Show notes
original airdate 4/15/22Erick Miyares recounts his path from the Marine Corps and 7th Special Forces Group into a highly secretive Army special mission unit, conducting intelligence and advanced force operations across Afghanistan, Iraq, and other sensitive environments. He also opens up about being shot in Colombia, hunting high-level targets in Ramadi, singleton missions, hostage rescue work, and the psychological toll of spending two decades operating in the shadows.Support the show & get ad free episodes here:https://www.patreon.com/c/TheTeamHouse00:00 – Start02:38 – Erick’s Cuban-American Upbringing in Miami04:18 – Joining the Marine Corps06:13 – Airborne, Pathfinder & Becoming a Scout Sniper07:20 – Leaving the Marines for Army Intelligence10:12 – Becoming a SIGINT / Electronic Warfare Operator12:42 – Getting Assigned to 7th Special Forces Group14:32 – Life on a Special Operations Team Alpha18:37 – Mission on the Ecuador-Colombia Border23:13 – Ambushed by Guerrillas27:04 – Getting Shot in His First Firefight34:31 – Discovering the Secretive JSOC Intelligence World35:19 – Getting Hog-Tied by Rangers During a JSOC Exercise41:22 – Selection for a Special Mission Unit44:06 – What Makes the Right Kind of Operator?47:18 – Living With Ambiguity & Controlling Aggression51:04 – The History & Mission of the Unit58:44 – Straddling Special Operations and Intelligence1:04:28 – 9/11 Changes Everything1:06:01 – Early Global War on Terror Missions1:09:10 – Afghanistan & Advanced Force Operations1:11:20 – What AFO Operators Actually Do1:19:33 – Hunting a High-Level Target in Ramadi1:23:23 – Going Up Against State-Level Tradecraft1:26:01 – Infiltrating a Cordon-and-Sweep Operation1:28:03 – Finding the HVT and Leaving Him in Place1:29:31 – RPG Attack & Hours of Fighting in Ramadi1:34:44 – Building the Final Target Package1:35:48 – Rangers Raid the Target & Seize Everything1:39:02 – Sitting Face-to-Face With the Man He Hunted1:41:24 – Espionage Inside a War Zone1:41:40 – The American Hostage Rescue Mission1:46:07 – The Psychological Toll of Constantly Switching Missions1:49:31 – Compartmentalization, Secrets & Family Life1:53:38 – Activating an Emergency Destruction Plan1:57:23 – Destroy the Gear and Escape2:03:03 – The Fear of Being Captured on a Singleton Mission2:07:41 – When the Entire City Went Dark2:09:40 – Treating PTSD With a Stellate Ganglion Block2:15:05 – Helping Special Operations Veterans Get Treatment2:18:47 – Leaving the Clandestine World Behind2:20:25 – Opening Pandora’s Box After 20 Years2:22:49 – Suicide, PTSD & Finally Asking for Help2:24:24 – Becoming Erick Again After the Military2:27:10 – What Special Operations Does to Families2:30:26 – The Nightmare of Forgetting Who You Really Are2:36:11 – Why Army “Spies” Struggle to Tell Their Stories2:38:20 – Classified Trauma & Getting Help From the VA2:42:00 – Why Secret Careers Are So Hard to Translate to Civilian Life2:47:27 – Is This Line of Work Better for Single Men?2:51:19 – Politics vs. Operating in a War Zone2:55:25 – Cuban-Americans in Special Operations2:57:03 – Why These Stories Need to Be Told3:01:34 – Where to Find Erick & Closing ThoughtsBecome a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/the-team-house--5960890/support.
