FDA Investigates Suicide With Merck Drug
By MATTHEW PERRONE | AP Business Writer
4:29 PM EDT, March 27, 2008
WASHINGTON - The Food and Drug Administration said Thursday it is investigating a possible link between Merck's best-selling Singulair and suicide. FDA said it is reviewing a handful of reports involving mood changes, suicidal behavior and suicide in patients who have taken the popular allergy and asthma drug.
Merck has updated the drug's labeling four times in the past year to include information on a range of reported side effects: tremors, anxiousness, depression and suicidal behavior.
FDA said it asked the Whitehouse, N.J.-based company to dig deeper into its data on Singulair for evidence of possible links to suicide. The agency said it has not established a "causal relationship" between Merck's drug and suicidal behavior. An agency spokeswoman said the review was prompted by three to four suicide reports it received since last October.
It could take up to nine months before agency scientists can draw any conclusions, FDA said in a posting to its Web site.
click post title for the rest
Thursday, March 27, 2008
Military Tells Bush of Troop Strains
U.S. Army soldiers from Third Squadron, Third Armored Cavalry Regiment rest between missions at Combat Outpost Rabiy in Mosul, 360 kilometers (225 miles) northwest of Baghdad, Iraq on Wednesday, March 26, 2008. The northern city is considered by the U.S. military as the last urban stronghold for al-Qaida in Iraq. (Maya Alleruzzo/AP Photo)
Military Tells Bush of Troop Strains
At Pentagon, Bush Hears Military's Worries on War Strains From Long, Frequent Iraq Deployments
The Associated Press By ROBERT BURNS AP Military Writer
WASHINGTON Mar 27, 2008 (AP)
Behind the Pentagon's closed doors, U.S. military leaders told President Bush they are worried about the Iraq war's mounting strain on troops and their families. But they indicated they'd go along with a brief halt in pulling out troops this summer.
The Joint Chiefs of Staff did say senior commanders in Iraq should make more frequent assessments of security conditions, an idea that appeared aimed at increasing pressure for more rapid troop reductions.
The chiefs' concern is that U.S. forces are being worn thin, compromising the Pentagon's ability to handle crises elsewhere in the world.
In the war zone itself, two more American soldiers were killed Wednesday in separate attacks in Baghdad, raising the U.S. death toll to at least 4,003, according to an Associated Press count. Volleys of rockets also slammed into Baghdad's Green Zone for the third day this week, and the U.S. Embassy said three Americans were seriously wounded. At least eight Iraqis were killed elsewhere in the capital by rounds that apparently fell short.
go here for the rest
http://abcnews.go.com/Politics/WireStory?id=4533124&page=1
And they wonder why there are so many veterans with PTSD?
Court: Michael Moore did not defame Iraq vet Sgt. Peter Damon
DAVID W. OLIVEIRA / NEW BEDFORD STANDARD TIMES VIA ASSOCIATED PRESS Former Army National Guard Sgt. Peter Damon sued filmmaker Michael Moore for $85 million, alleging that Moore used snippets of a television interview without his permission to falsely portray him as anti-war in "Fahrenheit 9/11." A court has ruled against him.
Court: Michael Moore did not defame Iraq vet
The Associated Press
Posted : Thursday Mar 27, 2008 13:54:21 EDT
BOSTON — A federal appeals court has ruled filmmaker Michael Moore did not defame an Iraq war veteran when he used a clip from a television interview without his permission in the anti-war documentary “Fahrenheit 9/11.”
The 1st Circuit Court of Appeal affirmed a federal judge’s decision to dismiss Army Sgt. Peter Damon’s lawsuit against Moore.
Damon, who lost his arms when a tire on a Black Hawk helicopter exploded while he and another reservist were servicing the aircraft, claimed he was humiliated and emotionally distressed after Moore included a clip from a TV interview in his scathing 2004 documentary criticizing the Bush administration and the war in Iraq.
In the interview, Damon was asked about a new painkiller the military was using on wounded veterans. He claimed the way Moore used the clip makes him appear to “voice a complaint about the war effort” when he was actually complaining about “the excruciating type of pain” that comes with the injury he suffered.
Damon is shown shortly after Rep. Jim McDermott, D-Wash., is speaking about the Bush administration and says, “You know, they say they’re not leaving any veterans behind, but they’re leaving all kinds of veterans behind.”
go here for the rest
http://www.armytimes.com/news/2008/03/ap_michaelmoorelawsuit_032708/
Behind the Bloodshed, Some Backstory of Lance Cpl. Acevedo
You read the story of Marine Lance Cpl. Eric Acevedo, the other day. With much admiration for Lily of Healing Combat Trauma, I am posting the follow up she did on the story. Lily is a friend and very talented. I just wish reporters would take the same interest in the stories they write to do such a fantastic job of telling the stories behind the stories.
Lily Casura
Published writer and editor; Journalist & blogger; Harvard grad; compassionate human being; Friend of Veterans
Lily Casura
Published writer and editor; Journalist & blogger; Harvard grad; compassionate human being; Friend of Veterans
March 27, 2008
Behind the Bloodshed, Some Backstory
Another day, another lurid headline. A Marine Lance Corporal in Texas, recently returned from three back-to-back tours of duty in Iraq, and allegedly suffering from PTSD, breaks into his former girlfriend's home, stabs her to death and then waits, "covered with blood and looking dazed," in the parking lot for police to arrive and arrest him. On the surface, another brutal domestic violence story, with a very tragic ending. Behind the headlines, though, more questions than answers about troops' after-care, and whether ethnicity (the Marine in question is Hispanic) plays or ought to play a part in how PTSD is diagnosed and treated.
First, some facts. Marine Lance Corporal Eric R. Acevedo, 22, was arrested over the weekend for allegedly murdering his former live-in girlfriend, in Saginaw, Texas, a suburb of Fort Worth. The Fort Worth Star-Telegram has been covering the story, and it's typically gruesome, but it's also a tragedy for all concerned. The victim, who was a single mother; the alleged perpetrator, who will likely do substantial prison time; and both people's families -- the 10 year old girl who now grows up motherless, as well as Acevedo's family, who believed he was struggling with PTSD, but was sent back to Iraq.
go here for the rest
http://www.healingcombattrauma.com/2008/03/the-ugly-backst.html
After the tornado - Greensburg , Kansas
I received this in an email. It shows what humans have to learn from "dumb animals."
After the tornado - Greensburg , Kansas
THIS IS SUCH A NEAT STORY
The story begins with the rescuers finding this poor little guy they named Ralphie.
Ralphie, scared and starved, joined his rescuers...
Someone had already taken him under their wing but weren't equipped to adopt;
I wouldn't think anything could live thru this...but we were wrong.
This little lady also survived that wreckage.
Here she is just placed in the car - scared, but safe.
and then...they are no longer alone!
Instant friends, they comforted each other while in the car.
Add two more beagles found after that...the more, the merrier!
Oh boy, a new traveler to add to the mix...
(note : the cat coming over the seat needing shelter...)
now just how is this going to work??? - and remember they are all strange to one another.
Wow! The things we learn from our animal friends...
If only all of mankind could learn such valuable lessons as this.
Lessons of instant friendship. Of peace and harmony by way of respect for one another -- no matter one's color or creed.
These animals tell you... 'It's just good to be alive and with others.'
Yes, it surely is.
So... Live, Love, Laugh.
'Life's a Gift... Unwrap It!'
THIS IS SUCH A NEAT STORY
The story begins with the rescuers finding this poor little guy they named Ralphie.
Ralphie, scared and starved, joined his rescuers...
Someone had already taken him under their wing but weren't equipped to adopt;
I wouldn't think anything could live thru this...but we were wrong.
This little lady also survived that wreckage.
Here she is just placed in the car - scared, but safe.
and then...they are no longer alone!
Instant friends, they comforted each other while in the car.
Add two more beagles found after that...the more, the merrier!
Oh boy, a new traveler to add to the mix...
(note : the cat coming over the seat needing shelter...)
now just how is this going to work??? - and remember they are all strange to one another.
Wow! The things we learn from our animal friends...
If only all of mankind could learn such valuable lessons as this.
Lessons of instant friendship. Of peace and harmony by way of respect for one another -- no matter one's color or creed.
These animals tell you... 'It's just good to be alive and with others.'
Yes, it surely is.
So... Live, Love, Laugh.
'Life's a Gift... Unwrap It!'
Debbie Shank still asks how her son is. He died in Iraq
Brain-damaged woman at center of Wal-Mart suit
Story Highlights
Debbie Shank, 52, suffered severe brain damage in a traffic accident
Wal-Mart's health plan sued Shank and her family to recoup what it paid out
The Shanks got money in suit; Wal-Mart says policy means couple can't get benefits
Couple's son was killed in Iraq after they lost lawsuit to Wal-Mart
By Randi Kaye
CNN
JACKSON, Missouri (CNN) -- Debbie Shank breaks down in tears every time she's told that her 18-year-old son, Jeremy, was killed in Iraq.
Debbie Shank, 52, has severe brain damage after a traffic accident in May 2000.
The 52-year-old mother of three attended her son's funeral, but she continues to ask how he's doing. When her family reminds her that he's dead, she weeps as if hearing the news for the first time.
Shank suffered severe brain damage after a traffic accident nearly eight years ago that robbed her of much of her short-term memory and left her in a wheelchair and living in a nursing home.
It was the beginning of a series of battles -- both personal and legal -- that loomed for Shank and her family. One of their biggest was with Wal-Mart's health plan.
Eight years ago, Shank was stocking shelves for the retail giant and signed up for Wal-Mart's health and benefits plan.
Two years after the accident, Shank and her husband, Jim, were awarded about $1 million in a lawsuit against the trucking company involved in the crash. After legal fees were paid, $417,000 was placed in a trust to pay for Debbie Shank's long-term care.
Wal-Mart had paid out about $470,000 for Shank's medical expenses and later sued for the same amount. However, the court ruled it can only recoup what is left in the family's trust.
The Shanks didn't notice in the fine print of Wal-Mart's health plan policy that the company has the right to recoup medical expenses if an employee collects damages in a lawsuit.
go here for the rest
http://www.cnn.com/2008/US/03/25/walmart.insurance.battle/index.html?iref=newssearch
Story Highlights
Debbie Shank, 52, suffered severe brain damage in a traffic accident
Wal-Mart's health plan sued Shank and her family to recoup what it paid out
The Shanks got money in suit; Wal-Mart says policy means couple can't get benefits
Couple's son was killed in Iraq after they lost lawsuit to Wal-Mart
By Randi Kaye
CNN
JACKSON, Missouri (CNN) -- Debbie Shank breaks down in tears every time she's told that her 18-year-old son, Jeremy, was killed in Iraq.
Debbie Shank, 52, has severe brain damage after a traffic accident in May 2000.
The 52-year-old mother of three attended her son's funeral, but she continues to ask how he's doing. When her family reminds her that he's dead, she weeps as if hearing the news for the first time.
Shank suffered severe brain damage after a traffic accident nearly eight years ago that robbed her of much of her short-term memory and left her in a wheelchair and living in a nursing home.
It was the beginning of a series of battles -- both personal and legal -- that loomed for Shank and her family. One of their biggest was with Wal-Mart's health plan.
Eight years ago, Shank was stocking shelves for the retail giant and signed up for Wal-Mart's health and benefits plan.
Two years after the accident, Shank and her husband, Jim, were awarded about $1 million in a lawsuit against the trucking company involved in the crash. After legal fees were paid, $417,000 was placed in a trust to pay for Debbie Shank's long-term care.
Wal-Mart had paid out about $470,000 for Shank's medical expenses and later sued for the same amount. However, the court ruled it can only recoup what is left in the family's trust.
The Shanks didn't notice in the fine print of Wal-Mart's health plan policy that the company has the right to recoup medical expenses if an employee collects damages in a lawsuit.
go here for the rest
http://www.cnn.com/2008/US/03/25/walmart.insurance.battle/index.html?iref=newssearch
New wars added 662 homeless veterans to New England Shelter
Tallying up the human costs of war
Mélida Arredondo
It’s been five years since the United States began war in Iraq and seven years in Afghanistan. Yet according to a survey recently released by the Pew Research Center, more than one-quarter of the American public — 28 percent, to be exact — is unaware that nearly 4,000 U.S. troops have died in Iraq over the past five years.
No matter what the reason, there is a disconnect among the people of the United States and the impact of the wars our nation is waging, both here and abroad. The numbers are startling. According to the latest government statistics, 4,458 U.S. troops have died and 68,529 U.S. troops have been wounded, injured or become sick while in either Iraq or Afghanistan.
Locally, the state Department of Veterans’ Services reports that a total of 78 troops with ties to Massachusetts have died in Iraq, and 15 have died in Afghanistan.
