Showing posts with label wounded warriors. Show all posts
Showing posts with label wounded warriors. Show all posts

Thursday, March 19, 2009

PTSD:God's Grace Can Heal The Scar

by
Chaplain Kathie
IFOC Senior Chaplain

I've talked a lot about the importance of faith/spirituality in healing PTSD. While PTSD cannot be cured, the wounded can heal. Much like an infection, it gets worse without treatment but with it, depending on how soon the treatment begins, determines the depth of the scar left behind. When the connection to God is restored healing is deeper and faster.

One of the common factors in the PTSD wounded is that they had always been sensitive people. They cared about others deeply. Some confuse being sensitive with being weak but they miss the point that it requires courage to act as a sensitive person. It allows people to be able to set themselves aside for the sake of someone else, rush into danger when others run away and to be able to risk their lives for the sake of their friends. Who wouldn't want someone like that on their side?


John 15;
9 "As the Father has loved me, so have I loved you. Now remain in my love.
10 If you obey my commands, you will remain in my love, just as I have obeyed my Father's commands and remain in his love.
11 I have told you this so that my joy may be in you and that your joy may be complete.
12 My command is this: Love each other as I have loved you.
13 Greater love has no one than this, that he lay down his life for his friends.
14 You are my friends if you do what I command.
15 I no longer call you servants, because a servant does not know his master's business. Instead, I have called you friends, for everything that I learned from my Father I have made known to you.
16 You did not choose me, but I chose you and appointed you to go and bear fruit—fruit that will last. Then the Father will give you whatever you ask in my name.
17 This is my command: Love each other.



When people have a misconception of what Jesus said and taught, it's easy to confuse right from wrong. It's easy to feel as if God has abandoned them or judged them but they forget that God knows the hearts and minds of His children. He knows what was in their heart when they were willing to lay down their lives for the sake of their friends and to rise about the sense of self. God will not condemn someone with that sense in their hearts. If they do not understand this, then they feel as if they are being punished by PTSD. It makes it all worse because it removes the hope of prayers being answered.

When we do something for the right reason and end up suffering for it, thinking God is making us suffer removes hope of justice, of healing and better days ahead. It also makes us regret doing the right thing. We end up blaming God for the wrong others do, for rewarding the unjust and believing that God created the evil we had to endure. We forget about freewill as easily as we tend to forget that many decide they would rather serve Satin than Christ, evil over good. It is a cycle that ends up taking control over every aspect of the wounded lives, wounding the family and friends. It begins to change the way people act. Yet knowing God as a loving God restores hope, love, patience, compassion, mercy and joy by His grace.

This is something I hear from wounded warriors the most often. Aside from a history of being compassionate people throughout their lives, they feel as if they have been punished by God because they are suffering. I created the following video in response to that.


In this news story, you'll hear how Military Chaplains helped this veteran heal. We have not heard it often enough on the news. Restoring faith, whatever faith, whatever denomination a veteran belonged to, is vital in assisting the healing of the scar PTSD leaves behind on the soul.

More soldiers returning from Iraq, Afghanistan with PTSD, experts say


By Andrea Calcagno

March 18, 2009

MEDFORD, Ore. -- Experts say exposure to combat violence in Iraq and Afghanistan is causing more soldiers to experience Post Traumatic Stress Disorder when they return home.

Military representatives say this may be one factor contributing to a recent increase in the army suicide rate.

When soldiers return home from war, they go through a series of reintegration classes. Psychiatric services are made readily available, but it is left to the soldier to seek help.

After returning from war, it took two years for Alexander Akers to get the help he needed.

"If I had pushed it at the beginning when I got home, instead of trying to put it all behind me, and trying to get away from the military, I probably would have been not going through what I did," says Akers.

Akers served in combat arms in Iraq and suffered from PTSD upon returning home.

"I was jumpy all the time. I was extremely violent, getting in fights, non stop paranoid, you name it. The only thing, I was lucky enough that I didn't get into was drug use. And I think some of the guys have gotten into that, and I just turned to alcohol instead," says Akers.

