Soldiers in WTU with PTSD degraded and told to "man up"

Why do they not go for help? Why do they feel as if there is still a reason to be ashamed? The answer is because of the attitude of too many in the military.

"Howard said the WTU medical staff tried to help but the unit’s non-medical commanders treated him more like a drunk and a troublemaker who needed to be punished, not a soldier suffering from PTSD who needed compassion."

This is the result of "resilience training" telling them it was their fault. When brass told soldiers it is to make them mentally tough, that meant they were mentally weak. When brass told them this, it was because of what they actually believed no matter how many years have proven them wrong.

Injured Heroes, Broken Promises: Injured Soldiers Question Training of WTU Leaders
Soldier with PTSD questions being given leadership role inside WTU
NBC 5 and Dallas Morning News
By Scott Friedman, Eva Parks and David Tarrant
November 24, 2014

NBC 5 Investigates found hundreds of injured soldiers complain of harassment and verbal abuse inside the Army’s Warrior Transition Unit’s (WTUs) that were designed to help active duty soldiers heal.

Now, more questions have surfaced about how the Army chooses WTU commanders and how much training they’re receiving to care for injured soldiers.

NBC 5 Investigates teamed up with The Dallas Morning News for a six month investigation to uncover stunning allegations described by soldiers recovering in Texas from the wounds of war.

Spc. Michael Howard returned home to Texas Dec. 24, 2011. It was the moment every family waits for. “Life was perfect that day,” said Robin Howard, Michael’s wife.

But for Robin and Michael Howard, the homecoming wasn’t the happy ending it appeared to be.

Michael Howard served as an Army medic in Southeastern Iraq and the images of combat traveled home with him.

Suffering from post-traumatic stress he tried to erase the memories by self-medicating with alcohol to get rid of the pain.

The Army sent Howard to the Warrior Transition Unit at Fort Hood, which is one of more than 20 special units created across the country to treat mentally and physically injured soldiers.

When Howard first arrived at the unit he said he was expecting to find relief but instead found nothing but stress.

Howard said the WTU medical staff tried to help but the unit’s non-medical commanders treated him more like a drunk and a troublemaker who needed to be punished, not a soldier suffering from PTSD who needed compassion.

He said commanders told him to “man-up” and “get over it,” even calling him degrading and offensive names.
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Part One

PTSD: Special agent who was in JFK motorcade still haunted

There is an answer to a question veterans say when asked "When were you in Vietnam?" The answer says it all, "Last night."

The following is a great story on a part of our history few people think about. The men and women there the day President Kennedy was assassinated on a Dallas street. I encourage you to read it. The only problem I have with it is when the reporter says "PTSD they are just now..." as if no one ever talked about it before. Fascinating how little reporters know about a topic before they open their mouths.

Agent Suffering From PTSD After JFK Assassination Honored In Tulsa
NEWS ON 6
ALLISON HARRIS
Posted: Nov 20, 2014

TULSA, Oklahoma - Nearly 51 years since the assassination of John F. Kennedy, the special agent who was in the motorcade with the president is still haunted.

It's a day that has stayed with Clint Hill for decades as he suffered from post-traumatic stress disorder, something he's now helping other service members deal with.

Thursday, he was honored in Tulsa.

November 22, 1963 is still difficult for Hill to talk about; he's been dealing with pain ever since, but now he's helping other service members deal with similar issues.

More than 50 years later, Hill still gets emotional when recalling what Jacqueline Kennedy said to him moments after John F. Kennedy was shot.

"Oh Jack. Oh Jack, what have they done? I have his brains in my hand. I love you, Jack. That's all she said," Hill recalled.

Hill is the special agent in the iconic video, jumping into the president's limousine to shield him.

"I saw the president. He grabbed at his throat, he moved to his left. It was very unusual activity. I knew something had happened. Something was wrong," Hill said.

He remembers every detail of that day.
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VA Doctor's Answer to PTSD, More Pills, Less Talk

Since I already popped my cork today I will not add more to this.