The number of the dead is low in comparison to Vietnam, where 60,000 U.S. troops were killed or went missing. However, according to The Associated Press, about 15 troops are wounded for every fatality during the current conflicts. This is five times the injury rate of troops who fought in Vietnam.
Dr. Gerald Cross of the federal Veterans Health Administration recently testified that there are 300,000 veterans of the conflicts in Iraq and Afghanistan treated at Veterans Affairs (VA) hospitals, and that more than half are treated for serious mental health conditions. Post-traumatic stress disorder accounts for 68,000 cases.
According to VA research obtained in February by The Associated Press, 144 veterans who served in Iraq and Afghanistan committed suicide from 2001 through the end of 2005. Statistics from 2006 and 2007 are not yet available. In addition, almost 300,000, or about one in four, of the nation’s homeless are veterans. Locally, 662 new veterans have joined the New England Shelter for Homeless Veterans this past year, many bearing the signs of trauma from the current wars.
go here for the rest
http://www.baystatebanner.com/issues/2008/03/27/opinion03270858.htm
Mélida Arredondo
It’s been five years since the United States began war in Iraq and seven years in Afghanistan. Yet according to a survey recently released by the Pew Research Center, more than one-quarter of the American public — 28 percent, to be exact — is unaware that nearly 4,000 U.S. troops have died in Iraq over the past five years.
No matter what the reason, there is a disconnect among the people of the United States and the impact of the wars our nation is waging, both here and abroad. The numbers are startling. According to the latest government statistics, 4,458 U.S. troops have died and 68,529 U.S. troops have been wounded, injured or become sick while in either Iraq or Afghanistan.
Locally, the state Department of Veterans’ Services reports that a total of 78 troops with ties to Massachusetts have died in Iraq, and 15 have died in Afghanistan.
The number of the dead is low in comparison to Vietnam, where 60,000 U.S. troops were killed or went missing. However, according to The Associated Press, about 15 troops are wounded for every fatality during the current conflicts. This is five times the injury rate of troops who fought in Vietnam.
Dr. Gerald Cross of the federal Veterans Health Administration recently testified that there are 300,000 veterans of the conflicts in Iraq and Afghanistan treated at Veterans Affairs (VA) hospitals, and that more than half are treated for serious mental health conditions. Post-traumatic stress disorder accounts for 68,000 cases.
According to VA research obtained in February by The Associated Press, 144 veterans who served in Iraq and Afghanistan committed suicide from 2001 through the end of 2005. Statistics from 2006 and 2007 are not yet available. In addition, almost 300,000, or about one in four, of the nation’s homeless are veterans. Locally, 662 new veterans have joined the New England Shelter for Homeless Veterans this past year, many bearing the signs of trauma from the current wars.
go here for the rest
http://www.baystatebanner.com/issues/2008/03/27/opinion03270858.htm
'Ward 57' examines psyche
'Ward 57' examines psyche
By Bill Hirschman Special Correspondent
March 26, 2008
There is invasive surgery going on inside the Walter Reed Army Medical Center in Jessica Goldberg's drama Ward 57, but it's not dissection of the body but of the psyche.
This world premiere is not really about the plight of wounded veterans, although that's certainly examined, and it's not even a tract against the tragedy in Iraq. In fact, the play assiduously respects those who serve and those who dissent.
Ward 57 examines our duty to take responsibility for what we do — and the duty to be intellectually honest about motivations and consequences. Goldberg holds up a mirror and insists we ask the same unsparing questions as her characters.
Her plot sends sincere, if postmodern, screenwriter Wendy Hoffman (Aditi Kapil) to research a film about returning veterans. Her contact at Reed is Capt. Gray Whitrock (Brandon Morris), a prickly counselor who wants to be an example of hope to patients because he lost a leg during his first tour — and then went back for a second.
Whitrock cannot allow Hoffman to visit patients, such as the emotionally tortured Anthony Small (Buddy Haardt), who makes up rap lyrics about his blindness and asks Whitrock to help him commit suicide. So Whitrock and his pregnant wife, Lydia (Bonni Allen), become primary sources for Hoffman's research.
The sparring soldier and screenwriter — opposite poles on the political litmus paper — test each other's sincerity and then the intellectual integrity of their motivations. She sees him as a self-deluded jingoist while he sees her as a parasitic sightseer: " ... we think we lost our limbs for something and you think we lost them for nothing," Whitrock says.
go here for the rest
http://www.sun-sentinel.com/features/lifestyle/sfl-thwardsbmar26,0,6264311.story
We talk a lot about the death counts, but we don't talk about the wounded in body, mind or spirit. We don't talk about the price they pay after war. Go above and watch the clip of this play.
By Bill Hirschman Special Correspondent
March 26, 2008
There is invasive surgery going on inside the Walter Reed Army Medical Center in Jessica Goldberg's drama Ward 57, but it's not dissection of the body but of the psyche.
This world premiere is not really about the plight of wounded veterans, although that's certainly examined, and it's not even a tract against the tragedy in Iraq. In fact, the play assiduously respects those who serve and those who dissent.
Ward 57 examines our duty to take responsibility for what we do — and the duty to be intellectually honest about motivations and consequences. Goldberg holds up a mirror and insists we ask the same unsparing questions as her characters.
Her plot sends sincere, if postmodern, screenwriter Wendy Hoffman (Aditi Kapil) to research a film about returning veterans. Her contact at Reed is Capt. Gray Whitrock (Brandon Morris), a prickly counselor who wants to be an example of hope to patients because he lost a leg during his first tour — and then went back for a second.
Whitrock cannot allow Hoffman to visit patients, such as the emotionally tortured Anthony Small (Buddy Haardt), who makes up rap lyrics about his blindness and asks Whitrock to help him commit suicide. So Whitrock and his pregnant wife, Lydia (Bonni Allen), become primary sources for Hoffman's research.
The sparring soldier and screenwriter — opposite poles on the political litmus paper — test each other's sincerity and then the intellectual integrity of their motivations. She sees him as a self-deluded jingoist while he sees her as a parasitic sightseer: " ... we think we lost our limbs for something and you think we lost them for nothing," Whitrock says.
go here for the rest
http://www.sun-sentinel.com/features/lifestyle/sfl-thwardsbmar26,0,6264311.story
We talk a lot about the death counts, but we don't talk about the wounded in body, mind or spirit. We don't talk about the price they pay after war. Go above and watch the clip of this play.
Shalala: Veterans benefits system is broken
Shalala: Veterans benefits system is broken
26 MAR 2008 • by Juliana Hanson
Veterans of the Iraq and Afghanistan wars won't get proper health care until the U.S. government updates and simplifies the bureaucracy strangling benefits and outpatient care.
This is the conclusion of Donna Shalala, former secretary of the U.S. Department Health and Human Services during the Clinton administration. President George W. Bush commissioned Shalala, Bob Dole and several other experts to evaluate the care of wounded veterans after the Washington Post exposed dire conditions at Walter Reed Hospital: deteriorating, rat- and roach-infested housing for family members, neglectful staff, and a mind-numbing bureaucracy. Shalala spoke about their findings to an auditorium packed with students and military personnel Monday, March 10, at N.C. State University.
While deployed, U.S. soldiers have access to world-class health care. But as soon as they leave the hospital bed, Shalala said, "it falls apart ... in the coordination of outpatient care."
This new generation of veterans has different medical needs, yet the dated, convoluted veterans health care system fails many of them. More survivors are returning home with brain injuries and long-term mental health issues, conditions that tend to be more severe and complex. These patients suffer most as they and their families struggle to find continuity among lost records, shuffling caseworkers and miscommunication typical of the military health care system.
go here for the rest
http://www.indyweek.com/gyrobase/Content?oid=oid%3A217249
26 MAR 2008 • by Juliana Hanson
Veterans of the Iraq and Afghanistan wars won't get proper health care until the U.S. government updates and simplifies the bureaucracy strangling benefits and outpatient care.
This is the conclusion of Donna Shalala, former secretary of the U.S. Department Health and Human Services during the Clinton administration. President George W. Bush commissioned Shalala, Bob Dole and several other experts to evaluate the care of wounded veterans after the Washington Post exposed dire conditions at Walter Reed Hospital: deteriorating, rat- and roach-infested housing for family members, neglectful staff, and a mind-numbing bureaucracy. Shalala spoke about their findings to an auditorium packed with students and military personnel Monday, March 10, at N.C. State University.
While deployed, U.S. soldiers have access to world-class health care. But as soon as they leave the hospital bed, Shalala said, "it falls apart ... in the coordination of outpatient care."
This new generation of veterans has different medical needs, yet the dated, convoluted veterans health care system fails many of them. More survivors are returning home with brain injuries and long-term mental health issues, conditions that tend to be more severe and complex. These patients suffer most as they and their families struggle to find continuity among lost records, shuffling caseworkers and miscommunication typical of the military health care system.
go here for the rest
http://www.indyweek.com/gyrobase/Content?oid=oid%3A217249
Anthrax vaccine back in the court again
"For a lot of people, it's too late to go to court," he said. "This is a situation that cries out for congressional intervention."
Judge Advances Anthrax Vaccine Rufusal Case
Elaine M. Grossman
Government Executive
Mar 26, 2008
March 24, 2008 - Washington, DC -- A U.S. federal judge has ruled that the Defense Department must again consider exonerating two military pilots whose Connecticut Air National Guard careers ended after they refused to take compulsory anthrax vaccine shots.
The plaintiffs were among hundreds of service members compelled to leave the military after resisting the inoculations during the late 1990s and early 2000s. Many cited qualms about the vaccine's safety and efficacy in protecting against inhaled anthrax, the form of exposure that Pentagon officials anticipated in the event of a biological weapons attack.
The federal courts have since found that the military's mandatory vaccine program was being conducted illegally for more than six years, beginning with its March 1998 inception. Pending Food and Drug Administration approval for using the drug specifically against inhaled anthrax, the Defense Department could not administer the six-shot series without an individual's informed consent, a federal judge said in an October 2004 decision.
The following year, the drug agency issued its long-awaited approval. The question has remained, though, as to whether those service members who refused the vaccine during the previous six-year period might yet be vindicated.
go here for the rest
Making room for wounded warriors
We argue about why they are where they are. The question is, where are we when they come home?
There have been hundreds of reports on PTSD each and every month. I've read most of them. Within them I find glimmers of hope the government is finally getting it, people are moving past the stigma of it and the military brass is finally addressing it. Yet all these glimmers fade when I get emails or talk to veterans who have fallen through into the valley of despair.
Two nights ago, it was two phone calls from people about someone they love with PTSD. It was not a matter of them not wanting care, but a matter of them not being taken care of. Both are Vietnam Veterans. One other Vietnam veteran I've been helping has no place to go, very little income, unable to work because of PTSD and his claim has been tied up, so he is also getting very little psychiatric help. He is getting no human help from his community.
Reading an article like this makes me want to scream about the fact we, in polite society, are doing so little.
In these years, I've talked to members of the clergy and watch their eyes glaze over when trying to get them to understand their duty is to these veterans as members of the human race. They cannot understand the toll on the veteran, their family or the far reaching affects on the community in general. They simply don't want to take the time to understand.
Last year I presented the documentary When I Came Home at the church I worked for. The turnout was embarrassing. I had invited a past National Commander of the DAV and a representative of Orange County Veterans Services to attend to answer questions I would not be able to answer. Very few members of the church attended. The Pastors did not and most of the elders did not, yet when there was a different kind of function during the week, it drew large groups of people. People couldn't be bothered to attend even though the event was free and lunch was provided. Pretty sickening when you get right down to it.
It isn't that no one cares. I also met with a group of Chaplains training at a local hospital. They asked me to speak to them because they wanted to know more about PTSD so that they could pastor to the patients with better understanding. These Chaplains were committed to addressing the needs of everyone. They wanted to know the causes and the signs to watch for, not just for veterans but for the community fully understanding that PTSD comes from all kinds of trauma.
This is the same thing I've been trying to get through to people for years. With the VA overwhelmed with the demand for services as it is, they are not able to meet that demand. It will take years for the additional funding Congress finally allocated to increase the resources needed for long term care, but they have operated as if they have time to waste instead of taking care of the veterans today. There has to be room for the veterans in our own communities. There will not be unless we make room for them in our hearts.
We can point fingers all we want and say it's the Republican leaderships fault nothing was done to address this years ago, but we have a history of not providing for the veterans we send into combat. We didn't take care of Vietnam veterans even though we saw the need and now we are compounding this atrocity by pushing them aside to make room for the newest generation of combat veterans. The VA says there just isn't enough room for all of them to be taken care of.
Until there is, and we have to make sure the VA and the Congress move the damn mountains out of the way, we need to make sure the local clergy, service organizations founded to "take care of veterans" are all up to speed on the wounds they bring home. We cannot simply say that we have parades and build monuments for them while we do not do all humanly possible to actually take care of them. This isn't just the government's job to do. This is a job we all need to do.