"A lot of times when they come back, they are using alcohol, they are using drugs, they are using other things, and I wouldn't be surprised that many of them are resorting to taking their own lives rather dealing with what they're dealing with. Whether its undiagnosed PTSD or even if it is diagnosed, they may not feel they can get relief from that," says Steve Fogelman with Kolpia Counseling Services..."They're in an environment where literally anybody can be the enemy. And there's really no barriers for them, no safety or security for them. And they end up getting this very hyper-vigilant kind of attitude, and that's literally how they get through."
go here for the rest and for video
http://kdrv.com/news/local/99452

Operation Open Arms Helps PTSD Wounded Warriors

Helping heroes: Southwest Florida steps up
By WINK News

Story Created: Mar 18, 2009 at 10:26 PM EDT

Story Updated: Mar 18, 2009 at 10:41 PM EDT

On this eve of the sixth anniversary of the Iraq War, an alarming number of U.S. soldiers returning home say they cannot get the medical treatment they need fast enough.

It's gotten so bad, two veteran's groups have filed a lawsuit against the Veterans Administration to try and speed up the process.

Now one Southwest Florida man is helping to fix the problem.

Operation Open Arms has been giving soldiers free vacations here in Southwest Florida for four years, but founder John Bunch is now extending its services for something much more serious. He has taken more than 200 calls from soldiers seeking mental health care, and he's found a way to help.

"You can never feel secure. Everyday is a constant battle, and the battle you're fighting is against yourself," Junior Nicholsen, Iraq War Veteran Marine, says.

When the heroic come home, soldiers like 25-year-old Nicholsen often wait and wait for treatment. Nicholsen went two years without a diagnosis for post traumatic stress disorder -- images and feelings he can't seem to leave behind on the Iraq battlefield.
go here for more
http://www.winknews.com/news/local/41470842.html


More about Operation Open Arms

Operation Open Arms

So many of us wonder how we can support the brave men and women of the military who are deployed to overseas locations like Iraq and Afghanistan.

The people of Southwest Florida have found one way to express their support. Operation Open Arms makes it possible in a unique way. Our goal is to make a difference in the lives of our troops and their families.
http://www.operationopenarms.com/index.html

Monday, March 16, 2009

Obama says budget calls for $25 billion increase in VA funding

Obama pledges more help for veterans
Story Highlights
Obama says budget calls for $25 billion increase in VA funding over next five years

Homeless veterans will be targeted for support, Obama says

Dramatically improved services planned for mental health, PTSD, brain injury

WASHINGTON (CNN) -- President Obama pledged Monday to make good on his promise to transform the Department of Veterans Affairs and said he would "dramatically improve" mental health aid.


President Obama and Veterans Affairs Secretary Eric Shinseki, seen here last month, vow to increase aid.

Flanked by Veterans Affairs Secretary Eric Shinseki, the president said his budget calls for a $25 billion increase in funding for the VA over the next five years -- a commitment that will be tested by the needs of veterans returning from Iraq and Afghanistan.

"With this budget, we don't just fully fund our Veterans Affairs health care program, we expand it to serve an additional 500,000 veterans by 2013," he said.

He promised that the VA would "dramatically improve services" related to mental health, post-traumatic stress disorder and traumatic brain injury, and he said homeless veterans would be targeted for support.

"Those heroes have a home," Obama said. "It's the country they served, the United States of America, and until we reach a day when not a single veteran sleeps on our nation's streets, our work remains unfinished."

Saturday, March 14, 2009

VA employee convicted of taking advantage of veterans in need

Davidson was in a position to help veterans. A very honorable thing to do for the men and women that risked their lives serving this country finding themselves in need of the country to help them for a change. Imagine what taking advantage of them did to their state of mind when they found out someone they were supposed to be able to trust, someone they thought really cared about them, turned around and used them instead to make some "easy" money. How would you feel?

Over the years I've met really remarkable people truly dedicated to the veterans of this nation spending countless hours behind the scenes because it was the right thing to do, but I've also met some people with their own personal agenda trying to either get publicity or financial gain. They could do anything they wanted to do in life and then answer to God for it afterward but to take advantage of veterans is beyond despicable. Veterans have enough problems and face too many obstacles before they receive what they are supposed to be compensated for without having someone think they are just someone else to use.


Atlanta pair convicted of defrauding VA
Atlanta Journal Constitution - GA, USA
Former hospital employee made money housing veterans
By MARCUS K. GARNER

The Atlanta Journal-Constitution

Friday, March 13, 2009

An Atlanta woman and her ex-boyfriend were convicted Thursday for using her job at the Atlanta VA Medical Center to defraud the Department of Veterans Affairs.

Bridgette L. Davidson, 37, a social worker responsible with placing disabled and military veterans in suitable homes, illegally used her connections to earn money from the tenants, according to U.S. Attorney David Nahmias.


