{"id":13077,"date":"2018-08-02T22:52:09","date_gmt":"2018-08-02T22:52:09","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/armytimes\/uncategorized\/2018\/08\/02\/this-black-hawk-down-special-operator-is-still-fighting-but-on-a-different-front\/"},"modified":"2026-08-08T01:23:46","modified_gmt":"2026-08-08T01:23:46","slug":"this-black-hawk-down-special-operator-is-still-fighting-but-on-a-different-front","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/armytimes\/news\/your-army\/2018\/08\/02\/this-black-hawk-down-special-operator-is-still-fighting-but-on-a-different-front\/","title":{"rendered":"This \u2018Black Hawk Down\u2019 special operator is still fighting, but on a different front"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u201cIt\u2019s about the men next to you. And that\u2019s it. That\u2019s all it is.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">That line in Ridley Scott\u2019s acclaimed movie \u201cBlack Hawk Down\u201d is holding true for one of the U.S. military\u2019s most fabled <a href=\"https:\/\/www.armytimes.com\/land\/2018\/05\/22\/socoms-next-five-year-plan-will-transform-the-force\/\" target=_blank>special operators<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The real-life Delta Force operator who went by \u201cHoot,\u201d and who was portrayed by Eric Bana in the movie, today fights a three-pronged enemy that continues to plague troops and veterans: <a href=\"https:\/\/www.armytimes.com\/news\/your-army\/2018\/05\/09\/psychedelic-drug-provides-relief-for-veterans-with-ptsd\/\" target=\"_blank\">post traumatic stress disorder<\/a>, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.armytimes.com\/news\/your-army\/2018\/02\/02\/army-working-on-more-ways-to-manage-soldiers-pain-in-fight-against-opioid-abuse\/\" target=\"_blank\">chronic pain<\/a> and <a href=\"https:\/\/www.armytimes.com\/news\/your-military\/2018\/02\/09\/battlefield-acupuncture-yes-it-exists-and-the-military-is-using-it-to-fight-troops-pain\/\" target=\"_blank\">substance abuse<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Almost 25 years after the infamous Battle of Mogadishu in <a href=\"https:\/\/www.armytimes.com\/flashpoints\/2018\/06\/08\/one-killed-several-wounded-in-attack-on-us-forces-in-somalia\/?utm_source=clavis\" target=_blank>Somalia<\/a>, which led to the \u201cBlack Hawk Down\u201d book and movie, retired Master Sgt. Norman Hooten is now <a href=\"https:\/\/www.blogs.va.gov\/VAntage\/50205\/army-combat-veteran-fights-war-opioid-addiction\/\" target=_blank>Dr. Norman Hooten<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Hooten is a full-time health care provider at the Orlando VA Medical Center. And he has first-hand experience with the effects of war, including a platoon sergeant he had known early in his career who died by suicide after struggling with PTSD and substance abuse.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u201cI\u2019ve lost almost as many friends to substance abuse in the form of overdose deaths or death by suicide coupled with substance abuse disorders than those lost in war,\u201d Hooten said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Hooten, who retired after more than 20 years of service, spent several years after his time on active-duty with the federal Air Marshal Service and as a contractor overseas. But he ultimately decided to work with struggling troops and veterans because of the opioid crisis gripping America.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u201cIn the military, we never want to lose people, but it becomes understandable when we lose people on the battlefield,&#8221; Hooten said. &#8220;A generation of veterans have survived the horrors of war to come home and commit suicide. I do not want to accept this. I want to do everything I can to make a dent in this problem. Even if this is about saving one person.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"2250\" height=\"1500\" src=\"\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/Hoot3.jpg.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-29753\" srcset=\"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/Hoot3.jpg.jpg 2250w, https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/Hoot3.jpg.jpg?resize=300,200 300w, https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/Hoot3.jpg.jpg?resize=768,512 768w, https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/Hoot3.jpg.jpg?resize=1024,683 1024w, https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/Hoot3.jpg.jpg?resize=1536,1024 1536w, https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/Hoot3.jpg.jpg?resize=2048,1365 2048w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 2250px) 100vw, 2250px\" \/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Dr. Hooten draws on his extensive career in the Army to help veterans cope with PTSD and substance abuse disorders.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Hooten is making much more than a dent.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The Comprehensive Addiction and Recovery Act Clinic at the Orlando VA has been helping to combat the crisis since it began running this year. He started this project as a resident in 2017. The former special operations tactician implements a similar approach to fighting substance addiction, non-cancer related chronic pain and PTSD as he did fighting on foreign battlefields.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u201cWe take a combined arms approach to this,&#8221; he said. \u201cOnce the problems are individually identified, [they] can be treated extensively with multiple specialties. You want to use all assets you have available at the same time to win the fight.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1191\" height=\"625\" src=\"\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/Hoot2.jpg.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-29759\" srcset=\"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/Hoot2.jpg.jpg 1191w, https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/Hoot2.jpg.jpg?resize=300,157 300w, https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/Hoot2.jpg.jpg?resize=768,403 768w, https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/Hoot2.jpg.jpg?resize=1024,537 1024w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1191px) 100vw, 1191px\" \/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Norman Hooten (pictured second from the bottom right) with other special operations soldiers.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Hooten credits the Army and his time in uniform as the main reason he\u2019s been able to take on this new mission.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u201cWhat can I do to give to the people that served?\u201d he said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">He also hopes to help and encourage his fellow veterans to reach out and not lose touch with the people they served with.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u201cSometimes we get too comfortable not communicating with one another for a year or more because we tend to always think we are all close and fine,&#8221; Hooten said. &#8220;But that one phone call every now and then, or that meet-up for a fishing trip might make the difference in saving a life.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>The real-life Delta Force Force operator who went by \u201cHoot,\u201d and who was portrayed by Eric Bana in the movie, today fights an enemy that continues to plague troops and 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