‘You’re Not Alone’: My Interview with Andy Stumpf

Earlier this summer a friend died by suicide. Since September is National Suicide Prevention Month, I was eager to talk to Andy Stumpf, a retired Navy SEAL Team 6 member, podcast host, and record-setting base jumper, about mental, physical, and overall wellness, specifically among the veteran community and how friends can help support them.

Why did you decide to serve in the US Navy?
I don’t have a good answer as to why I wanted to serve in the Navy, and specifically the SEAL community. I knew at the age of 11 I wanted to be a SEAL, but I could not articulate an exact reason then, and even now at the age of 42 I don’t have a precise answer. There was certainly an aspect of serving something greater than myself, of the challenge, the exclusivity, the odds stacked against me, and the idea of what a SEAL was, and did. Often times people find that answer as odd, but I was surrounded by men who expressed the same gravitational pull towards the community/occupation without being able to express exactly why.

What are you doing now to continue your mission to support the Navy community?
I do not feel like it is my mission to support the Navy community. I feel like it is my obligation to take the knowledge, lessons learned, and experiences that I was incredibly fortunate to have and pay them forward. Veterans are not…