In what sounds like the next Rambo movie was the harsh, gritty reality for Mike Day. The former Navy SEAL somehow managed to survive a deadly firefight with Al-Qaeda fighters and is now using his dedication to help fellow soldiers with PTSD.
Day went to clear a building in a town near Fallujah, Iraq on April 6th, 2007 and it went horribly wrong. He was first into the room and there were four insurgents waiting for them. They unleashed a wall of bullets on him at pointblank range. They shot his rifle out of his hand, and as he was falling down he grabbed his pistol and began immobilizing his enemy. He shot two terrorists, but one attempted to flee the room after dropping a grenade. It rolled across the room and exploded, knocking Day out.
Day was shot a remarkable 27 times. Thankfully 11 of the bullets hit his body armor and the other 16 missed major body organs.
Once he woke up and had consciousness, he somehow walked to the medical helicopter on his own two legs. Only 72 hours later he was stateside being treated for his wounds. His injuries included fractured ribs, contusions on his lungs, his right scapula was shattered, his thumb was nearly amputated, shot in both legs, shot in both arms, shot in the abdomen and had a colostomy bag for a year, shot in the buttocks, and shot once in the scrotum. FUUUUUCK! What is this guy a T-1000?
Despite losing 55 pounds while receiving treatment, he was miraculously released after 16 days in the hospital.
Day, who served in the SEALs for 21 years, was rightfully awarded the Purple Heart. He has also earned the Silver and Bronze Star along with a dozen other medals from his 20 years in the SEALs.
After the Navy SEALs, Day was a patient at Carrick Brain Centers based in Dallas, Texas. There he was diagnosed with PTSD after his traumatizing gun battle. Day will be representing Carrick, which specializes in working with wounded warriors like Day and dependent children who have suffered severe brain injuries, in Florida on April 12th when he runs in the half Ironman Triathlon Race.
Day is running in the race in hopes to raise $75,000 for the center and bring awareness about all the beneficial things that are going on at Carrick. He has raised $65,000 already. You can help him reach his goal by donating here.