I've been screaming about the fact so many can turn out for protests against the occupation of Iraq and in support of the occupation, but we cannot turn out in the thousands to address the fact that we are losing 120 veterans every week due to suicide, families are falling apart and wounded warriors are ending up homeless.
I am begging you again to call your pastor, minister, priest, rabbi or whatever to make sure they get involved and do something about addressing this. Time is being wasted while they want to only serve at the pulpit. Their duty is to humanity and they fail to acknowledge this. They speak of how the Holy people of God did this and that, tell you that you need to do the same but they are not.
While Chaplains are out in the communities to reach out to all of "God's children" there are not enough to go around. This demands the actions of everyone to really make a difference for the veterans today!
Chaplain Kathie Costos
Namguardianangel@aol.com
www.Namguardianangel.org
www.Namguardianangel.blogspot.com
www.Woundedtimes.blogspot.com
"The willingness with which our young people are likely to serve in any war, no matter how justified, shall be directly proportional to how they perceive veterans of early wars were treated and appreciated by our nation." - George Washington
Among Vietnam vets with post-traumatic stress disorder who sought mental health care, less than a third went to the VA. Sixty-eight percent of those veterans got care elsewhere.
Conference at Fort Monroe touts medical resources for vets
By Kate Wiltrout
The Virginian-Pilot
© March 27, 2008
FORT MONROE
It took one sobering statistic to bring together 200 social service workers at a regional conference Wednesday.
Thirty-seven percent of Iraq and Afghanistan veterans have sought medical care from the Department of Veterans Affairs.
So, where are the other 63 percent?
This is the question Harold Kudler, a physician and VA mental health services manager, asked the group at the Virginia is for Heroes regional conference.
Almost 800,000 veterans of tours in Iraq and Afghanistan are eligible for services through the VA, he said, and more than 40 percent of those who actually use those services – 120,949 – have reported possible mental health problems.
Kudler warned this “silent majority” of recent combat veterans may turn to other sources for help – churches, family doctors, community service boards – that need to be prepared to assist them.
This reality is what brought together local and state mental health providers, pastoral counselors and educators.
The VA is the federal agency dedicated to serving veterans, and it provides health care to 5.5 million vets – about one in five who are eligible. But the government already knows that young combat veterans might be suffering in silence, or self-medicating with alcohol and drugs. They might show up in jail or at a homeless shelter. Or their children might start getting into trouble at school.
“There should be no wrong door to which Operation Enduring Freedom or Operation Iraqi Freedom veterans or their families can come for help,” Kudler said .
go here for the rest
http://hamptonroads.com/2008/03/conference-fort-monroe-touts-medical-resources-vets
There have been hundreds of reports on PTSD each and every month. I've read most of them. Within them I find glimmers of hope the government is finally getting it, people are moving past the stigma of it and the military brass is finally addressing it. Yet all these glimmers fade when I get emails or talk to veterans who have fallen through into the valley of despair.
Two nights ago, it was two phone calls from people about someone they love with PTSD. It was not a matter of them not wanting care, but a matter of them not being taken care of. Both are Vietnam Veterans. One other Vietnam veteran I've been helping has no place to go, very little income, unable to work because of PTSD and his claim has been tied up, so he is also getting very little psychiatric help. He is getting no human help from his community.
Reading an article like this makes me want to scream about the fact we, in polite society, are doing so little.
In these years, I've talked to members of the clergy and watch their eyes glaze over when trying to get them to understand their duty is to these veterans as members of the human race. They cannot understand the toll on the veteran, their family or the far reaching affects on the community in general. They simply don't want to take the time to understand.
Last year I presented the documentary When I Came Home at the church I worked for. The turnout was embarrassing. I had invited a past National Commander of the DAV and a representative of Orange County Veterans Services to attend to answer questions I would not be able to answer. Very few members of the church attended. The Pastors did not and most of the elders did not, yet when there was a different kind of function during the week, it drew large groups of people. People couldn't be bothered to attend even though the event was free and lunch was provided. Pretty sickening when you get right down to it.
It isn't that no one cares. I also met with a group of Chaplains training at a local hospital. They asked me to speak to them because they wanted to know more about PTSD so that they could pastor to the patients with better understanding. These Chaplains were committed to addressing the needs of everyone. They wanted to know the causes and the signs to watch for, not just for veterans but for the community fully understanding that PTSD comes from all kinds of trauma.
Kudler warned this “silent majority” of recent combat veterans may turn to other sources for help – churches, family doctors, community service boards – that need to be prepared to assist them.
This is the same thing I've been trying to get through to people for years. With the VA overwhelmed with the demand for services as it is, they are not able to meet that demand. It will take years for the additional funding Congress finally allocated to increase the resources needed for long term care, but they have operated as if they have time to waste instead of taking care of the veterans today. There has to be room for the veterans in our own communities. There will not be unless we make room for them in our hearts.
We can point fingers all we want and say it's the Republican leaderships fault nothing was done to address this years ago, but we have a history of not providing for the veterans we send into combat. We didn't take care of Vietnam veterans even though we saw the need and now we are compounding this atrocity by pushing them aside to make room for the newest generation of combat veterans. The VA says there just isn't enough room for all of them to be taken care of.
Until there is, and we have to make sure the VA and the Congress move the damn mountains out of the way, we need to make sure the local clergy, service organizations founded to "take care of veterans" are all up to speed on the wounds they bring home. We cannot simply say that we have parades and build monuments for them while we do not do all humanly possible to actually take care of them. This isn't just the government's job to do. This is a job we all need to do.
I've been screaming about the fact so many can turn out for protests against the occupation of Iraq and in support of the occupation, but we cannot turn out in the thousands to address the fact that we are losing 120 veterans every week due to suicide, families are falling apart and wounded warriors are ending up homeless.
I am begging you again to call your pastor, minister, priest, rabbi or whatever to make sure they get involved and do something about addressing this. Time is being wasted while they want to only serve at the pulpit. Their duty is to humanity and they fail to acknowledge this. They speak of how the Holy people of God did this and that, tell you that you need to do the same but they are not.
While Chaplains are out in the communities to reach out to all of "God's children" there are not enough to go around. This demands the actions of everyone to really make a difference for the veterans today!
Chaplain Kathie Costos
Namguardianangel@aol.com
www.Namguardianangel.org
www.Namguardianangel.blogspot.com
www.Woundedtimes.blogspot.com
"The willingness with which our young people are likely to serve in any war, no matter how justified, shall be directly proportional to how they perceive veterans of early wars were treated and appreciated by our nation." - George Washington
Wednesday, March 26, 2008
PTSD Marine, 22 years old, 3 tours accused of murder
Suspect in Saginaw slaying served 3 Iraq tours
By DEANNA BOYD
Star-Telegram Staff Writer
SAGINAW -- A 22-year-old Marine who served three tours of duty in Iraq faces a charge of capital murder in connection with the fatal stabbing of a former live-in girlfriend.
Family members say Eric Acevedo has been diagnosed with post-traumatic stress disorder.
Saginaw police believe that Acevedo broke into Mollieann Worden's townhouse in the 300 block of Cambridge Drive through a front window early Saturday. Worden and a neighbor both called 911 but when officers arrived, they found that the 32-year-old woman had been stabbed multiple times with a kitchen knife, police said. She was pronounced dead at the scene at 1:30 a.m.
Officers saw Acevedo in the parking lot and arrested him. Neighbors say the man was covered in blood and looked dazed.
Andres Acevedo, Eric Acevedo's father, said his son has not been the same since returning from Iraq and would never have harmed anyone if he had been in his right mind.
"I gave him to the government nice and healthy, and the government returned somebody who is capable of doing something like that," Andres Acevedo said.
Eric Acevedo remained in the Saginaw Jail on Monday with bail set at $1 million.
Worden's 10-year-old daughter was spending the night at a friend's house when the attack occurred, police said. The girl is staying with relatives, said officer Kimberly Allison, a Saginaw police spokeswoman.
Attempts Monday to reach relatives of Worden were unsuccessful.
Young recruit
Acevedo joined the Marines just nine days after graduating from Joshua High School.
"He'd always been wanting to join the armed services. I wanted to do that myself but my parents didn't allow me. I wasn't about to tell him he couldn't," Andres Acevedo said.
Master Sgt. Ronald Spencer with the Marine Corps Mobilization Command in Kansas City said records show that Acevedo enlisted in the Marines in June 2003 and ended his active service in June 2007. He then joined the inactive ready reserves, where he was to serve until June 2010, Spencer said.
Andres Acevedo said his son served in Iraq three times over a four-year span, but emerged a very different man.
"I was very proud of him. He served well over there. He never complained," Acevedo said. "But when he did this last tour, he was feeling kind of like he didn't really want to go because of the nightmares and stuff he had had from the second time. My wife tried to stop it over medical issues. They still sent him off."
Since his return last May from the third tour in May, Eric Acevedo had gotten only worse, Andres Acevedo said.
"He was nothing but a good kid. He never caused any problems," said Alicia Rodriguez, Acevedo's aunt. "He was a good son to my brother. I know he was a good soldier. I just don't know what happened. When he went in, he was so proud. When he came out, he had so many problems. I don't know what happened to him."
About six months ago, Acevedo went to see a military doctor and was diagnosed with post-traumatic stress disorder, Andres Acevedo said. He was placed on medication that seemed to calm him down, but not completely, Andres Acevedo said.
go here for the rest
http://www.star-telegram.com/metro_news/story/546116.html
Last night I had two phone calls from people involved with veterans who became frightening. Sometimes this happens. It is not always, they need help are not a danger to anyone. There are times when they are not only a danger to themselves, but to others as well. While we tend to want to help them and do whatever it takes to do it, we need to be careful. If they become extremely angry, violent, threatening, abusive, you need to removed yourself from them. Most of the time it is just talk out of anger. That's most of the time but no one should take a chance. Staying there, confronting a combat vet with PTSD bouncing off the wall will only escalate tension and complicate the situation. Wisest thing is to remove yourself from harm first. Then, while it is the hardest thing to do, you need to consider getting the professionals involved. Get to a safe place and call their doctor. If that is not possible then call the police. As for the Sergeant on duty and explain what is going on making sure they know it is a combat veteran, that they have PTSD if they have been diagnosed, if they have a gun in the house or not and exactly what the police will be dealing with. There have been too many innocent victims in all of this.
We cannot place all the blame on the veteran because they did not ask for this and the government is still not prepared to take care of all of them. We do need to help them but we also need to know what we are dealing with. Many times medications need to be adjusted and that's all it takes but in emergency situations, you cannot stand there and wonder what to do.
Often we need to take a tough love approach. There are times when they have to be forced into getting the help they need. Failing to do so will endanger your life and the lives of others as well as the veteran you are trying to protect.
Don't get me wrong here. The violent ones are rare. The greatest percentage of them are a danger to themselves only. If they are a danger to themselves or others, you need to report this. You know them and what they are like. You will be the first to know when they no longer seem like the same person. Get them evaluated as soon as possible but above all, make sure you are safe.
By DEANNA BOYD
Star-Telegram Staff Writer
SAGINAW -- A 22-year-old Marine who served three tours of duty in Iraq faces a charge of capital murder in connection with the fatal stabbing of a former live-in girlfriend.
Family members say Eric Acevedo has been diagnosed with post-traumatic stress disorder.
Saginaw police believe that Acevedo broke into Mollieann Worden's townhouse in the 300 block of Cambridge Drive through a front window early Saturday. Worden and a neighbor both called 911 but when officers arrived, they found that the 32-year-old woman had been stabbed multiple times with a kitchen knife, police said. She was pronounced dead at the scene at 1:30 a.m.
Officers saw Acevedo in the parking lot and arrested him. Neighbors say the man was covered in blood and looked dazed.
Andres Acevedo, Eric Acevedo's father, said his son has not been the same since returning from Iraq and would never have harmed anyone if he had been in his right mind.
"I gave him to the government nice and healthy, and the government returned somebody who is capable of doing something like that," Andres Acevedo said.
Eric Acevedo remained in the Saginaw Jail on Monday with bail set at $1 million.
Worden's 10-year-old daughter was spending the night at a friend's house when the attack occurred, police said. The girl is staying with relatives, said officer Kimberly Allison, a Saginaw police spokeswoman.
Attempts Monday to reach relatives of Worden were unsuccessful.
Young recruit
Acevedo joined the Marines just nine days after graduating from Joshua High School.
"He'd always been wanting to join the armed services. I wanted to do that myself but my parents didn't allow me. I wasn't about to tell him he couldn't," Andres Acevedo said.
Master Sgt. Ronald Spencer with the Marine Corps Mobilization Command in Kansas City said records show that Acevedo enlisted in the Marines in June 2003 and ended his active service in June 2007. He then joined the inactive ready reserves, where he was to serve until June 2010, Spencer said.
