Army Veteran Shares First Paramedic Story
For years, the Army was a huge part of who Ben Woolf was.But after leaving Defence, he realised pretty quickly that he wasn’t that person anymore.Rather than trying to recreate his old life, Ben took the experience, discipline and lessons the Army had given him and put them into something new. A career in emergency healthcare had sparked something in him, and once he found it, there was no Plan B. He went all in on Plan A.In this episode of Axons Unleashed, Robbie Turner sits down with Australian Army veteran Ben Woolf to talk about joining the Army young, moving from Cavalry to Infantry, dealing with injury, leaving Defence and eventually finding a new sense of purpose through paramedicine and first responder work.Ben’s transition wasn’t clean or obvious.There were periods where he felt lost, disconnected and unsure of what came next, even when things looked fine from the outside. A Combat First Aid course eventually opened the door to emergency healthcare, which led to study, ambulance placements and a decision to go back to university and pursue paramedicine properly.Robbie and Ben also talk about something a lot of veterans experience after leaving Defence: figuring out who you are when the uniform comes off.They cover identity, relationships, purpose, starting again and why the skills built in the military don’t disappear when you leave. They just need somewhere new to go.Ben and his wife Tully are also Axon clients. They’ve built their first investment property and are now looking towards what comes next, using property as part of a bigger plan to give themselves more freedom around the life and careers they want to build.If you’re currently serving, preparing to transition or still working out what life after Defence looks like, there’s a lot in Ben’s story that will probably feel familiar.CHAPTERS0:00 – Why the Hardest Years Mattered1:16 – Joining the Australian Army at 186:24 – From Cavalry to Infantry: The Mistake That Changed Everything15:39 – Injuries, Pain & Not Wanting to Let the Team Down18:42 – Peacetime Army & Feeling Like You Never Did the Job22:10 – The Army Course That Changed His Life24:07 – Discovering Emergency Healthcare26:04 – Back to Uni: The Road to Becoming a Paramedic27:05 – Who Are You Without the Uniform?30:33 – Looking Fine Outside, Spiralling Inside34:28 – The Moment Ben Found His Calling39:06 – Finding Purpose After the Army40:23 – Transition, Relationships & Tully's Support47:55 – What He'd Tell His Younger Self52:48 – Advice for Veterans Leaving Defence56:49 – Why Financial Freedom Matters During Transition58:11 – Starting Again or Building on the Army?1:01:13 – Ben's Experience With Axon Property GroupSTART YOUR ADF PROPERTY TRAININGWant to understand how property could fit into your own long-term plan?Start Axon's free ADF Property Training here:https://axonproperty.com.au/adf-members/Built specifically for current and former ADF members and Defence families.Content note: This episode includes discussion of suicide, injury and difficult experiences during military transition.#AustralianArmy #VeteranTransition #ADF #LifeAfterDefence #Paramedic #FirstResponder #PropertyInvestment
