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UK: Former commando finds relief from PTSD - ''more calm, balanced, focused''

Transcendental Meditation News - UK Translate This Article
15 July 2012

Originally from Plymouth, England, Steve Bindon has travelled the world in pursuit of two very different careers—as a British Commando soldier and as an artist.

Steve was a British Army Commando for eleven years, during which time he served in the Falklands campaign where he received a gunshot wound. Subsequently he worked for three years as a bodyguard, and then lived in Japan for six years.

It was while in Japan that he started to develop his art, with a focus on environmental issues. He has had exhibitions in Tokyo and London, has paintings in corporate collections in Japan, America, and Germany, and has recently sold works at Sotheby's. Having travelled to some 30 countries, he finds inspiration in the natural world and is willing to take on any adventure that comes his way such as tracking black rhino in Africa, leopards in Russia, and sailing a 100 year old ketch from Singapore to Tokyo.

Like many soldiers who have been in the theatre of war, Steve found that the experience left him with the symptoms of Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD), a condition that is defined as an anxiety disorder manifesting as a result of exposure to psychologically traumatic events. He was unable to find anything that offered a cure until, with the help of sponsorship from the David Lynch Foundation, he learnt Transcendental Meditation in London last year.

The results have been dramatic, as he explains: ''I can now say that it [Transcendental Meditation] is having a positive effect on me and my PTSD. Also with my art as, not having painted for a year, I am now working on three paintings! People I come in contact with have told me of my change—more calm, balanced, focused.''

He adds: ''I still have a lot to get through, with where I live, getting back on my feet, etc, but I feel that this will now be no problem for me and I am looking forward to the challenges that lie ahead.''

Steve describes himself as a self-taught artist, inspired by his experiences and observations of the environment. ''The images I paint may be wildlife or people and may bring abstract and realism art together. I believe art can be a connection to a spiritual world which is essential for the human spirit, but which we are now losing touch with.''

Through his work, he aims to support humanitarian and wildlife conservation causes around the world and to bring a better understanding of our place in the environment, cultivating a respect for both the natural world and other human beings. By doing this, he says, we can not only make the world a better place but we can also enrich the quality of our own lives in a positive way.

Steve is so delighted with the benefits he has gained from Transcendental Meditation that he is donating the proceeds from the auction of one of his paintings to the David Lynch Foundation.

Source: Transcendental Meditation News (UK), Vol. 18, July 2012.

© Copyright 2012 Maharishi Foundation UK

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