Andres Acevedo said his son served in Iraq three times over a four-year span, but emerged a very different man.
"I was very proud of him. He served well over there. He never complained," Acevedo said. "But when he did this last tour, he was feeling kind of like he didn't really want to go because of the nightmares and stuff he had had from the second time. My wife tried to stop it over medical issues. They still sent him off."
Since his return last May from the third tour in May, Eric Acevedo had gotten only worse, Andres Acevedo said.
"He was nothing but a good kid. He never caused any problems," said Alicia Rodriguez, Acevedo's aunt. "He was a good son to my brother. I know he was a good soldier. I just don't know what happened. When he went in, he was so proud. When he came out, he had so many problems. I don't know what happened to him."
About six months ago, Acevedo went to see a military doctor and was diagnosed with post-traumatic stress disorder, Andres Acevedo said. He was placed on medication that seemed to calm him down, but not completely, Andres Acevedo said.
go here for the rest
http://www.star-telegram.com/metro_news/story/546116.html
Last night I had two phone calls from people involved with veterans who became frightening. Sometimes this happens. It is not always, they need help are not a danger to anyone. There are times when they are not only a danger to themselves, but to others as well. While we tend to want to help them and do whatever it takes to do it, we need to be careful. If they become extremely angry, violent, threatening, abusive, you need to removed yourself from them. Most of the time it is just talk out of anger. That's most of the time but no one should take a chance. Staying there, confronting a combat vet with PTSD bouncing off the wall will only escalate tension and complicate the situation. Wisest thing is to remove yourself from harm first. Then, while it is the hardest thing to do, you need to consider getting the professionals involved. Get to a safe place and call their doctor. If that is not possible then call the police. As for the Sergeant on duty and explain what is going on making sure they know it is a combat veteran, that they have PTSD if they have been diagnosed, if they have a gun in the house or not and exactly what the police will be dealing with. There have been too many innocent victims in all of this.
We cannot place all the blame on the veteran because they did not ask for this and the government is still not prepared to take care of all of them. We do need to help them but we also need to know what we are dealing with. Many times medications need to be adjusted and that's all it takes but in emergency situations, you cannot stand there and wonder what to do.
Often we need to take a tough love approach. There are times when they have to be forced into getting the help they need. Failing to do so will endanger your life and the lives of others as well as the veteran you are trying to protect.
Don't get me wrong here. The violent ones are rare. The greatest percentage of them are a danger to themselves only. If they are a danger to themselves or others, you need to report this. You know them and what they are like. You will be the first to know when they no longer seem like the same person. Get them evaluated as soon as possible but above all, make sure you are safe.
German study, scared to death does happen
Blood-curdling fear linked to heart attack
Published: March 26, 2008 at 10:17 AM
BONN, Germany, March 26 (UPI) -- Scientists in Bonn, Germany, found the saying, "The fear made my blood curdle," may literally be true.
The researchers examined the coagulation in patients with anxiety disorders and compared them to those without such disorders and found intense fear and panic attacks increase blood clotting and may increase the risk of thrombosis or heart attack.
Franziska Geiser of the Clinic and Policlinic for Psychosomatic Medicine and Psychotherapy and Ursula Harbrecht of the Institute of Experimental Haematology and Transfusion Medicine matched 31 patients with anxiety disorders to corresponding healthy patients based on age and gender. The blood analysis, which measured various coagulation factors, produced a clear result, the researchers said.
click post title for the rest
Right away the first thing I thought of was the recent reports out about PTSD veterans and the rise in heart problems with them. Ever hear of this many 20 year olds having heart attacks? There are a lot of non-combat deaths that are signed off as "natural causes" that could be linked to something much more. They were scared to death.
Published: March 26, 2008 at 10:17 AM
BONN, Germany, March 26 (UPI) -- Scientists in Bonn, Germany, found the saying, "The fear made my blood curdle," may literally be true.
The researchers examined the coagulation in patients with anxiety disorders and compared them to those without such disorders and found intense fear and panic attacks increase blood clotting and may increase the risk of thrombosis or heart attack.
Franziska Geiser of the Clinic and Policlinic for Psychosomatic Medicine and Psychotherapy and Ursula Harbrecht of the Institute of Experimental Haematology and Transfusion Medicine matched 31 patients with anxiety disorders to corresponding healthy patients based on age and gender. The blood analysis, which measured various coagulation factors, produced a clear result, the researchers said.
click post title for the rest
Right away the first thing I thought of was the recent reports out about PTSD veterans and the rise in heart problems with them. Ever hear of this many 20 year olds having heart attacks? There are a lot of non-combat deaths that are signed off as "natural causes" that could be linked to something much more. They were scared to death.
Brain study in depression shows reward painful
Depressed brain shows conflict with reward
Published: March 26, 2008 at 7:52 PM
STANFORD, Calif., March 26 (UPI) -- Some forms of depression may be experienced not as the absence of pleasure but as the presence of emotional pain or disappointment, U.S. researchers said.
Researchers at Stanford University in California recruited both depressed and non-depressed volunteers to undergo brain scans, using functional magnetic resonance imaging, while they participated in an activity in which they won and lost money.
First author Dr. Brian Knutson said when study participants anticipated winning money, both depressed and non-depressed people showed neural activation in the nucleus accumbens, a region implicated in the anticipation of reward.
click post title for the rest
Published: March 26, 2008 at 7:52 PM
STANFORD, Calif., March 26 (UPI) -- Some forms of depression may be experienced not as the absence of pleasure but as the presence of emotional pain or disappointment, U.S. researchers said.
Researchers at Stanford University in California recruited both depressed and non-depressed volunteers to undergo brain scans, using functional magnetic resonance imaging, while they participated in an activity in which they won and lost money.
First author Dr. Brian Knutson said when study participants anticipated winning money, both depressed and non-depressed people showed neural activation in the nucleus accumbens, a region implicated in the anticipation of reward.
click post title for the rest
When wounded in service is not good enough.
Miss. vets arrested over Purple Heart claims
By Nicklaus Lovelady - The Clarion Star-Ledger
Posted : Wednesday Mar 26, 2008 16:28:06 EDT
Federal investigators on Tuesday arrested two Mississippi men who allegedly falsely represented themselves as Purple Heart recipients in order to obtain free vehicle license plates.
John Wayne Lebo, 57, of Tylertown and Christopher Billeaud, 52, of Biloxi are suspected of altering their “official military discharge papers to reflect awards and medals (they) did not receive,” according records filed in federal court.
In doing so, both obtained the Mississippi Purple Heart vehicle license plate, which never expires and is given to Purple Heart recipients at no cost, U.S. Attorney Ruth Morgan said.
Purple Heart medals are given to war veterans wounded in combat by an enemy attack and are posthumously given to family members of those killed in battle by an enemy.
The arrests followed separate investigations by the U.S. Department of Veteran Affairs.
John Weber III, the attorney for Lebo, was unavailable for comment.
Kathleen Billeaud, the wife of Christopher Billeaud, an Air Force Veteran of Desert Storm, the first Iraq war, said the U.S. government is making a big mistake.
“My husband did not falsify anything. Sandbags collapsed on his neck during a scud [missile] attack, and his neck was broken. I have the documentation right in front of me to prove it,” she said.
According to court papers, officers with the Air Force Office of Investigations went to the Billeaud home in April 2007, after they say they discovered that Christopher Billeaud said he was a chief master sergeant, although he retired as a master sergeant.
One of the officers noticed that a vehicle parked at his home had a Purple Heart license plate. During the interview, the officer asked Billeaud if he received a Purple Heart, and he told the officer no, court records show.
Kathleen Billeaud said her husband has been recognized by the Department of Veterans Affairs and the head of Keesler Air Force Base hospital as receiving a Purple Heart, but not by the Air Force.
She said the Air Force recognizes his disability but said there was some discrepancy on how he was injured.
http://www.armytimes.com/news/2008/03/airforce_billeaud_purpleheart_032608w/
I was angry when I saw this headline but I was even more angry when I read the story. When is a wound less worthy when it happened in service? I still think they should give PTSD veterans at least an award like the Purple Heart because had they not been deployed, they wouldn't have been wounded either.
By Nicklaus Lovelady - The Clarion Star-Ledger
Posted : Wednesday Mar 26, 2008 16:28:06 EDT
Federal investigators on Tuesday arrested two Mississippi men who allegedly falsely represented themselves as Purple Heart recipients in order to obtain free vehicle license plates.
John Wayne Lebo, 57, of Tylertown and Christopher Billeaud, 52, of Biloxi are suspected of altering their “official military discharge papers to reflect awards and medals (they) did not receive,” according records filed in federal court.
In doing so, both obtained the Mississippi Purple Heart vehicle license plate, which never expires and is given to Purple Heart recipients at no cost, U.S. Attorney Ruth Morgan said.
Purple Heart medals are given to war veterans wounded in combat by an enemy attack and are posthumously given to family members of those killed in battle by an enemy.
The arrests followed separate investigations by the U.S. Department of Veteran Affairs.
John Weber III, the attorney for Lebo, was unavailable for comment.
Kathleen Billeaud, the wife of Christopher Billeaud, an Air Force Veteran of Desert Storm, the first Iraq war, said the U.S. government is making a big mistake.
“My husband did not falsify anything. Sandbags collapsed on his neck during a scud [missile] attack, and his neck was broken. I have the documentation right in front of me to prove it,” she said.
According to court papers, officers with the Air Force Office of Investigations went to the Billeaud home in April 2007, after they say they discovered that Christopher Billeaud said he was a chief master sergeant, although he retired as a master sergeant.
One of the officers noticed that a vehicle parked at his home had a Purple Heart license plate. During the interview, the officer asked Billeaud if he received a Purple Heart, and he told the officer no, court records show.
Kathleen Billeaud said her husband has been recognized by the Department of Veterans Affairs and the head of Keesler Air Force Base hospital as receiving a Purple Heart, but not by the Air Force.
She said the Air Force recognizes his disability but said there was some discrepancy on how he was injured.
http://www.armytimes.com/news/2008/03/airforce_billeaud_purpleheart_032608w/
I was angry when I saw this headline but I was even more angry when I read the story. When is a wound less worthy when it happened in service? I still think they should give PTSD veterans at least an award like the Purple Heart because had they not been deployed, they wouldn't have been wounded either.
Soldier's widow charged as 2 year old found alone
Mother of tot found wandering is Iraq widow
The Associated Press
Posted : Wednesday Mar 26, 2008 13:09:03 EDT
BELLEVILLE, Ill. — A Belleville woman charged with letting her 2-year-old son wander alone in 40-degree weather wearing only a diaper is the widow of a man killed while serving in Iraq.
Thelma Straughter’s husband, Missouri National Guard Specialist Matthew Straughter, died Jan. 31 when a rocket-propelled grenade hit his vehicle in Iraq, a day before his 28th birthday.
St. Clair County prosecutors charged 28-year-old Thelma Straughter with misdemeanor child endangerment on Monday after a motorist found her toddler walking down a street.
The child had scratches on his feet but was otherwise uninjured.
The boy and his two siblings are staying with grandparents.
http://www.armytimes.com/news/2008/03/ap_widow_wanderingtoddler_032608/
The Associated Press
Posted : Wednesday Mar 26, 2008 13:09:03 EDT
BELLEVILLE, Ill. — A Belleville woman charged with letting her 2-year-old son wander alone in 40-degree weather wearing only a diaper is the widow of a man killed while serving in Iraq.
Thelma Straughter’s husband, Missouri National Guard Specialist Matthew Straughter, died Jan. 31 when a rocket-propelled grenade hit his vehicle in Iraq, a day before his 28th birthday.
St. Clair County prosecutors charged 28-year-old Thelma Straughter with misdemeanor child endangerment on Monday after a motorist found her toddler walking down a street.
The child had scratches on his feet but was otherwise uninjured.
The boy and his two siblings are staying with grandparents.
http://www.armytimes.com/news/2008/03/ap_widow_wanderingtoddler_032608/
Cartoonist Garry Trudeau getting award for veterans advocacy
Posted online: Tuesday, March 25, 2008 at 2:40:32 PM
Cartoonist to Be Awarded for His Portrayal About War-Related Mental Health
Cartoonist Garry Trudeau will receive the annual Mental Health Research Advocacy Award from Yale School of Medicine April 5 for his outstanding portrayal of the readjustment issues faced by soldiers returning from Iraq and Afghanistan.
Trudeau, a Yale College graduate and creator of the popular comic strip “Doonesbury,” will be honored at the Department of Psychiatry’s Neuroscience 2008 symposium, “Stress, Resilience and Recovery.”
The symposium will take place from 8:30 a.m. to 1 p.m. in Harkness Auditorium, Sterling Hall of Medicine, 333 Cedar St.