From November 2001 to April 2002, she placed veterans in need of housing in a Marietta home she rented with Darrick O. Frazier, 33, and took federal subsidy payments, a conflict of interest, Department of Justice officials said. During this time, Davidson falsely represented to the VA and to the veterans that the home was independently owned, Nahmias said.
click link for more

Wednesday, March 4, 2009

Denver Vietnam Veterans reach out to new generation

Vietnam Vets Reach Out To Iraq Vets
Written for the Web by CBS4 Special Projects Producer Libby Smith
Reporting
Suzanne McCarroll
DENVER (CBS4) ―

Some estimates say nearly 20 percent of soldiers returning from Iraq suffer from Post Traumatic Stress Syndrome (PTSD). In Denver, those military men and women are getting some help from an unexpected group -- veterans from another war.

"There are four major situations I was involved in where I had to kill individuals not only with gunfire but stabbings," said Mike Tarby, a retired member of the U.S. Army who served in Vietnam for 2 years.

It has been 40 years since the Vietnam War and yet for many vets, the nightmares of their time in combat are as vivid as if the war was yesterday. Five men, all who served in Vietnam, are paying it forward to vets returning from the Iraq war who suffer from PTSD.

Chuck Douglas served in Vietnam. He also spent time in the residential treatment program at Denver's Veterans Administration (VA) Hospital.

"You wanted to go back over there because it felt more comfortable. It's what you knew. You didn't want to be here because you weren't welcome home," Douglas told CBS4click link for more

Injured vets find safety net online

Injured vets find safety net online
Chicago Tribune - United States
Web site connects potential donors with ex-soldiers struggling with pain and bills
By Sara Olkon Tribune reporter
March 2, 2009




MOLINE, Ill. — The requests are often humble: A disabled veteran in Decatur needed help with an overdue winter fuel bill. A soldier in Minnesota asked for a box spring and mattress—"it doesn't have to be new." A combat medic from Moline asked for clothes for his four young children.

Desperate for help and hobbled by federal bureaucracy, the men went public with their needs, recently posting their stories to total strangers on USATogether.org, a non-profit group created by a Silicon Valley entrepreneur to help injured veterans.

Strangers are coming to the aid of soldiers with things such as auto repair, a new washing machine or lodging for family while a soldier recuperates at a Veterans Affairs hospital far from home. Potential donors can read a soldier's profile and either help financially or donate goods and services.
click link for more

Monday, February 2, 2009

Aftermath of 9-11 leaves PTSD legacy


A few hours on one September morning shattered the city of New York, the state and the entire nation. One morning. We read about what happened that day along with what came after with PTSD cases, illnesses and yes, even suicide cases. We read about broken families. Why is it so easy for us to understand what came after 9-11 when we cannot seem to find the same level of understanding when it comes to the police officers the rest of time on duty, the firefighters the rest of their time on duty or the emergency responders the rest of their time on duty? Where is this understanding when National Guardsmen come home or the troops, or the veterans years after they were exposed to traumatic events over and over and over again?

Let that sink in a moment then read the following.

Ground Zero workers 'six times more likely to be stressed'
InTheNews.co.uk - London,UK
Monday, 02 Feb 2009 08:02
Workers at Ground Zero six times more likely to suffer from serious stress disorders, study shows Printer friendly version Ironworkers at Ground Zero are almost six times more likely to suffer from serious stress disorders than the general public, a new study showed today.

Research published today revealed that 18.5 ironworkers situated at the ruins of the World Trade Centre suffered from post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD).

In comparison, the national average in the United States is 3.5 per cent.

Of the study's 124 participants – all of whom attended the World Trade Centre mental health screening programme in New York City between 14 and 17 months after the September 11th 2001 terrorist attacks – 60 per cent displayed symptoms of psychiatric disorders.

As well as establishing a causal link between PTSD and working at Ground Zero, researchers, publishing their study in Psychiatric Bulletin, revealed near double rates of anxiety and panic attacks among participants. click link for more


Here you have us in the year 2009 but we're still talking about what happened that one morning on September 11, 2001. We still want to hear about the police officers, firefighters, the survivors and what happened to family members. We find it so easy to look at how their lives changed from this one morning but we don't want to look at how the lives change of those we send into combat or their families.

