After 21 years in the army with stints in Iraq and Afghanistan, 40-year-old Leona* didn't feel like she belonged on "civi-street" until she found her calling at South Coast Private Hospital.
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The mental health nurse is part of a team of mental health professionals using an innovative approach to help men and women from military and emergency service backgrounds confront their frightening symptoms of post-traumatic stress disorder.
Leona brings her front-line experiences from the British and Australian armies and her personal struggles around returning to civilian life to help others face their horrors, rather than medicating to numb the fear.
Responding to the "obvious need", the hospital is opening Level Four - a 23-bed floor dedicated to Australian Defence Force, Department of Veteran Affairs and emergency service personnel.
Clinical programs manager Cinzia Gagliardi said she believed the hospital's two-step approach to PTSD was like no other program operating in Australia.
"The purpose of the group-based first phase is to help patients understand their PTSD, how they have come to that place where they are exhibiting symptoms," Ms Gagliardi said.
Next they are prepared for the "incredibly confronting therapeutic process" if deemed suitable. "Not everyone has fear and anxiety or intrusive thoughts as a predominant part of their PTSD and if they don't, then they require other services. If they do, then we know that trauma reprocessing is what's required," Ms Gagliardi said.
"We take them through the 10-week inpatient program, an individual, intensive one-on-one where we are addressing symptoms of intrusive thoughts, nightmares, flashbacks and avoidance through an exposure program."
Leona, who has been out of the military for 20 months yet still feels different to "regular people", says the biggest gift you can give someone with PTSD is memories without fear.
"It's really taking the trauma and giving them memories, just normal memories. They can sit and talk about incidents without running away or freezing on the spot."
Ms Gagliardi said the fact the intensive phase of the program was done in-house made the program unique.
"Other programs have the group component but as far as I am aware we are the only hospital following through with evidence-based trauma reprocessing and we've chosen to do it in this fashion because when people undertake this type of treatment they will get worse before they get better," she said.
"At first arousal levels will increase, their anxiety will increase, fear will increase. We are also weaning a lot of patients off medication they take to numb themselves because we want them to experience the fear and anxiety, get used to it and settle themselves.
"If they try to do this in the community it doesn't work because it's just so frightening."
The final stage is exposing patients to their fears - things they would normally avoid like graphic television scenes, locations, certain people - before helping them integrate back into society.
(* Surname withheld by request)