“The Mental Health Research Advocacy Award is given annually by the Department of Psychiatry to someone who has made an important contribution to the effort to advance research designed to improve the lives of people with mental illness,” said John Krystal, M.D., professor of clinical pharmacology and deputy chair for research in psychiatry.
click post title for the rest
Cartoonist to Be Awarded for His Portrayal About War-Related Mental Health
Cartoonist Garry Trudeau will receive the annual Mental Health Research Advocacy Award from Yale School of Medicine April 5 for his outstanding portrayal of the readjustment issues faced by soldiers returning from Iraq and Afghanistan.
Trudeau, a Yale College graduate and creator of the popular comic strip “Doonesbury,” will be honored at the Department of Psychiatry’s Neuroscience 2008 symposium, “Stress, Resilience and Recovery.”
The symposium will take place from 8:30 a.m. to 1 p.m. in Harkness Auditorium, Sterling Hall of Medicine, 333 Cedar St.
“The Mental Health Research Advocacy Award is given annually by the Department of Psychiatry to someone who has made an important contribution to the effort to advance research designed to improve the lives of people with mental illness,” said John Krystal, M.D., professor of clinical pharmacology and deputy chair for research in psychiatry.
click post title for the rest
More Soldiers Returning From Iraq With PTSD
More Soldiers Returning From Iraq With PTSD
Up To 20 Percent Of Iraq Veterans Have PTSD
By Angela Bettis, Staff Writer
UPDATED: 11:48 am CDT March 26, 2008
MADISON, Wis. -- The U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs reports that as many as 20 percent of veterans returning from Operation Iraqi Freedom are also returning home with post-traumatic stress disorder.
VIDEO: Watch The Report
U.S. Army Staff Sgt. Jeff Ethington returned home to Madison two days before Christmas after serving two back-to-back tours in Iraq. He's humble, but proud of what his unit accomplished.
"During the time that I was there we opened maybe four hospitals, six schools, and built all these parks all with the help of the 2nd Brigade, 2nd Cavalry Division," said Ethington.
Ethington's unit also trained Iraqi National Police and renovated one of the most dangerous boulevards in Baghdad, WISC-TV reported.
"It used to be known as Purple Heart Boulevard," said Ethington. "You'd get out of your truck and get shot at, you'd get out of your truck and someone would throw a grenade at you."
Ethington said he didn't dwell on the fact that he was in constant mortal danger.
"It was always in the back of my mind," he said.
In the back of his mind for the 29 months he served in Iraq.
After returning home in late December, Ethington re-enrolled in classes at the University of Wisconsin, eager to get back to his degree, back to his friends, back to his life.
"Between my first and second deployment, my brother said I didn't seem the same," said Ethington. "It seemed like I wasn't transitioning well. I thought about getting help then and then I got deployed again."
This time, when he re-entered campus, Ethington himself noticed the change.
"One specific day when school was starting, the crowds are bigger, you're always in the crowds, and you're in class. I just started to feel shaky and panicky, like really, really uncomfortable," he said.
Ethington was experiencing symptoms of post-traumatic stress disorder.
"PTSD looks the same whether you're someone who was tortured in Africa, or if you're a woman who's been raped, or you're a combat veteran," said Veterans Hospital psychologist Dr. Tracey Smith. "It's the body and mind's way to make sense of these terrible events."
go here for the rest
http://www.channel3000.com/news/15708296/detail.html
Up To 20 Percent Of Iraq Veterans Have PTSD
By Angela Bettis, Staff Writer
UPDATED: 11:48 am CDT March 26, 2008
MADISON, Wis. -- The U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs reports that as many as 20 percent of veterans returning from Operation Iraqi Freedom are also returning home with post-traumatic stress disorder.
VIDEO: Watch The Report
U.S. Army Staff Sgt. Jeff Ethington returned home to Madison two days before Christmas after serving two back-to-back tours in Iraq. He's humble, but proud of what his unit accomplished.
"During the time that I was there we opened maybe four hospitals, six schools, and built all these parks all with the help of the 2nd Brigade, 2nd Cavalry Division," said Ethington.
Ethington's unit also trained Iraqi National Police and renovated one of the most dangerous boulevards in Baghdad, WISC-TV reported.
"It used to be known as Purple Heart Boulevard," said Ethington. "You'd get out of your truck and get shot at, you'd get out of your truck and someone would throw a grenade at you."
Ethington said he didn't dwell on the fact that he was in constant mortal danger.
"It was always in the back of my mind," he said.
In the back of his mind for the 29 months he served in Iraq.
After returning home in late December, Ethington re-enrolled in classes at the University of Wisconsin, eager to get back to his degree, back to his friends, back to his life.
"Between my first and second deployment, my brother said I didn't seem the same," said Ethington. "It seemed like I wasn't transitioning well. I thought about getting help then and then I got deployed again."
This time, when he re-entered campus, Ethington himself noticed the change.
"One specific day when school was starting, the crowds are bigger, you're always in the crowds, and you're in class. I just started to feel shaky and panicky, like really, really uncomfortable," he said.
Ethington was experiencing symptoms of post-traumatic stress disorder.
"PTSD looks the same whether you're someone who was tortured in Africa, or if you're a woman who's been raped, or you're a combat veteran," said Veterans Hospital psychologist Dr. Tracey Smith. "It's the body and mind's way to make sense of these terrible events."
go here for the rest
http://www.channel3000.com/news/15708296/detail.html
Female Veterans Find Help With Emotional Wounds
Female Veterans Find Help With Emotional Wounds at Batavia Facility
Lou Michel
The Buffalo News
Mar 25, 2008
March 24, 2008 - After the improvised explosive and rifle attacks from the enemy, and after the sexual assaults and harassment from their own comrades, some female veterans find their way to the red brick house in Batavia to heal.
As if the horrors of war were not enough, women in uniform have been under assault for years in a culture that has failed to vanquish sexual attacks and harassment against them. Just last week, the Pentagon released figures indicating that one-third of military women are sexually harassed and many others sexually assaulted.
So the need for the red brick house at Veterans Affairs Medical Center in Batavia is well documented.
It is home to a post-traumatic stress program exclusively for female veterans and is one of only four such facilities in the country.
Up to six women can be accommodated at the home, and when discharged, they are expected to continue with rigorous outpatient services. Healing does not come overnight.
“It’s very new for the VA and for the world,” said Dr. Terri F. Julian, manager of the VA’s post-traumatic stress program in Batavia.
Many of the female veterans who enter this cozy two-story house with its “Welcome Home” sign had been attacked by men — and sometimes women — who wore the same uniform and swore the same oath to defend the United States as they did.
go here for the rest
http://www.veteransforcommonsense.org/ArticleID/9668
Lou Michel
The Buffalo News
Mar 25, 2008
March 24, 2008 - After the improvised explosive and rifle attacks from the enemy, and after the sexual assaults and harassment from their own comrades, some female veterans find their way to the red brick house in Batavia to heal.
As if the horrors of war were not enough, women in uniform have been under assault for years in a culture that has failed to vanquish sexual attacks and harassment against them. Just last week, the Pentagon released figures indicating that one-third of military women are sexually harassed and many others sexually assaulted.
So the need for the red brick house at Veterans Affairs Medical Center in Batavia is well documented.
It is home to a post-traumatic stress program exclusively for female veterans and is one of only four such facilities in the country.
Up to six women can be accommodated at the home, and when discharged, they are expected to continue with rigorous outpatient services. Healing does not come overnight.
“It’s very new for the VA and for the world,” said Dr. Terri F. Julian, manager of the VA’s post-traumatic stress program in Batavia.
Many of the female veterans who enter this cozy two-story house with its “Welcome Home” sign had been attacked by men — and sometimes women — who wore the same uniform and swore the same oath to defend the United States as they did.
go here for the rest
http://www.veteransforcommonsense.org/ArticleID/9668
VA Chaplain Grapples with the Toll of War
VA Chaplain Grapples with the Toll of War
by Thomas Phillips
Listen Now [2 min 34 sec] add to playlist
Morning Edition, March 25, 2008 · It is being reported that the Iraq war has claimed at least 4,000 American lives. Commentator Thomas Phillips knows firsthand about this number.
Phillips is a Veterans Affairs chaplain who receives computer notification whenever a member of the American armed forces is killed. He wishes for the day when notifications naming the dead will stop appearing on his computer screen.
Iraq
Iraq War Enters Sixth Year with Wave of Violence
Listen Now [4 min 33 sec] add to playlist
Chart military and civilian deaths in Iraq.
In Depth
Read, hear correspondent Anne Garrels' personal observations from five years of covering the Iraq war.
All Things Considered, March 24, 2008 · The war's sixth year begins in Baghdad with rockets falling into the U.S.-protected Green Zone over the weekend, while the overall U.S. military death toll tops 4,000 after a roadside bombing claims more American lives.
Army Maj. Gen. Bob Scales (Ret.) tells Robert Siegel that the enemy in Iraq has evolved, even as U.S. forces have improved their defenses against irregular attackers operating anonymously in small units and employing suicide and roadside bombs.
He says they have built larger bombs, and found more clever ways of hiding explosives and detonating the devices.
As well, Iraqi insurgents often are launching their attacks from densely populated regions, "so even though the point of launch can be determined with great precision, the ability to shoot back is limited," Scales says.
"You simply can't load up artillery guns and throw rounds into a crowded neighborhood. So the enemy has time — while the U.S. forces are clearing the area, putting together a patrol, launching helicopters — to simply fade away into buildings and hide away in alleys."
But Scales says this does not mean that the Iraqis who live in these neighborhoods support or are intimidated into cooperating by the insurgents. He says the hit-and-run attackers usually drive in from miles away and are gone before the populous even knows they are there.
Ultimately, Scales says it is very difficult to respond to suicide bombers, in particular.
"There is so little you can do when you're facing an enemy who is enthusiastic about death. … They want to create an impression among the Iraqis and Arabs in the region that U.S. efforts to build this period of tranquility [are] interrupted by these periodic spikes. And so the more dramatic they can make it, the more deaths that they can cause, that really plays to their ends," Scales says.
Related NPR Stories
March 24, 2008Living in a Wartorn Land, an Iraqi's Perspective
March 24, 2008U.S. War Dead in Iraq Honored
March 24, 20084,000 American Lives Lost in Iraq, AP Reports
Related NPR Stories
Jan. 6, 2008Chaplain Struggles with PTSD from Time in Iraq
Nov. 21, 2007Chaplains Struggle to Protect Monastery in Iraq
Nov. 14, 2007From Chicago to Anbar: A Chaplain's View of War
May 26, 2006Spiritual Soldier: A Chaplain's Life in War
by Thomas Phillips
Listen Now [2 min 34 sec] add to playlist
Morning Edition, March 25, 2008 · It is being reported that the Iraq war has claimed at least 4,000 American lives. Commentator Thomas Phillips knows firsthand about this number.
Phillips is a Veterans Affairs chaplain who receives computer notification whenever a member of the American armed forces is killed. He wishes for the day when notifications naming the dead will stop appearing on his computer screen.
Iraq
Iraq War Enters Sixth Year with Wave of Violence
Listen Now [4 min 33 sec] add to playlist
Chart military and civilian deaths in Iraq.
In Depth
Read, hear correspondent Anne Garrels' personal observations from five years of covering the Iraq war.
All Things Considered, March 24, 2008 · The war's sixth year begins in Baghdad with rockets falling into the U.S.-protected Green Zone over the weekend, while the overall U.S. military death toll tops 4,000 after a roadside bombing claims more American lives.
Army Maj. Gen. Bob Scales (Ret.) tells Robert Siegel that the enemy in Iraq has evolved, even as U.S. forces have improved their defenses against irregular attackers operating anonymously in small units and employing suicide and roadside bombs.
He says they have built larger bombs, and found more clever ways of hiding explosives and detonating the devices.
As well, Iraqi insurgents often are launching their attacks from densely populated regions, "so even though the point of launch can be determined with great precision, the ability to shoot back is limited," Scales says.
"You simply can't load up artillery guns and throw rounds into a crowded neighborhood. So the enemy has time — while the U.S. forces are clearing the area, putting together a patrol, launching helicopters — to simply fade away into buildings and hide away in alleys."
But Scales says this does not mean that the Iraqis who live in these neighborhoods support or are intimidated into cooperating by the insurgents. He says the hit-and-run attackers usually drive in from miles away and are gone before the populous even knows they are there.
Ultimately, Scales says it is very difficult to respond to suicide bombers, in particular.
"There is so little you can do when you're facing an enemy who is enthusiastic about death. … They want to create an impression among the Iraqis and Arabs in the region that U.S. efforts to build this period of tranquility [are] interrupted by these periodic spikes. And so the more dramatic they can make it, the more deaths that they can cause, that really plays to their ends," Scales says.
