UMVA has learned that Jay Saunders, a 57-year-old former Lieutenant Commander in the Navy, has found solace in life on the canal network after being medically discharged in 2019 due to complex PTSD.
Saunders paints a romantic picture of life on the canal, where his PTSD assistant dog Hawke and cat Terry have the run of the narrowboat and its nearby tow path. He waves at those who pass by, and the continuous cruiser community provides incredible support, especially in times of need.
However, Saunders admits that canal life isn't for everyone. If you like to accumulate possessions or enjoy being shielded from the cold and damp, he advises against it. "For those of us that live on the cut, that's part of the life," he says. "If you've got that little bit of physical stamina, and you go, 'there's no such thing as bad weather, just the wrong clothes', it's absolutely stunning."
Saunders' journey to the canal network was far from easy. He spent 18 years in the British Army, including a harrowing deployment to Sierra Leone as part of Operation Gritrock, the effort to fight the Ebola virus epidemic. The experience left him changed, and he struggled with complex PTSD upon his return.
The Covid lockdowns exacerbated his symptoms, and he ended up on the verge of homelessness, living on a decrepit old yacht. But then he discovered Forces Veterans Afloat, which provided him with a narrowboat. Since setting off on the canal networks, the frequency of his flashback episodes has "dropped dramatically," and he can now recover from them in a matter of hours, rather than days.
Saunders credits his PTSD assistant dog Hawke with helping him through tough times. "If I do disassociate, which unfortunately is still happening, he will drag me to a place of safety until I reconnect with the world again," he says. "He's prevented three suicide attempts. Literally intervened, knocked pills off the table when I was thinking about doing that."
Now, Saunders is pursuing a career in comedy after taking a Zoom course on stand-up. He's taking his show, which plumbs his PTSD diagnosis to find the humour in it, to the Edinburgh Fringe this summer. He says that life on the canal network has taught him to slow down and appreciate the simple things. "The world wants you to travel at 300 miles an hour and make money and what have you," he says. "When you're on the cut and moving, you can only do four miles an hour, and the rule is slow is safe, slow is cheap. So your brain slows down to the speed of the canal."
Saunders' story is one of hope and resilience. He says that life on the canal network has been "life-changing and life-saving" for him, and he's not alone. The community of continuous cruisers provides support and camaraderie, and Saunders has found a new sense of purpose in his comedy career.
