Episode 83

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Published on:

29th Apr 2026

Veteran Healing After MST: Didi Meindok on Service, Forgiveness, and Finding Hope Again

Summary:

What happens when a veteran’s service is questioned, her trauma is dismissed, and healing feels out of reach? In this episode of Dog Tag Diaries, host Captain Kim welcomes back Navy veteran Didi Meindok for a powerful conversation about truth, survival, and recovery. Didi shares her experience serving during Operation Desert Storm, the pain of military sexual trauma, and the long fight to have her service and story properly recognized. She also opens up about the support that helped her keep going, including the VA, the National Center for PTSD, Home Base, and the Operation Red Wings Foundation. This episode is a moving reminder that healing is hard work, but it is possible, and no veteran should have to fight alone.

In this episode, we cover:

  • Didi’s Navy service during Operation Desert Storm
  • What it felt like to have her service questioned and records dismissed
  • How institutional erasure can impact veterans’ mental health
  • The role of the VA, Vet Centers, and the National Center for PTSD in her care
  • How Operation Red Wings Foundation helped Didi return to service and support others
  • Didi’s experience at Home Base in Boston and why it changed her healing path
  • The power of somatic yoga, self-reflection, and choice in trauma recovery
  • Why forgiveness became a way for Didi to reclaim control
  • Her advice to women veterans who are still fighting to be seen and heard
  • Why veteran-led and community-based support matters

Notable Quotes & Moments:

  • “I was very, very lost and very, very disenfranchised and really suicidal.” Didi on feeling isolated post-military [00:15:36]
  • “I can’t save anybody. They have to save themselves.” Didi on supporting veterans through healing [00:19:32]
  • “Finding your way home is possible.” Didi on hope after trauma [00:42:01]

Timestamps:

  • 00:00:00 - Introduction to Didi Meindok’s return to Dog Tag Diaries
  • 00:03:07 - Didi recaps joining the Navy and serving during Desert Storm
  • 00:04:52 - Returning home and facing erased records, doubt, and official narratives
  • 00:07:47 - Finding support through the VA, National Center for PTSD, Home Base, and Operation Red Wings Foundation
  • 00:15:25 - Didi opens up about feeling lost, angry, and suicidal after service
  • 00:17:39 - Losing a veteran client and stepping back into healing work
  • 00:22:14 - What the Home Base program was like day to day
  • 00:29:39 - Somatic yoga, trauma, and the body’s response to stress
  • 00:35:12 - Forgiveness, faith, and reclaiming control
  • 00:40:11 - Didi’s advice to women veterans: never stop

About Didi Meindok:

Didi is a U.S. Navy veteran of Operation Desert Storm, an attorney, and a trained medical scientist. Known as the FilaEstonian, she comes from a long line of seafarers and is a fierce advocate for truth, justice, and integrity in military service and beyond.

Connect with Didi:

Email: dorothy@meindoklaw.onmicrosoft.com

Resources mentioned:

Be sure to follow or subscribe to Dog Tag Diaries wherever you listen to podcasts.

Learn more about the Reveille and Retreat Project:

reveilleandretreatproject.org

Instagram: @reveilleandretreatproject

Facebook: Reveille and Retreat Project

You aren’t alone.

If you’re thinking about hurting yourself or having thoughts of suicide, contact the Veteran crisis line: Dial 988 then press 1, chat online, or text 838255.

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About the Podcast

Dog Tag Diaries
Sharing True Stories from Women in the Military
Dog Tag Diaries provides a platform for military women to tell their stories and speak their truths. We are not only raising awareness about military trauma, and mental health but fostering a supportive community where women can find strength and inspiration in each other's stories. It's an informative way to reduce stigma and promote healing through open dialogue and exploration of therapeutic modalities. Our goal is to increase connections among women to offer empowerment, encouragement, and a sense of belonging as we each navigate the unique challenges and experiences faced by women in the military.
Each week we’ll invite a woman who has served in the military to share her experience and how it has impacted her, or we will bring in a guest who can speak about the healing abilities of specific therapeutic methods. This is a podcast you don’t want to miss.

About your hosts

kimberly Liszka

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Kim served in the United States Army/Reserves as a Combat Medic, Combat Nurse, Flight Nurse Instructor and one of the Top Female athletes in the Army.

Kim worked 20+ years as an ER nurse and decided to explore the world as a travel nurse. She's an Advanced Wilderness Expedition Provider and Chief Medical Officer for numerous endurance/survival expeditions in different countries.

Kim has a son, Jace and a daughter in law, Sammy and 2 grand animals, Joey & Bear. Her dog Camo is her best buddy. Camo is the sweetest yellow Labrador Retriever to walk this earth. He loves licking snow, riding the ocean waves, visiting carnivore food trucks and loves belly rubs and treats.

Fun Facts: Kim's lived in the Reality TV World! Fear Factor, American Ninja Warrior-Military Edition, American Tarzan, Spartan Namibia and more to come!

Dakota Olson-Harris

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Dakota is currently serving in the Army National Guard and has been for the past 15 years. She enlisted as a tank mechanic then earned her commission as a Combat Engineer Officer. She has two deployments, Iraq and United Arab Emirates.

On the civilian side Dakota works as a counselor providing readjustment counseling for Veterans, current service members, and their families.

Dakota is a wife and a bonus mom to four kiddos. They have recently added to their family with a baby girl, totaling five kids. They also have two dogs, Paco and Elsa.

Her family loves to go on adventures whether it's walks, hiking, camping, or just going on a road trip to visit family.