Related NPR Stories
March 24, 2008Living in a Wartorn Land, an Iraqi's Perspective
March 24, 2008U.S. War Dead in Iraq Honored
March 24, 20084,000 American Lives Lost in Iraq, AP Reports
Related NPR Stories
Jan. 6, 2008Chaplain Struggles with PTSD from Time in Iraq
Nov. 21, 2007Chaplains Struggle to Protect Monastery in Iraq
Nov. 14, 2007From Chicago to Anbar: A Chaplain's View of War
May 26, 2006Spiritual Soldier: A Chaplain's Life in War
More female casualties now than with Korea and Vietnam combined
Photo courtesy of Scott Antoinette Scott at home with her husband and
one of her daughters.
Female Iraq veterans face struggles at home
By NATHALIE LAVILLE
Observer Contributor
March 26, 2008
Sgt. Antoinette V. Scott was born in 1970 at Walter Reed Army Medical Center. When she enlisted in the U.S. Army, she didn’t know she would be back at Walter Reed 33 years later, with a brain injury, a hole in the cheek and a broken jaw.
Scott, 37, was injured on Nov. 14, 2003, after being deployed in Iraq for eight months. While driving a five-ton truck in a convoy, Scott suddenly lost control of the vehicle and thought it may be because she ran over a piece of glass or metal.
“I didn’t realize immediately that my vehicle along with myself had been struck by the explosive,” she said.
Time moved quickly after that. Scott said she immediately regained control of the vehicle, and brought the truck to a stop.
“I was kind of dazed so, my assistant driver was like, you know we need to move… we have just been hit, and I am just sitting here and thinking – did this really happen? - not realizing that I have a big hole in my face, I was bleeding profusely and my jaw was broken,” Sgt. Scott said.
She managed to transport the soldiers to their destination before getting medical attention. She was then flown from the Troop Medical Center to Baghdad and ended up in Walter Reed for a 50-stage reconstructive facial surgery.
Equal rights, equal risk
Scott is just one example of the many women in the military who face the same risks as men in the battle ground. In Iraq, almost any military position can be a target and the enemy is not clear. There is no way to hide from roadside and car bombs or from mortars.
Captain Kristin Dabbieri, 30, served as an Army medic in Iraq for one year and said that the Iraq War is different from previous ones in that women are more involved.
“[People] are saying we can’t be in combat roles; we are in combat service support roles. However we are involved in convoy operations, some of our medics are on the front line,” she said.
“So when they say combat, what is considered combat? They need to define a little bit that word, because as much as we were considered combat service, I felt like we were involved in like combat.”
There are currently 95 female U.S. soldiers who have been killed while serving in Iraq and nearly 500 have been wounded. There have already been more female casualties than in the Korean, Vietnam and the first Gulf War combined.
One reason for the larger number of female casualties is that women also make up more of the army. Currently, 15 percent of the military is female; almost double the rate from 25 years ago. Additionally, women make up 20 percent of new military recruits.
Women are now actively engaged in fighting in a way that American women have never been before, said Lory Manning, director of Women in the Military Project of the Women’s Research and Education Institute.
“So there are many of them who have bad wounds, more of them have been killed in combat operations, and they face the same kind of problems as men could with things like Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder,” Manning said.
“I didn’t know I was going through PTSD”
go here for the rest
http://americanobserver.net/2008/03/26/women-vets/
VA steps up effort to educate families on stress disorders
VA steps up effort to educate families on stress disorders
By Suzanne Bohan, STAFF WRITER
Article Created: 03/24/2008 02:34:33 AM PDT
PACIFICA — With roughly one in five soldiers or Marines serving in Iraq and Afghanistan developing post-traumatic stress disorder, and many of them remaining untreated, family members are the target for educational outreach by the Department of Veterans Affairs.
"I think it's crucial for (military) family members to be aware of the potential mental health problems of their loved ones," said Dr. Byron J. Wittlin, director of mental health services at the VA's San Bruno clinic.
As part of an emerging emphasis on training family members to spot signs of the disorder, Wittlin spoke Thursday evening to a group from the Pacifica Military Moms, a chapter of the national organization, The Blue Star Mothers of America.
Debbie Smyser, co-founder of the Pacifica group and a trainer at Genentech in South San Francisco, has a 21-year-old son in Iraq. Some members of the group also have offspring in Iraq or Afghanistan, and Smyser said they wanted to be prepared to help them if they return with mental distress.
"We need to know what to recognize, in case we need to get them help," she said. "It's just to make us aware and what signs to lookfor."
Post-traumatic stress disorder, or PTSD, is nothing new, emphasized Wittlin. It's a condition plaguing humans for millennia that now has a new name.
"It's been around for thousands of years," he told the group. "As long as there's been war, as long as there's been trauma." In World War II, the condition was called "shell shock," Wittlin added.
go here for the rest
http://www.insidebayarea.com/trivalleyherald/localnews/ci_8676561
By Suzanne Bohan, STAFF WRITER
Article Created: 03/24/2008 02:34:33 AM PDT
PACIFICA — With roughly one in five soldiers or Marines serving in Iraq and Afghanistan developing post-traumatic stress disorder, and many of them remaining untreated, family members are the target for educational outreach by the Department of Veterans Affairs.
"I think it's crucial for (military) family members to be aware of the potential mental health problems of their loved ones," said Dr. Byron J. Wittlin, director of mental health services at the VA's San Bruno clinic.
As part of an emerging emphasis on training family members to spot signs of the disorder, Wittlin spoke Thursday evening to a group from the Pacifica Military Moms, a chapter of the national organization, The Blue Star Mothers of America.
Debbie Smyser, co-founder of the Pacifica group and a trainer at Genentech in South San Francisco, has a 21-year-old son in Iraq. Some members of the group also have offspring in Iraq or Afghanistan, and Smyser said they wanted to be prepared to help them if they return with mental distress.
"We need to know what to recognize, in case we need to get them help," she said. "It's just to make us aware and what signs to lookfor."
Post-traumatic stress disorder, or PTSD, is nothing new, emphasized Wittlin. It's a condition plaguing humans for millennia that now has a new name.
"It's been around for thousands of years," he told the group. "As long as there's been war, as long as there's been trauma." In World War II, the condition was called "shell shock," Wittlin added.
go here for the rest
http://www.insidebayarea.com/trivalleyherald/localnews/ci_8676561
Illinois Warrior Assistance Program helping National Guardsmen as Veterans
Warrior Assistance Program Screens Returning Soldiers for TBI and PTSD
Barbara Kois
Monday March 24, 2008
The new Illinois Warrior Assistance Program is the first program of its kind in the U.S. to mandate screening of all Illinois National Guard members returning from Iraq and Afghanistan for traumatic brain injury (TBI).
The free screening is available to all Illinois veterans. The program also provides 24-hour toll-free confidential psychological counseling for any veteran who may suffer from post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD). Veterans' family members also can call the hotline.
The hotline is manned by master's level licensed clinicians, including some veterans, who are trained to administer the screening tool. Screening also can be conducted in all of the 51 Veteran Service Offices in the state by 73 Veteran Service officers — state employees who were trained extensively by clinicians from the Rehabilitation Institute of Chicago.
Felise Zollman, MD, the medical director of the Brain Injury Medicine and Rehabilitation Program at the Rehabilitation Institute of Chicago, was involved in devising the tool and the training for it.
"The screen was designed to be very sensitive and cast a wide net to identify any potential cases of brain injury so the person can go to a doctor for a definitive assessment. It can be administered in 10 minutes, much as one might get a blood pressure screening at a health fair," Zollman said. "Because many of the symptoms of brain injury are similar to those of PTSD, we can tell the person that it doesn't look like brain injury, but it might be a good idea to get a further assessment to see if PTSD is causing the symptoms."
click post title for the rest
Barbara Kois
Monday March 24, 2008
The new Illinois Warrior Assistance Program is the first program of its kind in the U.S. to mandate screening of all Illinois National Guard members returning from Iraq and Afghanistan for traumatic brain injury (TBI).
The free screening is available to all Illinois veterans. The program also provides 24-hour toll-free confidential psychological counseling for any veteran who may suffer from post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD). Veterans' family members also can call the hotline.
The hotline is manned by master's level licensed clinicians, including some veterans, who are trained to administer the screening tool. Screening also can be conducted in all of the 51 Veteran Service Offices in the state by 73 Veteran Service officers — state employees who were trained extensively by clinicians from the Rehabilitation Institute of Chicago.
Felise Zollman, MD, the medical director of the Brain Injury Medicine and Rehabilitation Program at the Rehabilitation Institute of Chicago, was involved in devising the tool and the training for it.
"The screen was designed to be very sensitive and cast a wide net to identify any potential cases of brain injury so the person can go to a doctor for a definitive assessment. It can be administered in 10 minutes, much as one might get a blood pressure screening at a health fair," Zollman said. "Because many of the symptoms of brain injury are similar to those of PTSD, we can tell the person that it doesn't look like brain injury, but it might be a good idea to get a further assessment to see if PTSD is causing the symptoms."
click post title for the rest
Christian McEachern crashing through PTSD walls
Former city soldier plans wilderness centre to battle PTSD
By GLENN KAUTH, Sun Media
Christian McEachern, a former member of the Princess Patricia’s Canadian Light Infantry who left the military in 2001. (Supplied photo)
A former Edmonton soldier – once so distressed he crashed an SUV into a garrison building – is the driving force behind plans for a new wilderness centre dedicated to helping fellow post-traumatic stress disorder sufferers battle their demons.
“It’s going to be geared towards using an adventure-therapy concept with the veterans,” said Christian McEachern, a former member of the Princess Patricia’s Canadian Light Infantry who left the military in 2001.
Earlier that year, McEachern drew attention to the issue of PTSD when he crashed the vehicle through the Edmonton Garrison headquarters. At the time, he lashed out at the military for doing too little to help soldiers with the disorder, which he had suffered from for years following service in Bosnia and Rwanda.
Since leaving the military, McEachern, 37, has been living in his hometown of Calgary. Now, after finishing a degree in ecotourism and outdoor leadership, his goal is to apply that knowledge to help his successors in the army by setting up an adventure centre in the mountains nearby.
go here for the rest
http://www.edmontonsun.com/News/Edmonton/2008/03/24/5090881.html
By GLENN KAUTH, Sun Media
Christian McEachern, a former member of the Princess Patricia’s Canadian Light Infantry who left the military in 2001. (Supplied photo)
A former Edmonton soldier – once so distressed he crashed an SUV into a garrison building – is the driving force behind plans for a new wilderness centre dedicated to helping fellow post-traumatic stress disorder sufferers battle their demons.
“It’s going to be geared towards using an adventure-therapy concept with the veterans,” said Christian McEachern, a former member of the Princess Patricia’s Canadian Light Infantry who left the military in 2001.
Earlier that year, McEachern drew attention to the issue of PTSD when he crashed the vehicle through the Edmonton Garrison headquarters. At the time, he lashed out at the military for doing too little to help soldiers with the disorder, which he had suffered from for years following service in Bosnia and Rwanda.
Since leaving the military, McEachern, 37, has been living in his hometown of Calgary. Now, after finishing a degree in ecotourism and outdoor leadership, his goal is to apply that knowledge to help his successors in the army by setting up an adventure centre in the mountains nearby.
go here for the rest
http://www.edmontonsun.com/News/Edmonton/2008/03/24/5090881.html
Daily Herald Non-combat Bush agenda propaganda
The propaganda never ends.
Wednesday, 26 March 2008
IN OUR VIEW: Measuring losses in Iraq
Daily Herald
The U.S. has passed a sad milestone in Iraq. The news media have had stories ready for days: "4,000th U.S. death in Iraq." And Americans should mourn every one.
But the numbers must be fully understood if we are to fully honor the fallen. Figures from the Defense Department's Defense Manpower Data Center show that hundreds or thousands of service personnel die every year, whether the United States is fighting a war or not.
Death strikes the armed forces, even in peacetime. In 1980, for example 2,392 active duty personnel died, most in accidents, but also from illness, homicide and suicide.
In the first five years of the Clinton administration, U.S. active duty military deaths totaled 5,119, a thousand more than the first five years of the Iraq war. Only one was from hostile action.
Yet politicians didn't howl about the death toll. TV commentators were silent as the 4,000th and 5,000th deaths were recorded. Activists didn't make demands.
There were headlines, sometimes -- usually small ones -- buried in the back pages. "Navy jet feared lost." "Two die in truck crash on Marine maneuvers." "Authorities investigate slaying of soldier."
Are these non-combat deaths somehow easier to accept? Of course. Combat deaths are viewed differently because (depending on your politics) they "didn't have to happen." Blame is assignable to political leaders.
Karl von Clausewitz was right when he said that war is politics by other means. And so the political objectives of war -- and the politicians who push them -- are properly subject to the roiling waves of domestic opinion.
