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Be ready for what no one talks about.

Last night at a veteran's networking event I met a couple of guys within a year of retiring from the Army. I shared something with them that I've been sharing to others on that path since I've retired and as we parted they said more people should hear this, so...

Retirement life can be really great, but you need to be prepared for not everyday being total bliss.

You are going from a situation where you see good friends and colleagues - your sisters and brothers in arms - just by the act of going to work. That won't happen anymore and keeping a relationship with them will take effort and action on your part.

The day-to-day grind of leadership problems filled with wins and losses for individuals in the unit and the unit itself are not only challenging but rewarding and have chemical reactions in your brain - dopamine and adrenaline. Depending on what you do next, this might stop. For me they stopped cold turkey.

Putting these issues together can create some mental health challenges for a veteran to face when they are away from their tribe for the first time in years.

I didn't intend to scare them or suggest it is a bad experience, but no one talked to me about these things before I retired. I only heard how great it was.

We prepare our people for every mission- the objective, the resources, the timeline, and the THREATS. Service members should know about all of this before they go on their last mission.