As bad as that is, yesterday I posted about how to normalize PTSD when it comes to the troops and veterans. That's because PTSD is a human wound caused by traumatic events, like this one morning in September. We need to help the troops and veterans let this sink into their own brains. New York experienced the horrific images of carnage but the troops and veterans experience this type of event over and over again. They cannot understand that sooner or later it does get to them simply because they are still human despite all the training, planing and equipping they receive. No matter how hard the military may try, they cannot prevent the men and women serving from being human. PTSD cannot be prevented unless somehow someone manages to stop all crime, stop all natural disasters, stop all fires and stop all wars.

As much as we claim to value the troops and the veterans this one fact is what makes them just like the rest of us and it's about time someone got the message thru to them that they are in fact still humans and they suffer like any other human. They need help like any other human. Would they think the people that responded to ground zero are weak or would they understand? Would they think the firefighters and police officers rushing to the Twin Towers were cowards because they didn't walk away the same as they rushed in or would they admire their courage in the first place? Then why can't they let those facts translate into what they go through? Why can't we make sure they look at themselves as a human first and a warrior second?

Friday, January 30, 2009

Weakened Warriors?


Weakened Warriors?



by Chaplain Kathie






Iraq, Afghanistan VA Patients Exceed 400,000


Thursday 29 January 2009


by: Maya Schenwar, t r u t h o u t Report




As the number of veterans seeking health care continues to rise, the VA is straining to meet demands.



Amid talk of a drawdown of troops in Iraq, new statistics from the Department of Defense (DoD) and the Department of Veterans' Affairs (VA) show that US casualties are still climbing quickly. Iraq and Afghanistan battlefield injuries and deaths number 81,361, up from 72,043 last January, according to data obtained through a Freedom of Information Act request by Veterans for Common Sense (VCS). Veteran patients - including those who didn't seek care until their return home - shot up to 400,304 (from 263,909 in December 2007).



For the thousands of soldiers flooding the VA, mental illness tops the list of ailments. Forty-five percent of VA patients have already been diagnosed with mental health conditions, including a startling 105,000 diagnosed with post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD). These data do not include the incalculable number of mentally ill veterans who have not received a diagnosis or haven't sought treatment at the VA.



Health care for veterans has improved substantially in the past year, mostly due to legislative changes and funding boosts, according to Raymond Kelley, legislative director of AMVETS. The recently passed Dignity for Wounded Warriors Act entitles veterans to up to five years of free health care for military-related medical conditions. Other legislative victories include improvements to VA facilities, increased mental health care research and a boost for the claims processing system, which has been vastly understaffed and overburdened throughout the "war on terror."



However, many barriers to adequate care and compensation remain, particularly for veterans filing for disability benefits. Delays and denials of those claims are routine. Among vets with PTSD, 59 percent have not been approved for benefits, meaning that their claims are pending or rejected - or that, due to any number of deterrents, they have not filed a claim.



According to Paul Sullivan, executive director of VCS, the average wait-time for veterans to receive an answer after filing for disability compensation is more than six months. A recent VCS lawsuit against VA showed that PTSD patients face even longer delays.


click link for more



Suicides are up again. The cases of PTSD are going up and up, which is not totally a bad thing because it means more are seeking help for PTSD. The bad part of all of this is that the DOD and the VA are still not able to take care of all of them. They keep saying they're doing more but over and over again we find their "more" is not even close to what needs to be done.



For years they've relied on a program called "BattleMind" that was designed to prepare the warriors for combat and then casually addressed the fact that they could be wounded by PTSD after they told them they needed to mentally prepare for combat. The problem is how they did this ended up telling them that if they were weak, their minds not toughened enough, it was basically their fault they ended up with PTSD. This was not the intention of the program but the message was received this way.



That is one of the problems. The fact they have yet to understand what causes PTSD in some and not in others has been another problem. They don't understand there are basically three different types of people. One may be more self-centered. I have yet to hear from a veteran that was self-centered before combat developing PTSD. Another is the middle type, a little self-centered and a little sensitive. Some of them can and do become wounded by PTSD if their exposures to traumatic events happens one too many times. The other group, they are more sensitive and compassionate types. They seem to be wounded the most and the deepest. Being sensitive has nothing to do with not being courageous. Often it's the other way around. They see someone in need and because of their compassion, they do things no one else would dare to do in order to help.



The other thing that needs to be pointed out is that when they are deployed into combat, they do what needs to be done out of that same courage. They know lives depend on them and they set themselves aside to live up to the challenge. They put their own pain aside thinking of others. It is not until the lives of others are out of danger they crash. Most will not acknowledge they need help until they are far from danger. It's one of the biggest reasons they do not commit suicide while in a fire fight or on duty. They do it when they are in their bunks or back home.