Certainly, the politics of war are complex; and there are always detractors. Even World War II had its critics and pacifists. Only in hindsight do we all agree that the decision to go to war was correct in 1941. There are simply times that the consequences of avoiding war are worse than the consequences of war itself.
That may be the case with worldwide terrorism. The question is not the number of deaths but the purposes achieved. If the Iraq war helps to keep terrorists off our soil -- and by unseating Saddam Hussein it has, according to a detailed report by the Institute for Defense Analyses -- then it might be seen as a responsible move.
Life in the Army, Navy, Air Force and Marine Corps is always dangerous. Pilots land airplanes on ships at sea. Helicopters fly at night over rough terrain. Soldiers train with machine guns loaded with live ammo. Sometimes they just drive fast on bad roads or live in unsanitary conditions. And service personnel are largely young men, who tend toward risky behavior whether or not they're wearing a uniform.
Every year hundreds of young men and women will lose their lives in service of our country -- and will do so whether we are in Iraq or not.
We do not downplay the sacrifices made in combat. Accidents are quite different from deployment in places where an enemy is actively trying to kill you. Still, it's good remember that everyone in uniform is risking his or her life, whether in Anbar Province or up at Hill Air Force Base.
The scope of the losses in Iraq, while heart-wrenching, should not be measured against an impossible ideal in which service personnel are invulnerable. It should be measured against the risks we ask our men and women in uniform to take every day in war and peace.
More important, the losses in Iraq must be measured against gains. Yes, the Iraq war has seen blunders and tragedies; so does every war. It has also unseated a murderous tyrant, pushed another to give up nuclear weapons, and sent a fair number of fanatics to an early and well-deserved grave. It has also raised the hope that Iraq can become a foothold for democracy and a beacon of hope in the Mideast.
The best way to honor the 4,000 fallen is to do all that can be done to help their mission succeed.
As President Bush just said, "One day people will look back at this moment in history and say, 'Thank God there were courageous people willing to serve, because they laid the foundations for peace for generations to come.' I have vowed in the past, and I will vow so long as I'm president, to make sure that those lives were not lost in vain."
That is not just the president's responsibility, but also our own.
http://www.heraldextra.com/content/view/260014/3/
Non-combat deaths, let me count the ways this piece is a POS. First what is not even addressed is that there are 120 veterans committing suicide each and every week that are not counted. If they commit suicide while deployed, they are counted as a non-combat death however if they do it back in the states, they are not included, although they would not have committed suicide if they were not deployed, developed PTSD or other psychological illnesses, suffered the added stresses associated with serial deployments over and over again, were treated better by the DOD and the VA for the wounds they received not to mention treated better by the Bush administration when they are responsible for starting two military operations at the same time without providing for the wounded these two operations would cause.
To report the deaths of military members during the Clinton administration that were non-combat in comparison proves the desperation of the Bush supporters seeking to justify instead of address the problems this administration created.
Now for the big news, this piece also does not include those who have died in Afghanistan. I doubt they remember that Afghanistan is still going on and as of today there have been 490 US lives lost there. By 2001 there were 12 lives lost invading Afghanistan. This was a monumental accomplishment for the military forces in response to the attacks of 9-11 ordered by Osama from his base in Afghanistan. Never once do the Bush supporters mention or include the deaths from Afghanistan in any of their numbers while they consistently attempt to blend Iraq into those attacks when the fact is, there was no connection.
Here are the numbers out of Afghanistan;
2001 12
2002 49
2003 48
2004 52
2005 99
2006 98
2007 117
2008 15 in three months.
http://www.icasualties.org/oef/
Why they would avoid even mentioning Afghanistan deaths is astonishing. Why they would avoid the topic of suicides is even more astonishing but very educational. They do so because that would remind the public that Afghanistan is still going on, the Taliban are still seeking to take back territory and are doing so at the same time NATO took over operations there and have been screaming for more troops, more equipment and more plans to finally, once and for all accomplish the mission there.
I would really like to see where the figures stated about the non-combat deaths during the Clinton Administration came from. But here is an eye opener.
Military Casualty Information
ACTIVE DUTY MILITARY DEATHS. Calendar Years 1980 through 2006 ... of Total Deaths Per 100000 Strength - by Fiscal Year and Military Service, 1980-1999 ...
ACTIVE DUTY MILITARY DEATHS. Calendar Years 1980 through 2006 ... of Total Deaths Per 100000 Strength - by Fiscal Year and Military Service, 1980-1999 ...
On more thing to consider is that the numbers out of Iraq, are numbers out of Iraq only. Do you think they are counting the deaths of other military people not deployed into Iraq? Or those deployed to Afghanistan? No. While they want to cover their eyes to the fact they are not even counting any of them yet want us to look at what they want us to see, they think their propaganda will work. The problem with statistics is that they are only good when they include all figures available. If not they are just a bunch of numbers plucked out of thin air. When it comes to the desperation of the 'right" to support Bush instead of the troops, they are full of hot air! When will the lives of the troops matter to these people?
I don't know what the answer to Iraq is any more than I know what the answer to Afghanistan is but denial is not about to settle either occupation. Denial is not going to prevent the suicides in combat or because of combat either. It will not solve the problems the veterans face when they come home. Time to remove the blinders off these people before more and more of our troops pay the prices they should not have to pay.
Tuesday, March 25, 2008
Suicides and PTSD need to be inculded as price of war
Estimate: 120 Veteran Suicides Per Week
March 24, 2008
Email to a Friend Print Friendly VersionLate last year, a CBS News investigation found that in 2005 "there were at least 6,256 suicides among those who served in the armed forces. That's 120 each and every week, in just one year."
Last week, CBS News reported on data it had just obtained from the government on veterans who were recently treated by the Veterans Administration. In this limited sample, "two age groups stood out between 2000 and 2007. First, ages 20-24 -- those likely to have served during the Iraq-Afghan wars. Suicide attempts rose from 11 to 47. And for vets ages 55 to 59, suicide attempts jumped from 19 to 117."
Joyce and Kevin Lucey are the parents of Jeffrey Lucey, who committed suicide after being in Iraq for five months in 2004. Joyce Lucey said today: "My son was betrayed first by a government who sent him to war and then by the Veterans Administration for not giving him the treatment he needed. He and others died from this war but their names will never be on a memorial wall. "The letters we received from him were brief and sanitized. But to his girlfriend of six years, he said in April of 2003 he felt he had done immoral things and that he wanted to erase the last month of his life. 'There are things I wouldn't want to tell you or my parents, because I don't want you to be worried. Even if I did tell you, you'd probably think I was just exaggerating. I would never want to fight in a war again. I've seen and done enough horrible things to last me a lifetime.'"
Kevin Lucey said today: "Jeffrey had Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder, but PTSD is not so much a mental dysfunction as a normal response to an abnormal situation. Jeffrey refused to go to the VA due to the stigma associated with it. We finally got him to the VA, but after he committed suicide, the VA wouldn't give us all his medical records, claiming a Freedom of Information Act exemption. We finally managed to get the records -- Jeffrey had told them how he was thinking of committing suicide and they put him down as a moderate risk." Joyce and Kevin Lucey testified at the recent Winter Soldier conference.
Audio of their testimony is available online, as is video of various testimony.
go here for the rest
While the Vietnam Memorial Wall contains over 58,000 names, it does not include the names of all who died in service to this nation. We need to begin to ask ourselves how we can separate out the ultimate sacrifices made to decide who is worthy of inclusion in the death count and who is not.
Over the years there have been many statements made by military people concerning suicides. The classifications of combat and non-combat deaths provides two classes of deaths and supports the view of some that when the death occurs because of suicide, they did it to themselves and should not be honored. It never dawns on them that had it not been for the combat operation they were deployed to, the wound of PTSD would not have taken all hope away from them to the point where death seemed the only treatment they could obtain to erase the memories, the flashbacks and end the nightmares. The fact that PTSD comes after trauma never enters their own minds. The suicide of a soldier is a life lost because of combat, because of service and they should not be regarded as substandard.
The names on the wall do not include those who committed suicide after Vietnam. The 117,000 who committed suicide by 1986 are not on the Wall. Two studies released after placed the number between 150,000 and 200,000. Can you imagine the Wall containing over 250,000 names? My husband's nephew's name is not on the Wall. He committed suicide.
Today we are seeing 120 per week committing suicide and most of the names you will never know. It is easy to avoid acknowledging the true price of war being paid when we do not honor all of them equally. Some say that to be shot or blown up by a bomb is more worthy than to be wounded by witnessing it and then having your mind so filled with the horror you die as a result of that wound.
Until we face the fact that PTSD is a wound and honor it, treat it as aggressively as we do physical wounds, we will continue to lose more and more everyday of the year. We saw the newspapers with the count of 4,000 deaths in Iraq, yet did not see any mention of how many died in Afghanistan, the other occupation in the War on Terror. We did not see any mention of those who committed suicide after they had returned home and were supposed to be safe from harm. There is too much we do not see because we choose not to.
There were many more deaths associated with Agent Orange and their names are not included on any memorial while the fact exposure to AO would not have happened if they did not serve this nation and were exposed to it. Today AO has been replaced by depleted uranium. The ravages of these chemical weapons does not stop with the veteran but is carried on for generations within their children and birth defects. Most prices paid we do not count and do not face.
Chaplain Kathie Costos
Namguardianangel@aol.com
www.Namguardianangel.org
www.Namguardianangel.blogspot.com
www.Woundedtimes.blogspot.com
"The willingness with which our young people are likely to serve in any war, no matter how justified, shall be directly proportional to how they perceive veterans of early wars were treated and appreciated by our nation." - George Washington
Monday, March 24, 2008
The Voice, Women At War new video
I just put up the new video The Voice, Women at War. If you want to learn some history of women in war time, it will open your eyes. They were not all just "nurses" as some fools want to believe. A lot of them made history. The video is on the right side of the blog.
Women have fought in war since before the days of Joan of Arc.
She led the French army army at 17 and died at only 19 years old in 1431 when
the court convicted her of heresy and she was burned at the stake by the English.
Robert Shirtliffe, born Deborah Samson, joined the Army in October of 1778 at Plymouth Massachusetts for the whole term of the war and served in the company of Captain Nathan Thayer of Medway, Massachusetts for three years.
Clara Barton worked in the Civil War, first collecting medical supplies and then on the battlefield and in hospitals. She went on to found the American Red Cross.
The population of women veterans numbered 1,731,125 as of 2006
Alabama 31,678
Alaska 6,950
Arizona 43,212
Arkansas 18,143
California 164,810
Colorado 36,294
Connecticut 14,722
Delaware 5,940
District of Columbia 3,261
Florida 132,723
Georgia 69,718
Hawaii 8,478
Idaho 9,660
Illinois 53,468
Indiana 32,620
Iowa 13,865
Kansas 16,137
Kentucky 22,468
Louisiana 27,526
Maine 9,358
Maryland 44,078
Massachusetts 28,096
Michigan 48,188
Minnesota 23,166
Mississippi 18,339
Missouri 35,370
Montana 7,114
Nebraska 10,899
Nevada 19,574
New Hampshire 8,382
New Jersey 30,478
New Mexico 14,742
New York 66,730
North Carolina 61,420
North Dakota 3,622
Ohio 63,256
Oklahoma 24,137
Oregon 25,401
Pennsylvania 63,279
Puerto Rico 7,086
Rhode Island 5,393
South Carolina 32,702
South Dakota 5,063
Tennessee 37,911
Texas 134,949
Utah 9,290
Vermont 3,750
Virginia 75,129
Washington 50,385
West Virginia 10,650
Wisconsin 27,571
Wyoming 3,866
Source: Department of Veterans Affairs, VetPop0
While some people, men mostly, want to say women are only nurses, they need to take a look at the history of women who have in fact fought for this country. As for the "nurse" comment they love to make I'd like to see what would happen if they were not willing to go into a combat zone to take care of the wounded.
Women are as important in times of war as males are. What makes all of this worse for them is that they not only suffer the same kinds of trauma as males do, too many of them suffer sexual trauma.
Take a look at this video and if you do need the strength in numbers of the women veterans, you are heading for a real eye opener because they are getting organized. They are no longer going to accept being treated as anything less than a veteran.
The United Female Veterans of America is having a meeting in June in St. Louis. I did this video for them. If you are a female veteran, make sure you attend this meeting and find others who were willing to serve, did serve and see what other heroes look like. This nation if filled with them from the Navy, Army, Air Force, Marines, National Guards and all the wars this nation has engaged in. Some are wounded, some have medals but as with the saying about Vietnam, "All gave some, some gave all."
I will be at the meeting on June 27th and look forward to seeing as many women who have served as possible. I want to shake your hand and say thank you. I am not a veteran. I'm married to a Vietnam veteran and he's the reason I got into all of this 25 years ago. All of you have captured my heart.
