For Paul Whelan, returning to life in the United States after more than half a decade of Russian imprisonment has been “interesting” – and not without its challenges.

Upon the news of a historic prisoner swap, residents in small American towns rejoiced over the release of Evan Gershkovich and Paul Whelan.

The Biden administration announced the release of three U.S. citizens from Russia, including Evan Gershkovich​, Paul Whelan and Alsu Kurmasheva, as part of a complex 24-person prisoner swap.

Whelan feels like the government is ill-suited to help him process his trauma and overcome the bureaucratic hurdles he’s encountered restarting his life.

The United States and Russia carried out a historic prisoner exchange Thursday when two dozen detainees, including former US Marine Paul Whelan and Wall Street Journal reporter Evan Gershkovich, were released as part of a sweeping deal that involved at least seven countries.