Military wives strip down to support spouses in ‘Battling Bare’ campaign

Military wives are stripping down to support their spouses in a striking photo campaign to call attention to the silent wounds of war.
Under the slogan “Battling Bare,” hundreds of women have taken off their shirts and inked themselves with a “pledge” to stand by their husbands as they heal, and spread word that these veterans need help coping with mental health issues that can’t be seen.
The movement was started in April by Ashley Wise, who had been going through a frustrating ordeal trying to get help for her husband, a former Marine and Army veteran who has served three tours in Iraq.
“My husband battles daily with his demons of war,” Wise, 29, wrote on the Facebook page she created for Battling Bare. “I, and wives like me, have tried everything we know to try to help.”

Wise said her husband, who returned home from his final deployment in 2010, has been showing signs of PTSD for years, and his condition began to deterioriate last year until he finally disappeared to a hotel room with “two cases of beer and all the guns in the house.” When she finally located him, he told her, “Life is just really hard.”

“He wasn’t sure if he could go on,” Wise told the Daily News. As he continued to spiral downwards, she went to the military for help, but felt angry and ignored when they charged him with domestic assault for an outburst she’d told them about instead of helping him with his emotional problems.
“That’s when I said, ‘I feel like streaking the general’s lawn,’” she said. “Maybe a naked woman would get the attention.”

That night she came up with the “Battling Bare pledge” and took the first picture for the project, stripping off her shirt and having her friend write the words on her back.
“Broken by battle...Wounded by war...My love is FOREVER – to you this I SWORE,” the pledge reads. “I WILL: Quiet your silent screams...help heal your shattered soul...Until once again, my love ... YOU ARE WHOLE!”

The movement quickly spread, and over 600 people have now submitted photos of themselves marked with the pledge. Lending support isn’t limited to military spouses – anyone who wants to add their picture to the project can do so, and Wise has even adapted the pledge for parents, widows, children, and anyone who wants to support the troops. (Younger supporters are asked to take a more modest approach – kids can write the pledge on their feet, while teens can display it on their bare arms).

BATTLING BARE FACEBOOK

Users can also write the pledge on their arms.

Wise hopes they can rally enough momentum to change the military’s approach to service members like her husband, so they can be honest about their struggles and still get help.
“Getting these guys a safe place to go is one of our primary goals,” she said. The site also offers support group-style online forums for people to share their experiences, and she hopes to also offer support for kids like her three children, who see their parents suffering but may not understand why they are angrier, more irritable, anxious, or prone to violent episodes than before their injuries.

Children can also take the pledge on their feet.

She says the response has been so overwhelmingly positive that they decided to start an official organization to help veterans through referrals, advocacy and financial assistance, and are currently seeking nonprofit status. Wise hopes to partner with the Department of Defense and Veterans Affairs to help military families get the help they need.
"It's been very surreal," she said of the reaction she’s gotten to the project, including women who have tattooed her words on their bodies. "It's blown my mind that something as simple as that would touch the hearts and souls of so many other families that are out there.