Chaplain Kathie Costos
Namguardianangel@aol.com
www.Namguardianangel.org
www.Namguardianangel.blogspot.com
www.Woundedtimes.blogspot.com
"The willingness with which our young people are likely to serve in any war, no matter how justified, shall be directly proportional to how they perceive veterans of early wars were treated and appreciated by our nation." - George Washington
4,000 Big news but what about the rest?
4,000 gone but there are so many more. Why the fixation on just what is happening in Iraq and not in Afghanistan as well? Or those who have died back home because of PTSD and suicide? Do they not matter? As the administration love to blend the two occupations together it would be a great thing if they even acknowledge Afghanistan or the fact we lost 490 there as well. Were their lives no less worthy or less of a sacrifice? How about the sons, husbands, wives, daughters who also lost their lives because they were wounded in service to this nation by PTSD? Seems that 6,000 a year merit some attention within all of this. 4,000 is a tragic number but it does not come close to the true price being paid by those who serve.
The following is from Stars and Stripes. In it you'll read what some have to say about what they are doing there. I selected these two because they seem to sum up what I'm thinking as well.
From Stars and Stripes
They do all need to be remembered. It's very difficult when the media paid only 3% to reporting on it because their time has been taken up with the economy and the election. You'd think they would find some time to pay more attention to Iraq and at least some attention on Afghanistan but the American public seems to think that Afghanistan is either part of Iraq or has been over a long time ago. You can't really blame them. They have no interest in looking into what is going on with our men and women serving this country because if they cared, they would find the time. The most attention the media has paid on Iraq happens when it is an easy number to report on and they like to round it off to the nearest thousand.
The other thing we heard of from the media is the term "in vain" and when you get right down to it, they didn't die in vain or serve in vain. They were willing to lay down their lives for what their country asked them to do and for those they served with. What they were not willing to do was to be used, abused, abandoned there and then abandoned right back home when they are forced to fight to have their wounds tended to and their lost incomes replaced so they could provide for their own families.
I keep saying that people who know what's going on do really care, but there are very few who really do. It's very sad.
The following is from Stars and Stripes. In it you'll read what some have to say about what they are doing there. I selected these two because they seem to sum up what I'm thinking as well.
From Stars and Stripes
It’s not that troops are oblivious to the cost.
“That’s 4,000 families without a son or husband or wife or daughter,” said G Troop First Sgt. James Adcock, 32, of Beeville, Texas. “They all need to be remembered, but the guys who served with them are never going to forget, and that’s what’s important. We don’t need a running tally to remind us we’re in a dangerous job.”
The meaning of the 4,000th death was open to interpretation.
Maj. Chuck McGregor, a Marine Corps reservist who commands Military Transition Team 131 in Diyala province, took the occasion to criticize the influence of companies working under contract in Iraq.
“If soldiers and Marines are dying to support these contracts then something is wrong,” he said.
“There’s an obnoxious number of contracts out here and money being poured into missions that are half-baked. I hope the next administration has a better approach to keeping peace here and abroad than this one.”
go here for the rest
http://www.stripes.com/article.asp?section=104&article=53571
They do all need to be remembered. It's very difficult when the media paid only 3% to reporting on it because their time has been taken up with the economy and the election. You'd think they would find some time to pay more attention to Iraq and at least some attention on Afghanistan but the American public seems to think that Afghanistan is either part of Iraq or has been over a long time ago. You can't really blame them. They have no interest in looking into what is going on with our men and women serving this country because if they cared, they would find the time. The most attention the media has paid on Iraq happens when it is an easy number to report on and they like to round it off to the nearest thousand.
The other thing we heard of from the media is the term "in vain" and when you get right down to it, they didn't die in vain or serve in vain. They were willing to lay down their lives for what their country asked them to do and for those they served with. What they were not willing to do was to be used, abused, abandoned there and then abandoned right back home when they are forced to fight to have their wounds tended to and their lost incomes replaced so they could provide for their own families.
I keep saying that people who know what's going on do really care, but there are very few who really do. It's very sad.
Remains found of Ronald Withrow and John Roy Young in Iraq
FBI recovers remains of two US contractors in Iraq
24 Mar 2008 19:52:52 GMT
Source: Reuters
WASHINGTON, March 24 (Reuters) - The FBI said on Monday it had identified and recovered the remains of two kidnapped U.S. security contractors in Iraq.
They were identified as Ronald Withrow of Roaring Springs, Texas, who worked for JPI Worldwide when kidnapped on Jan. 5, 2007, and John Roy Young of Kansas City, Missouri, who worked for Crescent Security Group when kidnapped on Nov. 16, 2006.
FBI spokesman Richard Kolko said the bodies were found and turned over to the FBI in Iraq over the weekend, and that the families of the two men were notified late on Sunday night.
The FBI said in a statement that it "will continue to aggressively investigate every available lead in order to identify, apprehend, and bring to justice those responsible for this heinous criminal act."
http://www.alertnet.org/thenews/newsdesk/N24205951.htm
24 Mar 2008 19:52:52 GMT
Source: Reuters
WASHINGTON, March 24 (Reuters) - The FBI said on Monday it had identified and recovered the remains of two kidnapped U.S. security contractors in Iraq.
They were identified as Ronald Withrow of Roaring Springs, Texas, who worked for JPI Worldwide when kidnapped on Jan. 5, 2007, and John Roy Young of Kansas City, Missouri, who worked for Crescent Security Group when kidnapped on Nov. 16, 2006.
FBI spokesman Richard Kolko said the bodies were found and turned over to the FBI in Iraq over the weekend, and that the families of the two men were notified late on Sunday night.
The FBI said in a statement that it "will continue to aggressively investigate every available lead in order to identify, apprehend, and bring to justice those responsible for this heinous criminal act."
http://www.alertnet.org/thenews/newsdesk/N24205951.htm
Train military to act like first responders
When a police officer is involved with a murder or a shoot out, they are debriefed and provide details of the incident. They are then debriefed to be able to talk about it from a personal level with a trauma responder. Yes, I'm talking about Chaplains. They go out when firefighters return from a fire when there was a loss of life. Emergency responders handling accidents and natural disasters are debriefed in the same way. While they are looking out for people, the Chaplains are looking out for them. So why isn't this being done in the military?
The troops need to be able to talk about this instead of just pushing it back in their minds. If they do not deal with what they experienced, they will only add to it the next time they go through something horrific and once again repeat it with silence and shock.
I was having lunch with a friend today and we were talking about a report she heard on NPR.
When they are heading home, the family wants them home as soon as possible, but what they do not understand is the rush to get back together is not the best thing that can happen sometimes.
One of the biggest things you'll hear Vietnam veterans say is that one day they were in Vietnam and the next day they were home. Home and expected to eat at the dinner table, take a shower in privacy, plop down in the chair with the TV remote in hand and just get back to normal. Some will have parties given in their honor so that family and friends can welcome them home and give them a hug, but even they expect the veteran to be right back to the way they were before they left. Someone in the group will be looking for signs that they are not the same. They do not do this in a proactive way in order to help, but in a way that will enable them to use the change as a way to cause harm. There is one jerk in every group and usually a couple within some families.
The WWII generation came home the slow way. They went on ships and were able to adapt to what they were going to face, talking to others about their fears and their human emotions. They returned the same way, slowly, again on ships and sharing what they had just been through. WWII, as with all other wars had delivered many with the extra wound of PTSD but it is thought the ability to debrief with others who had experienced the same traumas, compare them and address them aided in the recovery. In other words, no one had a chance to just push it all into the back of their minds. It could have helped but it may have had more to do with the fact that psychological problems were "stuffed" back in the brain and most people just didn't talk about any of it. When they did talk about it, it didn't make the news but was kept as a closely guarded secret.
Talk to children of WWII veterans and you will usually hear the same story. "My father drank too much." "My father never talked about anything." "He never cared what I did." All along those lines and what was at the bottom of it was the war brought home in their mind. It happened in the generations before that and after that. Korean War veterans kept their minds closely guarded as well but many of them said they thought that was what they were supposed to do because they used the WWII veterans as an example.
When Vietnam veterans came back they were alone.
Now we have them coming back from Iraq and Afghanistan on jets and right back home within days from combat. They come home with their units but they do not use this time to rehash what happened. They use it to talk about what they will do when they get home. They should be sharing what they are bringing back with them before they get home.
Once people talk about what is going on inside of them, they stop PTSD from getting worse. Like an infection, it stops spreading once it is treated. Even just talking about what happened helps to treat PTSD. Many will need the help of a psychologist and a psychiatrist to issue medication but the talking about it with people they trust helps and it especially helps when you know the person they are talking to walked in the same shoes.
As we deal with the emergency responders right here in this country taking care of the rest of us, we need to stop ignoring the troops who need the same kind of attention. We need to begin to debrief them as soon as possible or we will allow the wound to spread.
Chaplain Kathie Costos
Namguardianangel@aol.com
www.Namguardianangel.org
www.Namguardianangel.blogspot.com
www.Woundedtimes.blogspot.com
"The willingness with which our young people are likely to serve in any war, no matter how justified, shall be directly proportional to how they perceive veterans of early wars were treated and appreciated by our nation."
- George Washington
The troops need to be able to talk about this instead of just pushing it back in their minds. If they do not deal with what they experienced, they will only add to it the next time they go through something horrific and once again repeat it with silence and shock.
I was having lunch with a friend today and we were talking about a report she heard on NPR.
Dealing with Post Traumatic Stress After War
March 20, 2008 · Many active duty soldiers and veterans of the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan return home with nightmares, flashbacks, and emotional hypersensitivity. Some of them are diagnosed with post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD).
News & Notes , March 20, 2008 · Many active duty soldiers and veterans of the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan return home with nightmares, flashbacks, and emotional hypersensitivity. Some of them are diagnosed with post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD).
Farai Chideya talks with June Moss, who served in Iraq in 2003 and was released from the Army two years later on early medical retirement due to her PTSD.
We also hear from Dr. Robert Jenkins, an attending psychologist at the Men's Trauma Recovery Program at the National Center for PTSD in Menlo Park's Department of Veteran Affairs Division.
When they are heading home, the family wants them home as soon as possible, but what they do not understand is the rush to get back together is not the best thing that can happen sometimes.
One of the biggest things you'll hear Vietnam veterans say is that one day they were in Vietnam and the next day they were home. Home and expected to eat at the dinner table, take a shower in privacy, plop down in the chair with the TV remote in hand and just get back to normal. Some will have parties given in their honor so that family and friends can welcome them home and give them a hug, but even they expect the veteran to be right back to the way they were before they left. Someone in the group will be looking for signs that they are not the same. They do not do this in a proactive way in order to help, but in a way that will enable them to use the change as a way to cause harm. There is one jerk in every group and usually a couple within some families.
The WWII generation came home the slow way. They went on ships and were able to adapt to what they were going to face, talking to others about their fears and their human emotions. They returned the same way, slowly, again on ships and sharing what they had just been through. WWII, as with all other wars had delivered many with the extra wound of PTSD but it is thought the ability to debrief with others who had experienced the same traumas, compare them and address them aided in the recovery. In other words, no one had a chance to just push it all into the back of their minds. It could have helped but it may have had more to do with the fact that psychological problems were "stuffed" back in the brain and most people just didn't talk about any of it. When they did talk about it, it didn't make the news but was kept as a closely guarded secret.
Talk to children of WWII veterans and you will usually hear the same story. "My father drank too much." "My father never talked about anything." "He never cared what I did." All along those lines and what was at the bottom of it was the war brought home in their mind. It happened in the generations before that and after that. Korean War veterans kept their minds closely guarded as well but many of them said they thought that was what they were supposed to do because they used the WWII veterans as an example.
When Vietnam veterans came back they were alone.
Now we have them coming back from Iraq and Afghanistan on jets and right back home within days from combat. They come home with their units but they do not use this time to rehash what happened. They use it to talk about what they will do when they get home. They should be sharing what they are bringing back with them before they get home.
Once people talk about what is going on inside of them, they stop PTSD from getting worse. Like an infection, it stops spreading once it is treated. Even just talking about what happened helps to treat PTSD. Many will need the help of a psychologist and a psychiatrist to issue medication but the talking about it with people they trust helps and it especially helps when you know the person they are talking to walked in the same shoes.
As we deal with the emergency responders right here in this country taking care of the rest of us, we need to stop ignoring the troops who need the same kind of attention. We need to begin to debrief them as soon as possible or we will allow the wound to spread.
Chaplain Kathie Costos
Namguardianangel@aol.com
www.Namguardianangel.org
www.Namguardianangel.blogspot.com
www.Woundedtimes.blogspot.com
"The willingness with which our young people are likely to serve in any war, no matter how justified, shall be directly proportional to how they perceive veterans of early wars were treated and appreciated by our nation."
- George Washington
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