Dr. Suris is the Chief of Psychiatry of Mental Health at Dallas’ VA Medical Center. Her research into a more efficient PTSD treatment has been called promising because it does not dwell on the traumatic memory.

“You come in and you have a 30 second exposure to your trauma,” Dr. Suris said. “That 30 second exposure is paired with a medication that we know is safe. We’re trying to interfere with that emotional connection. So you don’t lose the memory of the trauma, at all. But, you lose how you respond to that trauma. So if you think about your trauma, you’re not upset. It’s a fact.”

Enough said

Firefighters Shower Plane of Army Reservist Back from Afghanistan

UPDATE
Video: Firefighter welcomed home from Afghanistan deployment
Firefighters took up donations to send him packages with special treats and even a fire department flag to remind him of home
Fort Worth Star-Telegram

DALLAS — Arlington firefighter Ryan Pugh, a specialist in the Army Reserve, received a wet welcome home Thursday after a nearly year-long deployment in Afghanistan.

In a “shower of affection,” fire engines shot sprays of water over the top of Pugh’s plane moments before it pulled into a gate at Dallas/Fort Worth Airport, where family, friends and fellow firefighters gathered to celebrate his long-awaited arrival.

After reuniting with his fiancée, his parents and his older brother, Pugh said he was pleasantly surprised to see so many of his Arlington Fire Department friends and colleagues also waiting for him with hugs and handshakes.
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Arlington firefighters welcome home one of their own from Afghanistan
Star Telegram
BY SUSAN SCHROCK
September 18, 2014

DFW AIRPORT — Arlington firefighter Ryan Pugh, a specialist in the Army Reserve, received a wet welcome home Thursday after a nearly yearlong deployment in Afghanistan.

In a “shower of affection,” fire engines shot sprays of water over the top of Pugh’s plane moments before it pulled into a gate at Dallas/Fort Worth Airport, where family, friends and fellow firefighters gathered to celebrate his long-awaited arrival.

After reuniting with his fiancee, his parents and his older brother, Pugh said he was pleasantly surprised to see so many of his Arlington Fire Department friends and colleagues also waiting for him with hugs and handshakes.

“I missed those guys terribly. I’m overwhelmed by it,” said Pugh, who served in Kabul with the 302nd Military Police Company. “I definitely feel the love and support.”

Arlington firefighters regularly took up donations to send Pugh care packages with treats such as Crystal Light drink mix packets and Oreo cookies, even a Fire Department flag to remind him of home.
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Vietnam Veteran shot by police in Dallas

Neighbors Defend Dallas Officers Who Shot Vietnam Veteran
CBS
September 27, 2013

DALLAS (CBSDFW.COM) - An East Dallas homeowner was killed in an officer-involved shooting at about 7:45 p.m. Thursday night after he allegedly shot and killed a man he said was trying to rob him.

Police said William Hall, 57, shot Jerry Hale at his home on Plummer Drive near I-635E. Hall was a Vietnam Veteran.

Hale was trying to break into Hall’s garage, according to police when they arrived. When Hall pointed his gun at police, refusing to drop it — officers opened fire.

“The cops repeated it 20-25 times put the gun down put the gun down. All of sudden he cocked it, pointed the gun and they just… they had to do what they had to do,” said Juan Garcia, who lives in the neighborhood.
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Daughters say patient safety compromised at Dallas VA Hospital

Daughters say patient safey compromised at Dallas VA Hospital
WFAA
by BRETT SHIPP
Posted on June 10, 2013

NEWS 8 INVESTIGATES
Patient safety at the Dallas Veterans Administration Hospital is again being called into question.

Considered to be the agency's worst facility in 2004, the Dallas VA Hospital has received more than 30 certification agency complaints in the last three years.

And now, there are two more.

Two daughters agreed to discuss the deaths of their fathers and the conditions they say no veteran should have to endure.

The Veterans Administration is the largest health care system in the nation, serving more than eight million veterans a year. VA officials in Washington D.C. pledge “to never compromise the safety, security or well-being of veterans."

