Ryder Gason spent 16 years in service; 10 years in the Air Force, and 6 years in the National Guard.
“I had some phenomenal mentors when I got out,” Ryder says. “I was blessed. A lot of our veterans nowadays don’t have that.”
What mentors couldn’t help with were the migraines. For more than 20 years, Ryder woke every day with a migraine, living in a “dull roar” and taking pills nonstop.
“I had taken pills for so long, and so consistently I would forget how many I was taking,” he explains.
The decades of pain and pill-popping had taken its toll when he was given an ultimatum by his doctor: stop taking the pills, or your kidneys and liver will fail, and you will die.
“I was at a point in time when the pills were killing me, and I couldn’t live with the headaches. I felt I had no other option but to take my own life,” says Ryder.
Remembering his own desperation is what drives him to reach out to other people and share what helped him pull through.
Ryder’s first introduction to cryotherapy was through a coworker who convinced him to try this “new age” wellness program.
“It wasn’t like the migraines were gone after the first session,” says Ryder, “but something was different. I remember walking outside the center and getting 20 feet before I realized I hadn’t put on my sunglasses.”
That one glint of hope sent Ryder to research everything he could about cryotherapy. He committed to continuous treatments, and after about six weeks, he woke for the first time in 20 years without a headache.
“It’s not a cure-all,” he explains, “but if you stay on top of it, it can help.”
For Ryder, it not only helped eliminate his migraines, but he also noticed his anxiety and depression exiting, “There were things I had never dealt with that I was finally able to process,” he says.
Cryotherapy for Veterans
Ryder began to think about veterans who struggle with their military experiences and transitioning into the civilian world.
“I understood veterans were not provided a way to get their brain and bodies working right to heal their physical and moral injuries.”
Ryder had his own experiences but was also very aware of the incredible amount of people being lost to suicide.
“The number people know is 22,” says Ryder, “but the actual number is more like 40 veterans per day are lost to suicide.”
“I became a better member of my family and household through Cryotherapy,” he goes on. “Not waking up with a headache and being able to communicate first thing in the morning altered every aspect of my life. I quickly understood that we had to figure out how to bring this to veterans in a way they can afford.”
It was then that Ryder and his wife sat down to formulate a plan to introduce Cryotherapy to the veteran and first responder communities. Now, through Ryder’s non-profit organization, CRYOEEZE 22, veterans and first responders can explore Cryotherapy at no cost.
“We found that when vets come into our center for the first time, especially ones that may have extreme PTSD, we have them come in towards the end of the day,” he explains. “We try to control the environment around them and make it comfortable and private.
“We have found that the veteran’s family becomes our anchor. They see the difference in their loved ones and help push them to continue with the treatments.”
CRYOEEZE 22 offers the following modalities: HOCATT, Full Spectrum Redlight Bed, Full Body Cryotherapy, Hyperbaric Oxygen Treatment “HBOT”, Pulse/Compression Therapy, Isolation Light Therapy.
To find out more about CRYOEEZE 22 visit them on the web at www.cryoeeze22.org, or by calling (727) 421-2278.