While the Army study showed the redeployments increase the risk of PTSD by 50%, the DOD and the VA failed to do anything about it. Units are redeployed over and over again. Then there are the National Guardsmen and Reservists, also redeployed and on top of the stress of going into combat, they have the added stresses of trying to come back to their "normal" lives into a nation that has been oblivious as to what was expected of them and the hardships they had to endure.



BattleMind made them feel as if they were "weakened warriors" unable to cope with what was asked of them. It was not their fault. It was total lack of knowledge of what makes them so different.



I'll never forget a Marine I met at the VA in Orlando. He was trying to fill out paperwork to begin a claim with the VA as he sought treatment. He saw the Chaplain shirt I had on and we began to talk. The Marine put his hand over his face so that I would not see the tears coming. He said he was ashamed. He said he was a Marine and trained to be tough. He was falling apart because no one told him that he did his duty and was able to do whatever was asked of him because of his courage and was sustained by the dedication he had to his brothers. He didn't understand how much courage that took. There he was wounded by PTSD yet he was able to go into battle, able to overcome his own pain until he was no longer needed and back home.



This is what BattleMind should have addressed so they would not feel as if they were weak and it was their fault. They returned home feeling as if they just couldn't cut it.



Then when they came home, they realized they could no longer stuff the pain in the back of their minds. They knew they needed help but when they went for it, either their commanders belittled them or help was not able to keep up with the need. No one was prepared and they still are not even close. The VA is not able to help all of them even though data was known and there is no excuse for the lack of preparedness except the fact the people in charge thought they could get away with turning veterans away, denying claims and breaking them to the point where they simply dropped their claims. This is not a new attitude. It's been going on for a long time. What is new is the total contradiction of actions taken.



On one hand the VA and the DOD are reaching out to raise the awareness of PTSD, but the other hand is doing very little to be able to deal with the influx of new disability claims and treatment programs.



The VA and the DOD will pat themselves on the back for their suicide prevention programs but they will not address the fact the suicides have gone up every year or the fact that they are even brought to that point when treatments are supposed to be available so that no one should ever feel so hopeless they even contemplate suicide.



If people look back at what happened to Vietnam veterans they would have known exactly what was going to happen, but they didn't. Over and over again, I read "new studies" being done that were done over 30 years ago. I keep hoping for something new but they are wasting time.



This only address the issue of PTSD but then you have to add in Traumatic Brain Injury, other illnesses caused by contaminated water, depleted uranium, white phosphorous, Agent Orange and the host of other factors contributing to Gulf War Syndrome. The suffering of our veterans goes on and on. When they file a claim for what they know was caused by their service to this nation lead to being denied treatment and compensation for their condition, it dishonors the service they gave to the nation.



It is time we got this right or stopped pretending we are a grateful nation to them. We failed them and will keep failing until we do all that is necessary to meet the challenges we have when they come home, when their duty is done and their own challenges have been met because they did their duty.



"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

Friday, January 23, 2009

Can we bind up the wounds of those who served the nation?


by
Chaplain Kathie




Gettysburg_Address
Four score and seven years ago our fathers brought forth on this continent a new nation, conceived in Liberty, and dedicated to the proposition that all men are created equal.


Now we are engaged in a great civil war, testing whether that nation, or any nation, so conceived and so dedicated, can long endure. We are met on a great battle-field of that war. We have come to dedicate a portion of that field, as a final resting place for those who here gave their lives that that nation might live. It is altogether fitting and proper that we should do this.


But, in a larger sense, we can not dedicate—we can not consecrate—we can not hallow—this ground. The brave men, living and dead, who struggled here, have consecrated it, far above our poor power to add or detract. The world will little note, nor long remember what we say here, but it can never forget what they did here. It is for us the living, rather, to be dedicated here to the unfinished work which they who fought here have thus far so nobly advanced. It is rather for us to be here dedicated to the great task remaining before us—that from these honored dead we take increased devotion to that cause for which they gave the last full measure of devotion—that we here highly resolve that these dead shall not have died in vain—that this nation, under God, shall have a new birth of freedom—and that government of the people, by the people, for the people, shall not perish from the earth.



Yet after this, Lincoln was not done addressing the people who were willing to die for the sake of the nation and what they believed in. This is from the second inagural address he gave. The rest of his speech was wonderful but this came at the end.


