Veterans, Mental Health, and Marriage: How Jay and Kayla Fain Are Redefining Recovery, Advocacy, and Veteran Support

In the veteran community, stories of resilience often focus on the service member alone — the soldier, the Marine, the Green Beret fighting their battles both on and off the battlefield. But the truth is far more complex.

Behind every veteran navigating trauma, mental health struggles, or recovery is often a spouse quietly carrying just as much weight — sometimes even more.

In this powerful episode of the Security Halt! Podcast, host Deny Caballero sits down with Jay and Kaila Fain, a veteran couple rewriting what resilience, marriage, and recovery look like after military service.

This conversation isn’t just about veterans. It’s about relationships, healing, community, and what happens when the system fails — but love doesn’t.

Veterans and Mental Health: Recovery Is a Team Effort

Jay Fain is a veteran who has faced the darkest corners of mental health struggles — but what makes his story extraordinary is the unwavering support of his wife, Kaila Fain. A veteran herself, Kayla understands both sides of the military transition experience.

She’s more than a spouse — she’s Jay’s "advocate, battle buddy, and lifeline."

When Jay hit a mental health crisis in early 2023, what followed was a devastating cascade of trauma, isolation, and betrayal from systems and organizations that were supposed to help.

As Jay describes, it felt like being "blown up yesterday" — mentally disoriented, emotionally overwhelmed, and fighting invisible wounds of war and life after service.

The Harsh Reality: Veteran Support Systems Are Broken

Despite Jay's years of serving and advocating for other veterans, when he and Kaila reached out for help during their darkest moment, the response was shockingly hollow.

Nonprofits disappeared.

Veteran friends stopped answering calls.

Organizations that promised support offered empty words or misguided advice — including the deeply harmful suggestion that Jay "didn't need a wife" to help him recover.

Instead of support, Jay was involuntarily committed (Baker Acted), ripped from Kayla's arms while screaming for help — and left isolated in a psychiatric facility for 48 hours. No compassion. No understanding of military trauma. Just bureaucracy and abandonment.

Their story exposes a painful truth: many veteran support systems are broken.

Turning Pain Into Purpose: Advocacy, Nonprofit Work, and Community Healing

Jay and Kaila didn’t just survive — they built something powerful from their pain.

Together, they now work with Shield of Sisters, a nonprofit dedicated to supporting survivors of military sexual trauma (MST) and veterans facing mental health struggles.

Jay serves as Board Chairman, while Kaila leads as Director of Mission Readiness and Programs. Their work isn’t based on theories or policies — it’s based on real-life crisis management, trauma recovery, and hard-won lessons from their personal battle.

They are building community resources that actually support veterans and families — without judgment, without ego, and without leaving anyone behind.

Veteran Stories Matter — And So Do The Families Who Stand Beside Them

This episode of the Security Halt! Podcast is a must-listen for anyone invested in veteran mental health, marriage resilience, advocacy, and real community support.

It’s a raw, honest look at what recovery really takes — not just for veterans, but for spouses and families fighting alongside them.

If you’re a veteran, military spouse, advocate, or someone struggling in silence — this conversation is for you.

Listen, Watch, Support

🎧 Listen on Apple Podcasts:https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/security-halt/id1651691745

🎧 Listen on Spotify:https://open.spotify.com/show/2HqBOP3SF0VPPxsgdZZSuM?si=c04f6a449ab2429a

📺 Watch on YouTube:https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC45ILXVe5hMcs3A5k9Ln-cg

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