Sandra Perdoso held back tears reminiscing about her son, wishing that the “invisible wounds” he suffered following his service to the United States could have been alleviated.
Lance Cpl. Jason Hernandez, a Marine Corps veteran who served in Iraq after the attacks on Sept. 11, 2001, came home with a dream of becoming an author and impacting others in a positive way. But he struggled with an undiagnosed post-traumatic stress disorder that led to substance use, which ultimately took his life. He died by suicide on March 10, 2026.
Perdoso, of Boynton Beach, Fla., spoke with Military.com about the difficulty of watching her only child transition from a happy individual to someone experiencing severe mental health crises and physical withdrawals. To honor his memory and his wish to be an author, Sandra wrote and self-published a book in July calling for more awareness of the gaps in veteran support systems in post-service life.
“When he finished his service after four years, he came home,” Perdoso said. “[Serving] had a serious impact on him because he was just a completely different person. My son used to be chipper and happy, and he wasn’t as happy and chipper anymore.
“There was this sadness behind his eyes, is the best way I can describe it.”
How and Why Martinez Joined the Military
Hernandez joined the Marine Corps when he was 19 or 20.
Perdoso, a former human resources executive, said he always had an interest in joining the military, and specifically the Marine Corps. While he was in New York City going to school on 9/11, she said he “really felt that sense of responsibility to go.” He also had a desire to protect women and children from the perils of war.
Hernandez volunteered to donate bone marrow before being deployed to Iraq.
“During his time in Iraq, he saw things that are really difficult to see,” his mother said. “You see death, you’re shooting, you’re shooting children, you’re shooting women, because these are individuals that could cause you or your team harm.”
The family lived in New Jersey at the time Hernandez served overseas. When the family moved to Florida about four years ago, he came along and after roughly two years, he moved to Puerto Rico to be with his father.
Post-Service Effects and Addiction
When Hernandez returned home, Perdoso said he would often hear random sounds and jump. He was also irritable.
It also took a couple of years for him to be properly diagnosed with PTSD. Simultaneously, he began drinking alcohol and smoking marijuana at higher levels than he did when he engaged socially. It led to him becoming an alcoholic.
“My son would go on binges,” she said. “He wouldn’t have a drink for two weeks, and then he would spend a whole weekend—or even a whole week—drinking and drinking and drinking. And maybe he wouldn’t stay here; he would stay in a hotel, so I wouldn’t see him.
“And then he asked me to pick him up and take him to the hospital so he could get hydrated. He would go through withdrawals on his own at the hotel he was staying in. So, little by little, obviously this impacted his health until March 10, which is the last weekend he went [on] a binge. When he finished his binge and was doing his last withdrawal, his heart came out and he passed away.”
Asked if she saw how dire his condition became, Perdoso said she “was obviously worried” but admittedly ignorant, as well as younger. She thought he was just dealing with the fog of war and that his ailments would pass over time. In turn, she offered support.
But Hernandez’s condition worsened, and the irritability ramped up. She described it as a “roller coaster” that often raptures alcoholics, going from a kind person to a “nasty” individual while under the influence.
“It’s just very sad,” she said. “It’s heartbreaking. It’s frustrating, and I knew that if Jason didn’t commit himself to getting the help that he needed, he would end up the way he did.
“I just thought we had more time because I’ve known other alcoholics who’ve been drinking for 30-plus years, 40 years, and they’re still alive and kicking. My son was doing it for 12 years, and he’s gone.”
Efforts to Honor Jason’s Memory, and Help Others
This past June, Perdoso wrote and self-published a memoir about her son, The Cost of Courage: A Mother’s Story.
The intent was twofold. For one, she wanted to chronicle her family’s journey through military service, PTSD, addiction, grief and hope. On the other hand, she wanted to offer readers a deeper understanding of the lasting effects of military service on veterans and the families who love them.
She has described it as “an invitation to greater compassion, awareness and meaningful conversation.” It was also an ode to her son, who expressed one day wanting to write books. In Jason’s honor, 25% of the book’s royalties are donated to the Wounded Warrior Project.
But beyond the book, she had another idea: Camp Jason. It is a mandatory reintegration program designed to ensure every service member receives structured support, education and mental health screening before returning to civilian life. This initiative is intended to complement, not replace, existing resources.
Current programs do exist, but participation is voluntary. The toll of boot camp and the mental, physical and emotional perils of war are not fully dealt with.
“While I was writing the book, I was like, I’m obviously not the only person that’s feeling this sadness and this frustration and this anger,” she said. “There has to be other people that are feeling like me.
“So, why doesn’t the government or veterans’ groups, or whomever, put a program together when a soldier finishes their service, and go into a three-month intense mandatory program to assess their mental well-being, their emotional well-being, their physical well-being, so that they can reintegrate into civilian life in as healthy way as possible?”
She said her son’s death occurred years after service, even as the suicide rate is statistically slated to peak during the first 3 to 12 months post-service. It’s not “fair” to expect such veterans to voluntarily seek help.
Perdoso’s book is available through Amazon in hardcover, paperback and Kindle editions.
The Search Continues
Perdoso said that following her son’s death and looking at the broader picture of how veterans handle civilian life, she was surprised nothing really existed in the capacity she’s currently proposing.
“I don’t consider myself a rocket scientist by any stretch of the imagination,” she said. “When I was talking to my husband about this, I said to him, ‘Someone else has to have thought about this before. I cannot be the first person that comes up with the idea that if you do it in the front end, you should do it at the back end.’
“But I’ve never seen anything, I’ve never heard anything, and I haven’t read anything about it.”
She’s sent correspondence to dozens of VSOs, members of the media, and lawmakers. While her endeavor is new, she hopes someone latches onto the strategy to reintegrate the most vulnerable service members back into society.
“I’m not giving up,” she said. “If one person says, ‘No, it’s not going to happen,’ then I’m going to go to the next, and the next, and the next.
“I’m not going to stop doing this until the day it either gets rolled out or I’m dead. One of those two things have to happen because I cannot give up on this. This is just too important.”
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