took a turn for the worse, he was feeling paranoid, highly emotional and was left with suicidal thoughts. 

It was around this time, when he felt there were almost no options out there to help him, Tim was connected to the Charity and received support from the mental health team, as well as attending Recovery College courses. During what he referred to as one of his ‘wobbles’, Tim was invited by the Charity to a surfing session. He explained: “I didn’t like surfing to begin with; it was mixing with people I didn’t know, and it didn’t feel like it was for me.

“But the team was very enthusiastic and encouraged me to go along, even if it was just to sit on the beach; and it was that calming sound of the sea and watching people have fun that built the belief it was for me. Tom, a former Royal Marine who was also at the session, encouraged me to go on a surf with him and, from that moment, I made a friend for life.”

Giving something back to help veterans

Tim and his wife Rachel rallied an old VW Beetle from Cornwall to Croatia, along with his Help for Heroes surf instructor who has also becoming one of his best friends. This was a major step for Tim, as it was his first time returning to Croatia since serving in the Bosnian war, showing how far he had come. It was this new passion that made Tim want to take it a step further and join a Coaching Academy course to help give back to others in his position. He was also supported by Bude Surf Veterans.

Tim added: “The Charity put me in for my Level One coaching course, which means I can take groups out on the water. Sometimes the simple things are the best. I’m now qualified to take people out and there’s no better feeling than watching someone catch their first wave.  And I really enjoy sharing my passion for surfing with other veterans as part of their own recovery journeys. There’s always a way around something tricky to make it work, that’s what surfing has taught me, and I can now see the wood from the trees, where before I couldn’t.”

Consequently, Tim feels his relationships with his family have never been better. “Surfing taught me patience and listening, which helped me, and my son, to stop bottling things up – and we’ve never been closer."

Coaching Academy Programme

Ryan Hunt, who is the Community Sport and Innovation Manager says the Coaching Academy Programme is designed to help give veterans the skills to get back into the community and deliver activities.  He said: “It takes 6-12 months to complete the Coaching course and there’s a mixture of face-to-face and on-line training. Everyone who joins the course will get a rounded coaching development experience from coaching partners such as UK Coaching. They can then choose any sporting coaching course they want to get involved in. It worked for Tim, who is now helping move forward surfing in his local area, and is working with other local veterans - people can choose to do whatever they want.”