Lincoln Second Inagural Address

With malice toward none, with charity for all, with firmness in the right as God gives us to see the right, let us strive on to finish the work we are in, to bind up the nation's wounds, to care for him who shall have borne the battle and for his widow and his orphan, to do all which may achieve and cherish a just and lasting peace among ourselves and with all nations.

Since the day brother raised arms against brother, men and women from every state in the union have been serving together. North, south, east and west, people of every race, religion, social class, political affiliation and education have joined together to serve this one nation. They come from the Army, Marines, Air Force and Navy, from the Coast Guard to the National Guards and Reservists, they are ready to defend this nation and ready to come to the aid of its citizens. Men and women leaving the military once again put on the uniform of service as police officers and firefighters, of emergency responders and entering into service organizations.

What are the rest of us doing for them? We know where they are when we need them but why do they have to wonder where the nation's heart is when they need us?

We hear about the backlog of claims in the VA but do we raise our voices about this? It is our money that sends them into battle and our money the government uses to take care of the wounded warriors. We have a vital interest in how they use it. Why do we allow this to continue? Does it ever occur to us that a claim tied up or denied erroneously is a veteran waiting for the care he or she was assured would be there if they needed it? It is a veteran, usually along with a family, forced to fight to have their wounds bound as their bills pile up and the notion of a grateful nation slips into the abyss.

When the wound can be seen with our eyes, this cannot be allow to stand, but when it is wounds we cannot see with our eyes but within their own eyes, it has far more ramifications on the families and the communities they return to. We have no excuse for allowing any of this to go un- addressed.

Post Traumatic Stress Disorder was a wound in the time of George Washington leading the charge against the British forces, but while the name was different, the wound was still the same. It wounded again when Lincoln addressed those standing at Gettysburg and again at his second inauguration. Each and every president that followed lead a wounded nation unable to uphold the claim of leading a grateful nation. Truman was the last friend of veterans. His budget reflected this.
Stunning statement of devaluing
Truman (1946-52)Veterans Benefits 9.6%
Eisenhower (1953-60)Veterans Benefits 4.7%
Kennedy (1961-63)Veterans Benefits 3.6%
Johnson (1964-68)Veterans Benefits 2.9%
Nixon (1969-74)Veterans Benefits 2.9%
Ford (1975-76)Veterans Benefits 2.9%
Carter (1977-80)Veterans Benefits 2.4%
Reagan (1981-88)Veterans Benefits 1.9%
G.H. Bush (1989-92)Veterans Benefits 1.6%
Clinton (1993-2000)Veterans Benefits 1.6%
George W. Bush (2001-08)Veterans Benefits 1.6%

1.6% with two active occupations, veterans of WWII, Korea, Vietnam, Gulf War, Bosnia, Somalia, all needing help to bind their wounds yet not enough money to begin to do it.

PTSD and TBI wounds are real. Just as real as a limb gone from a bomb blast or skin healing from a bullet or burn wound, but PTSD can keep killing long after the uniforms have been packed away. It can kill many months and many years later along with health problems from chemical exposures.

Agent Orange was followed by depleted uranium and white phosphorous. Burn pits across Iraq and Afghanistan bring lung cancer and other illnesses. Contaminated water brings disease. All of this will cause the ranks of the wounded needing the VA to swell far beyond what the doors can hold.

Over and over again men and women return to their communities as members of the National Guards and Reserves only to find time has passed them by and they return to a home town they do not feel they still belong in. They find they cannot get the help they need to bind their wounds or find an understanding ear. Even when they do manage to get to the VA, usually too far away to travel to on a regular basis, they are forced to fight for the benefits their wounds caused by service inflicted upon them.

Our voices do not speak eloquently as Washington or Lincoln did regarding the need to care for them. Our voices are too busy squeaking about our own needs. We are an ungrateful bunch. They suffer in this bad economy the same as we do but there is a huge difference. While we were seeking our own support and our own desires being met, they were thinking of us. While we were complaining about the price of food and gas, so were their families but they couldn't do anything about it from Iraq and Afghanistan. While we lost our jobs, they were busy doing their's and then came home to see their own civilian job vanished while they were away.

