Combat surfers: A Narrative study of veterans, surfing, and war trauma

We use narrative inquiry to illustrate the complex lives and experiences of combat veterans who go surfing to deal with the traumatic aftermath of war. The stories we collected reveal the rich and varied qualities of veterans’ surfing experiences. These stories are several things at once. They are personal, revealing the body in motion as it negotiates the natural environment. They are social and cultural, shaped as they are by dominant societal narratives about veterans and masculinity. And, importantly, they are also actors, shaping the ways in which veterans experience themselves, each other, and the world around them.