Navy SEAL, Homicide Detective, & Secret Service Agent | Frank Larkin | Ep. 377

The Team House

dee takos

History, Government, Society & Culture, Documentary

4.7 • 1.6K Ratings

🗓️ 25 October 2025

⏱️ 154 minutes

🔗️ Recording | iTunes | RSS

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Summary

Frank Larkin recounts his long career path from Navy SEAL and Secret Service agent to Senate Sergeant-at-Arms, including a gripping personal account of his actions at the World Trade Center on 9/11. However, the central theme is the tragic story of his son, Navy SEAL Ryan Larkin, who took his own life after years of struggling with undiagnosed symptoms. This led to the discovery of severe microscopic brain injury (TBI) from repeated blast exposure, which had been misdiagnosed as PTSD. Larkin now advocates to force the DoD and VA to prioritize TBI research and unite biological injury diagnosis with mental health treatment to protect the "thinking warrior brain."

LINKS⬇️

Troop's First Foundation to assist active duty and veterans and National Warrior Call "Defeat Isolation" campaign
- www.troopsfirstfoundation.org
- www.warriorcall.org
Vets 4 Warriors veteran helpline staffed by vets 24/7
- www.vets4warriors.com
Home Base veteran diagnostic treatment program
- www.homebase.org
Boulder Crest - Warrior Path post-traumatic growth program
- www.bouldercrest.org
Tragedy Assistance Program for Survivors (TAPS) addressing the impact of suicide
- www.taps.org
Marcus Institute for Brain Health diagnostic treatment program
- www.medschool.cuanschutz.edu/mibh
Cohen Veterans Network for mental health care
- www.cohenveteransnetwork.org
Center for Brain Health - University of Texas at Dallas
- www.centerforbrainhealth.org
Invisible Wounds Foundation (IWF)
- www.invisiblewounds.org
HeadStong Project treating PTSD and other veteran mental health challenges
- www.theheadstrongproject.org

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00:00 Start
13:26 Career shift: from Navy SEALs to law enforcement.
21:25 Career shift: joining the Secret Service (federal service).
30:01 Focus on the Secret Service's financial crimes and intelligence mission.
33:51 Detailed account begins: Frank's experience at the World Trade Center on 9/11.
58:56 End of 9/11 crisis: struggle to contact his family.
1:05:10 Ryan Larkin's pivotal decision to enlist and pursue SEAL training.
1:33:32 Shift to Ryan's struggle with mental and cognitive symptoms (misdiagnosed as PTSD).
1:52:14 Definitive diagnosis: severe microscopic brain injury (IAS) from blast exposure.
2:03:19 Call for fundamental change: unifying biological (TBI) and mental health treatment.
2:10:12 Discussion shifts to immediate prevention efforts and training changes.
2:22:19 Conclusion on solutions: why private sector/academia must lead the TBI solution.

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Transcript

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0:00.0	The Team House with your hosts, Jack Murphy and David Park.
0:11.6	Hey guys, welcome to episode 377 of The Team House.
0:15.7	I'm Jack Murphy, here with our guest today, Frank Larkin.
0:19.1	Frank served in many different capacities. Navy SEAL,
0:22.5	paramedic, police officer, secret service, worked presidential protection details, financial crimes.
0:29.9	You were the sergeant at arms at the Senate. That was. And you're also the father of a Navy SEAL,
0:35.7	Ryan Larkin, who struggled with traumatic brain injury.
0:39.6	And you've been a big advocate for helping soldiers who are afflicted with this.
0:43.9	Something will get into in depth, I hope.
0:48.0	Yeah, thanks, Jack.
0:48.9	Thanks for having me on.
0:49.9	And, you know, to your listening and viewing on audience, glad to be here and talk about some of
0:56.0	these issues that are certainly affecting our active duty and veteran populations.
1:03.4	So I'm going to take you back in time. Tell us a little bit about sort of like your origin
1:09.1	story. Like where did you grow up and how did that sort of take you towards governmental service?
1:14.4	I grew up in the Philadelphia area.
1:16.9	Went to high school there.
1:19.2	Pretty, you know, routine, you know, family environment.
1:24.0	Had five brothers and sisters.
1:26.1	Went to public school.
1:31.2	I started working pretty much at an early age, delivering newspapers around the community at about 11, 12 years old, and then mowing lawns,
1:38.9	and then on to my first, I guess, paycheck job was working in a grocery store, you know, for a local chain supermarket.
	...

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