What would it cost you to do something to take care of them and begin to live up to what we all claim? Would it cost you the time it takes to make a phone call? Send an email? That's all it really would cost you to change their lives. It's not as if you can solve their problems on your own but you can be an answer to their prayers and the wishes of all the generations that came before them. Our elected have a responsibility to do what it takes to take care of all of them. We need to make them live up to their end of the responsibility chain for a change. We have a much better chance of this now than we did over the last eight years.

GAO says VA still underestimating costs
By Hope Yen - The Associated Press
Posted : Friday Jan 23, 2009 13:10:41 EST

WASHINGTON — Two years after a politically embarrassing $1 billion shortfall that imperiled veterans health care, the Veterans Affairs Department is still lowballing budget estimates to Congress to keep its spending down, government investigators say.

The report by the Government Accountability Office, set to be released later Friday, highlights the Bush administration’s problems in planning for the treatment of veterans that President Barack Obama has pledged to fix. It found the VA’s long-term budget plan for the rehabilitation of veterans in nursing homes, hospices and community centers to be flawed, failing to account for tens of thousands of patients and understating costs by millions of dollars.

In its strategic plan covering 2007 to 2013, the VA inflated the number of veterans it would treat at hospices and community centers based on a questionably low budget, the investigators concluded. At the same time, they said, the VA didn’t account for roughly 25,000 — or nearly three-quarters — of its patients who receive treatment at nursing homes operated by the VA and state governments each year.

“VA’s use, without explanation, of cost assumptions and a workload projection that appear unrealistic raises questions about both the reliability of VA’s spending estimates and the extent to which VA is closing previously identified gaps in noninstitutional long-term care services,” according to the 34-page draft report obtained by The Associated Press.

Lawmakers expressed anger, saying they will be watching for new VA Secretary Eric Shinseki to provide a more honest accounting.

“The problems at the VA have been caused by years of mismanagement and putting the bottom line above the needs of our veterans,” said Sen. Patty Murray, D-Wash. “While we won’t fix everything overnight, Secretary Shinseki has pledged honesty and accurate accounting which are key to realistic budgets and providing the services our veterans have earned.”


According to latest GAO report, the VA is believed to have:

• Undercut its 2009 budget estimate for nursing home care by roughly $112 million. It noted the VA planned for $4 billion in spending, up $108 million from the previous year, based largely on a projected 2.5 percent increase in costs. But previously, the VA had seen an annual cost increase of 5.5 percent.

• Underestimated costs of care in noninstitutional settings such as hospices by up to $144 million. The VA assumed costs would not increase in 2009, even though in recent years the cost of providing a day of noninstitutional care increased by 19 percent.

• Overstated the amount of noninstitutional care. The VA projected a 38 percent increase in patient workload in 2009, partly in response to previous GAO and inspector general reports that found widespread gaps in services and urged greater use of the facilities. But for unknown reasons, veterans served in recent years actually decreased slightly, and the VA offered no explanation as to how it planned to get higher enrollment. click link for the rest of this.




With President Obama saying his heart is with the veterans and the Democratic Party leading the committees they used to complain about how they were failing the veterans, it's time to get all of them to prove it. Contact your elected and tell them Lincoln sent you!

Saturday, January 17, 2009

Wounded Veterans Treated as an Afterthought and the world notices

"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



This is the quote I use on all of my emails. Washington would have never imagined a day would come when the treatment of the veterans would be worse than what they were in his day. Back then the troops/patriots/volunteer/militia farmers took up arms in order to provide freedom for these lands yet were not supplied with enough food or clothing, or boots for the feet. It was pretty terrible the way they were treated added onto by their own countrymen wanting to kill them because the loyalists liked the way they lived under England's King George. Washington knew that if the veterans were not treated properly when they were willing to risk their lives for the sake of the country, the likelihood of generations to come being equally willing was pretty abysmal. After all, who wants to risk their life, survive wounded and then have to suffer the rest of their lives unable to support themselves and their families? Picture a patriot losing a limb returning to a farm trying to run it with while balancing on a crutch.

What Washington never thought about was the impression this nation would leave on the rest of the world with technology spreading news around the globe within minutes. Wouldn't he be disgusted knowing a book review like this showed up in Italy? Imagine this man, the first President of this nation, one so dedicated and appreciative of those who serve he created a medal so that low ranking patriots would feel someone cared about all they were willing to endure. He created the Purple Heart, which was an award of merit. This award was later taken over by the congress and offered to the wounded only. In Washington's time some of his men had to have their feet amputated because of frostbite but under the rules of congress and the view of some people that a wound is only considered when deliberately caused by the enemy, these men would receive nothing but a half price sale on shoes since they only needed one. A wound in Washington's eyes was anything that happened while they were serving under his command. Now that's a General! He was the kind of General that would not allow his men to go into battle while he stayed safely behind in an office but often went with them taking a place ahead of them.