Sydney Schoellman says the government has shattered that pledge.
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Quadruple amputee Staff Sgt. Travis Mills focus of new documentary

Documentary on Vassar soldier Travis Mills filming in Texas, aims to highlight life after loss of limbs
MLive Michigan
By Jessica Fleischman
March 02, 2013

VASSAR, MI — Vassar's local hero, Travis Mills, has been getting attention and support from plenty of sources since April 2012, when he was injured by an IED while stationed in Afghanistan, losing all four of his limbs.

One of those sources was a filmmaker interested in telling the story of the army staff sergeant, who is one of only five military personnel members to survive the loss of both arms and legs during the Iraq and Afghanistan wars.

'Travis: A Soldier's Story,' is currently filming in Dallas, Texas, where Mills and his wife Kelsey have traveled to work with Fotolanthropy.com filmmaker Katie Norris, who is producing a documentary short focusing on Mills' wounds, his recovery, and his family life.
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Quadruple amputee Staff Sgt. Travis Mills gets hero's welome home

Prosecutor gunned down outside Texas courthouse

Prosecutor gunned down outside Texas courthouse
By Michael Martinez and Rich Phillips
CNN
updated 3:59 PM EST, Thu January 31, 2013

STORY HIGHLIGHTS
NEW: "We have officers going over all of this case," a sheriff's spokeswoman says
NEW: The FBI has joined the manhunt, the bureau says
Mark Hasse was an assistant district attorney in Kaufman County, east of Dallas
He was shot and killed while getting out of his car, spokeswoman says

(CNN) -- A manhunt is under way in Texas for whoever gunned down a prosecutor outside a county courthouse east of Dallas on Thursday morning, authorities said.

Mark Hasse, an assistant district attorney in Kaufman County, was fatally shot several times as he got out of his car in the courthouse parking lot, sheriff's spokeswoman Pat Laney told CNN.

Investigators are looking for an older-model, four-door sedan, either brown or silver, but it wasn't clear whether there were one or two suspects Thursday afternoon, Laney said.
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Marines and Bikers Toys for Tots run in Dallas

Bikers and Marines host Toys for Tots - slide show
TOYS FOR TOTS
Examiner.com
DECEMBER 2, 2012
By Sharon Smith

Dallas area Bikers and Marines hosted a toy run in McKiney, TX at VFW Post 2150 Saturday, December 1st.

Toys for Tots is a program that U.S. Marine Corps Reserve have been executing to supply Christmas Toys for disadvantaged children for 65 years and partner with local biker groups to push their event over the top.

Texas weather cooperated with temperatures that almost hit 80 degrees with a slight cloud cover which produced the attendance to several hundred bikes and a lot of motorcycle thunder. An impressive ‘pack’ of bikers rode slightly over 47 miles before gathering at the VFW location at Church St in McKinney for hamburgers, drinks, ‘Definitely Maybe’ band (which included strings, brass and vocals).
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Dallas veterans complained of poor quality of care

New report, more problems at Dallas VA hospital
by BRETT SHIPP
WFAA
khou.com
Posted on November 21, 2012

DALLAS -- There were more troubles Tuesday night for the Dallas VA hospital, after a News 8 story last week in which veterans complained of poor quality of care at the facility.

The Office of Inspector General has just released a report critical of patient care and the long wait to get it.

In 2004, the Office of Inspector General called the Dallas VA Hospital the worst in the nation. And while current administrators say all of the old issues have been addressed, there are a number of local veterans who disagree.

Tony Mathis of Dallas has had to rely on the VA for his health care for five years.
“I’m not getting the quality of care I need, I know that,” Mathis said.
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Sailor from Texas died in Rota Spain

DOD announces the death of a sailor
PENTAGON
OCTOBER 10, 2012
BY: ROBERT TILFORD

The Department of Defense announced today the death of a sailor who was supporting Operation Enduring Freedom. Culinary Specialist 2nd Class Milton W. Brown, 28, of Dallas, Texas, died Aug. 4, from a non-combat related incident in Rota, Spain.
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Dallas-area veterans try to leave battle behind

Dallas-area veterans try to leave battle behind
NECN.com
Aug 12, 2012

DALLAS (AP) — Just after the United States invaded Iraq in 2003, Mike Rials was on track to graduate from Richardson's J.J. Pearce High School and start his freshman year at Texas Tech. But at the last minute, Rials decided he wanted a bigger challenge: He enlisted in the Marines.

