A Canadian veteran who served in Afghanistan has released a country song about his struggle to deal with Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder.

Graham Trude co-wrote "Seen What I’ve Seen" and hopes to raise awareness of PTSD by donating proceeds from the song to support Wounded Warriors Canada, which runs mental health programs nationally.

Now a police officer in Orangeville, Ont., Trude served with the Canadian Armed Forces for four years with tours of duty in Europe and Afghanistan.

Despite retiring from the military seven years ago, he admits he still has tough days.

“I know other people who have these issues too and I wanted to make them aware that they are not alone and there is hope,” Trude told CTV Barrie.

“It’s not something you can just brush off when you get home. It’s something that really affects not only you but your family as well.”

The song has been viewed more than 16,000 times on the Wounded Warriors Facebook page.

The video depicts a veteran struggling to deal with PTSD and the effect it has on his domestic and personal life.

Ttrude says he owes much to his wife Kimberley, “the biggest influence in my life”.

“What you see on the outside is not always what’s going on inside,” Kimberley said.

“I am more than proud of him.”

Scott Maxwell from Wounded Warriors Canada said more than 2,000 veterans, first responders and their families go through its mental health program nationally every year.

With files from CTV Barrie’s K.C. Colby

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Seen What I've Seen

Meet Graham Trude. Graham is a country music artist who served in Afghanistan and is now a police officer in Orangeville, Ontario. He has written and recorded a new song “Seen What I’ve Seen”, which is a single highlighting his personal experience battling Operational Stress. Proceeds from this song will be donated to support our national mental health programs and we thank Graham for his willingness to use his artistic talent to share his story and, ultimately, raise funds and awareness to help his fellow Veterans and First Responders in their time of need. #InThisTogether.

Posted by Wounded Warriors Canada on Monday, October 29, 2018

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