Jacob Sexton Military Suicide Prevention Act

This is based on what is in Donnelly's heart but he is wrong. It may have the opposite results. He mentioned that most do not express their feelings before committing suicide. Why? Why don't they talk about it? Because they feel they cannot or it really won't matter if they do. With all these years of "training" to prevent suicide, don't you think it is time they change what they have been doing?

This is my comment.

"Fit to serve" will prevent them from admitting they need help. I know it sounds good but you have to remember some of these men and women cheat on tests so they can stay in. They do not want to leave where they always wanted to be. Remember, they wanted to join and most never thought of doing anything else. They need to know why they have PTSD and understand it is not their fault. They are not weak but have strong ability to care. The DOD and VA have to undo damage done first.

Donnely mentioned that many of them had not been deployed but did not discuss the fact that training is very traumatic and they hear about the amputations along with deaths from IED. If those who served in combat do not feel comfortable talking, how do they expect those who have not been deployed to talk? They got the message that if they trained right, their brains would be tough enough. In other words that message translated into if they have problems, it is their fault and they are mentally weak. If they thought this "training" would encourage communication, it prevented it instead.

Donnelly Introduces First Bill: The Jacob Sexton Military Suicide Prevention
Apr 25, 2013

This morning, Sen. Donnelly introduced his first bill, the Jacob Sexton Military Suicide Prevention Act of 2013. This bill would establish a pilot program in each of the military services and reserve components to integrate annual mental health assessments into a servicemember's Periodic Health Assessment and identify risk factors for mental illness so that servicemembers can access preventative care. It is named after a member of the Indiana National Guard, Jacob Sexton, who tragically took his own life in 2009 while home on a 15-day leave from Afghanistan. Sen. Donnelly's hope is that we can help men and women like Jacob who are struggling with mental health issues and get them the help they need before they resort to taking their own life.

Read THE WARRIOR SAW, SUICIDES AFTER WAR and learn what I am talking about.

Taming The Fire Within

At the Point Man Ministries tent during the reunion today, I was a handed a copy of this book to take a look at. After two paragraphs reading Greeks, Romans and first responders, I was hooked but the owner of the book wouldn't let me take it because it was signed by the author to him. This book is now on my list to review and this woman is now on my bucket list to interview.

I keep talking about the different types of PTSD and how they all need to be treated differently. Anne Freund not only works for the VA, she is a specialist in PTSD and worked with law enforcement with Critical Incidence Stress Debriefing! I have to meet her someday soon. WOW, she seems to be exactly what I have been talking about there needs to be more of.

"Taming the Fire Within: Life After War is a paperback book of approx. 260 pages with a color photograph on almost every page, from all different wars ranging from the Civil War to the present. The book is written for all generations of warriors in a down to earth, straightforward style. It discusses and explains the natural reactions virtually all war veterans experience after they return from the war zone. This book will be helpful not only for the veteran, but their family members as well.

Anne Freund, Ph.D. is a licensed clinical psychologist who has been practicing since 1989. She graduated from Duke University with a Bachelor’s in Psychology and from the University of Florida with a Ph.D. in Clinical Psychology. Dr. Freund completed her internship at the VA in Bay Pines, FL.

She has been with the Department of Veterans Affairs since 2005. Prior to that she worked with law enforcement and first responders as part of a Critical Incidence Stress Debriefing Team. Dr. Freund began conducting PTSD support groups in 2005, shortly after arriving at the VA.

She has had specialized training in PTSD at the National Center for PTSD in Menlo Park, California and at the Center for Deployment Psychology at the Uniformed Services University of the Health Sciences in Bethesda, Maryland. Dr Freund is a member of the American Psychological Association, the International Society for Traumatic Stress, European Society for Stress Studies, and the Association of VA Psychologist Leaders.

Wounded dog handler heading home with best friend

Wounded dog handler heading home with best friend
I Marine Expeditionary Force
Story by Cpl. Joshua Young
Cpl. Joshua Young April 26, 2013

Jony, an eight-year-old Belgian Malinois and specialized search and explosive detection dog, hides out in the shade at Camp Pendleton, Calif., April 25, 2013. Jony, who went through a surgery the day before, is preparing to be adopted by his handler, Sgt. Brian Riddle, a military working dog handler with Headquarters and Support Company, 1st Law Enforcement Battalion.

CAMP PENDLETON, Calif. - The 23-year-old sergeant’s voice breaks as he pauses to collect his thoughts on how to express his feelings for his fallen friends. The names of his comrades are engraved on his “KIA” Bracelets, which now sit on a table adorned with military memorabilia and memories of friends he’s served with.

“Every day you wake up is a blessing in itself,” said Sgt. Brian Riddle, a military working dog handler with Headquarters and Support Company, 1st Law Enforcement Battalion. “Every day I wake up is another day that they’re not going to, so I live my life as they would live theirs.”

Riddle, who served two combat deployments in Afghanistan, is currently recovering from injuries at the Hope and Care Center in Camp Pendleton, Calif. The two-time Purple Heart recipient was injured in both deployments.

He took a bullet to the chest, which deflected off of the protective plates in his flak jacket and ripped across his chin and neck on April 10, 2010. In a terrible, almost anniversary-style fashion, Riddle was hit two years later by a mortar round which severely damaged his right hip and caused shrapnel damage to his face on April 22, 2012.
read more here

Plane crash kills four American service members in Afghanistan

The Pentagon said all four victims were airmen: Captain Brandon Cyr, 28, of Woodbridge, Virginia; Captain Reid Nishizuka, 30, of Kailua, Hawaii; Staff Sergeant Daniel Fannin, 30, of Morehead, Kentucky; and Staff Sergeant Richard Dickson, 24, of Rancho Cordova, California.

UPDATE April 29, 2013
Capt. Brandon L. Cyr, 28, an Air Force pilot who had hundreds of hours of combat flying experience, and listed Woodbridge as his home town, was killed Saturday in a plane crash in Afghanistan, the Pentagon said.

People who knew him recalled his sense of humor, his thoughtfulness and his dedication to a challenging job.

Plane crash kills four American service members in Afghanistan
By Courtney Kube
Pentagon Producer
NBC News April 27, 2013

Four American service members were killed Saturday in an airplane crash in southern Afghanistan, a U.S. military official said.

The cause of the crash is under investigation, but the International Security Assistance Force said in a brief statement that initial reports indicated the crash did not involve enemy activity.
read more here

Vietnam Veterans Reunion in Melbourne Florida

Just got back from the Veterans Reunion in Melbourne Florida. As always it was a great event and huge crowds. Here are some of the pictures. The video will be cut later.

Larry Shook Point Man Ocala












These pictures were taken by Jody Barker