Nine years later, Rials, 27, will finally get his diploma when he graduates next week from the University of Texas at Dallas with a degree in psychology. He credits UTD's Center for BrainHealth, and its work with him and other recent war veterans struggling physically or emotionally from their time in combat.

Many recently discharged veterans have difficulty adjusting to civilian life, especially those dealing with post-traumatic stress disorder or a traumatic brain injury, the two signature wounds of the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan. That adjustment can be even more difficult when the veteran goes from the battlefield to the classroom.

"When they come off the battlefield, where they've had to be hyper-vigilant to so much that's going on, it triggers the brain to do the opposite of what you need to do for a higher-thinking job," said Dr. Sandra Chapman, the center's founder and chief director.

"You're hyper-focused, stressed and not sleeping well."

In five years with the Marines, Rials did three combat tours. Assigned to the infantry, Rials was just 19 when he deployed to Iraq during the height of the insurgency. In his first two tours, in 2004 and 2005, he fought in Fallujah and Haditha, two major hot spots.

His last tour of duty, in Afghanistan in September 2007, left Rials physically and emotionally scarred when a roadside bomb destroyed his Humvee. A close friend was badly injured and trapped in the burning vehicle. Rials pulled him out, but the Marine died soon after. Rials, who was briefly knocked unconscious by the blast, suffered second-degree burns to his arm. The wounds to his psyche lasted much longer.

After his discharge in 2008, Rials returned to the Dallas area. But the veteran, who had risen to the rank of sergeant and commanded up to 40 Marines, could barely make it through an average day. He couldn't turn his mind off of potential threats. Going into grocery stores, restaurants or other public places turned into a nerve-racking, heart-pounding experience. He isolated himself and used alcohol to self-medicate.

He hated what he'd become.
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Former Marine wounded in Iraq bombing becomes Dallas officer

Former Marine wounded in Iraq bombing becomes Dallas officer, lingering health problems
TANYA EISERER Dallas Morning News
First Posted: August 29, 2011

DALLAS — Dallas police Officer Andrew Litz falls frequently and can't walk across the room without help.

He sometimes uses a wheelchair or cane. He suffers seizures. He's confused and disoriented. He's in and out of the emergency room almost every week.

After three combat tours in Iraq, he suffers from post-traumatic stress disorder and a traumatic brain injury caused by a 2005 roadside bomb.

Litz was among the thousands of Americans who enlisted in the military during a burst of patriotism after the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks.

Now, a decade later, he has become a victim of the wars spawned by 9/11.

"I feel like I'm broken," said the 30-year-old former Marine sergeant, now a Dallas police officer who can't work because of his health problems.

After intense criticism over its handling of blast concussions, the military has in recent years toughened protocols for handling them. But for Litz and others, it is too little, too late.

Litz relies on the strained medical services of the Department of Veterans Affairs, where psychological injuries and brain injuries compete with the "more real" problems of amputations and other physical ailments.

Litz and his wife call it the "VA machine." Trips from their home in McKinney to the emergency room at the Dallas VA Medical Center are routine.
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Traffic cam captures Iraq Vet on motorcycle being hit

Video: Iraq war veteran on motorcycle gets rear-ended; survives crash
Posted: 8:23 AM
Last Updated: 1 hour and 41 minutes ago

By: Eric Ristow
DALLAS - A soldier returning from Iraq is in good spirits despite being rear-ended by a car in Texas while he was riding his motorcycle. The man lived, and the incident was all caught on video.

A driver slammed into Army Cpl. Zacharie Perez from behind on the Dallas North Tollway as he was on his way home from work.



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Iraq war veteran on motorcycle gets rear-ended

Deep in the heart of a Texan, call to help Iraqi Disabled Children

Texas man brings hope to 'forgotten' disabled Iraqi kids
Story Highlights
Brad Blauser's Wheelchairs for Iraqi Kids has distributed nearly 650 free wheelchairs
Dallas native Blauser lives in Baghdad and works for free
"Disabled children -- they're really the forgotten ones in this war," he said
Do you know a hero? Saturday is the last day to nominate a CNN Hero


BAGHDAD, Iraq (CNN) -- Brad Blauser lives in war-torn Baghdad, where he doesn't earn a paycheck and is thousands of miles from his family. But he has no intention of leaving anytime soon.


For the past four years, the Dallas, Texas, native has been providing hope to hundreds of disabled Iraqi children and their families through the distribution of pediatric wheelchairs.

"Disabled children -- they're really the forgotten ones in this war," said Blauser, 43. "They are often not seen in society."

Blauser arrived in Iraq as a civilian contractor in 2004, but quit that job last year to devote himself full time to his program, without compensation.

"There's no paycheck. It's not really safe here. But this is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity," he said.

An estimated one in seven Iraqi children ages 2 to 14 lives with a disability, according to UNICEF. Illnesses such as Spina bifida, palsy and polio leave them unable to walk.
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Texas man brings hope to forgotten disabled Iraqi kids

Enhancing care for women Veterans is one of Secretary Shinseki's top priorities

VA Advisory Committee on Women Veterans Visits Dallas

WASHINGTON, July 9 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- As part of the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) upgrade of programs and services for women Veterans, the Department's Advisory Committee on Women Veterans, an expert panel that advises VA on issues and programs affecting women Veterans, recently traveled to the VA North Texas Health Care System in Dallas.


"Enhancing care for women Veterans is one of Secretary Shinseki's top priorities," said Dr. Irene Trowell-Harris, director of VA's Center for Women Veterans. "Our Dallas meeting helped us develop new and innovative ideas for providing a full spectrum of improved care for women Veterans."


Intent on improving VA programs and services for women Veterans, the advisory committee heard views on facets of physical and mental health care, benefits, access, processing military sexual trauma claims, women-specific health needs, and services for returning troops. In addition, Carl E. Lowe II, director of VA's Waco Regional Office, gave an overview of new benefits programs.


Members also had the opportunity to tour the Dallas VA Medical Center, Dallas-Fort Worth National Cemetery, the Sam Rayburn Memorial Veterans Center and the State Veterans Home in Bonham. The visit concluded with a town hall meeting at the Dallas Hilton Anatole that was open to the community.


VA accomplishments for women Veterans already in place include:

More than $32.5 million in Fiscal Year 2008 supplemental funding was sent to facilities for women's health equipment, training and supplies (including DEXA scans, mammography machines, ultra-sound and biopsy equipment).
Women Veterans' program managers, advocates and advisors for women Veterans were made full-time positions at every VA facility, as of Dec. 1, 2008, to improve women Veterans' access, to coordinate necessary services and to assist in planning for comprehensive primary care at each VA facility.

Women Veterans are one of the fastest growing segments of the Veteran population. There are approximately 1.8 million women Veterans. They comprise 7.5 percent of the total Veteran population and nearly 5.5 percent of all Veterans who use VA health care services.


VA estimates women Veterans will constitute 10 percent of the Veteran population by 2020.


The Advisory Committee on Women Veterans reviews VA's programs, activities, research projects and other initiatives designed to meet the needs of women Veterans, then makes recommendations to the Secretary on ways to improve, modify and affect change in programs and services for women.





SOURCE U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs

Neighbors pull father and son veterans from burning home

Neighbors pull vets from burning home
Neighbors pull vets from burning home
09:15 AM CST on Thursday, November 13, 2008
By CYNTHIA VEGA / WFAA-TV
DALLAS — Two military veterans — an elderly father and his son — are recovering after fire consumed their mobile home early Thursday in Southeast Dallas.

Neighbors were alerted to the fire in the 14700 block of Lasater Road shortly after 1 a.m., and they moved quickly to pull James and Danny Malone from the flames.
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