So as we debate the worthiness of the Purple Heart being awarded to a wound caused by being terrorized by the traumatic events of combat (in other words what the enemy causes) the rest of the world waits to see what we will do for our own. They wait to see if we really honor them and treat them with the dignity and respect they earned just as they wait to see if we will take care of all of them. They wait and then read a book like this clearly proving the point that this government did not honor any of them by neglecting too many of them. It is no longer possible for this nation to hide the shame and humiliation we've brought on ourselves by not taking the wise advice of Washington to heart. (Pun intended)


BOOKS-US: Wounded Veterans Treated as an Afterthought
Inter Press Service - Rome,Italy

By Dahr Jamail

MARFA, Texas, Jan 16 (IPS) - "But the [George W.] Bush administration was never seriously interested in helping veterans. The sorry state of care for Iraq and Afghanistan war veterans is not an accident. It's on purpose."

Journalist Aaron Glantz makes this stunning statement in his recently released book, "The War Comes Home: Washington's Battle Against America's Veterans" (UC Press).

And his controversial claim is backed up by an extremely well-researched overview of the dismal state of care provided by the government for this new generation of war veterans.

Glantz, an IPS correspondent who has been covering the U.S. occupation of Iraq for years, including several months of reportage from inside Iraq, provides a devastating overview of the plight of war veterans.

From reporting on Bush administration funding cuts to the Veterans Administration (VA), to how key Republican senators like John McCain consistently vote against veteran's benefits and supporting legislation, "The War Comes Home" makes the case.

Glantz documents what happens when veterans from the occupations of Iraq and Afghanistan return home with post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), their battles with the Pentagon and VA to obtain benefits, and the psychological, mental, and physical toll this is taking on the hundreds of thousands of veterans, making "The War Comes Home" a must read for anyone wanting a clear understanding of what these occupations are truly costing those in the military.

The story of Patrick Resta, an Iraq war veteran, brings the reader into the world of a returning veteran. Resta's wife Melissa tells Glantz that upon Patrick's return from Iraq, "Over the course of just two or three weeks, I started to notice that if I came into a room, he would just leave," she said, "If I said something to him, he would just snap. He didn't want to talk to me, he didn't want to talk to really anybody, and when I confronted him with us having problems I would get let into."

Patrick ended up going to the VA, where he was diagnosed with PTSD. By March 2008, Glantz points out, Patrick joined over 130,000 Iraq and Afghanistan war veterans as having been diagnosed with a psychological illness by the VA's mental health services.

While he still suffers from his illness, Patrick has gone on to make progress with the help he deserved from the VA. His story is, however, a best-case scenario. click link above for more

Sunday, January 11, 2009

Irresponsible selling of BattleMind continues

BattleMind is not new or is it worth supporting. Facts are facts. Consider this. If BattleMind worked, you'd see a reduced suicide and attempted suicide rate. You would not see both increase! You would not see the Montana National Guard come up with their own program because one of their own, Spc. Chris Dana, committed suicide. You would not see a BBC report uncovering the truth about how the troops are exposed to BattleMind. Did you know that when the troops arrive in Afghanistan and Iraq they spend two days in a meeting hall getting all kinds of information crammed into their brains and within those two days, there is 11 1/2 minutes of BattleMind presentations going on. That's all they get. Not that it would be worthless time if the program worked at all, but it doesn't. Look at the facts and when you read any kind of report like this, keep those facts in mind. I have no idea who wrote the below article but they really need to know what the hell they are talking about before they support anything that is detrimental to the troops. This program is full of holes!

I wanted to believe in this as much as anyone. I posted about this program when it first came out because it seemed so hopeful. The years ticked away and the troops continued to commit suicide and try to commit suicide out of desperation. It became obvious that BattleMind is not only not worth the hype, it's bad and worse than a waste of time. One more thing to think about. When I talked to someone working at the VA and brought up the numbers going up instead of down, this was the response, "It's better than nothing." but the truth is, it's worse than nothing.


Preventing Combat Fatigue


January 9, 2009: While the U.S. Army has done much to detect, and treat PTSD (post-traumatic stress disorder), it has also made a determined effort to prevent it in the first place. From the beginning of operations in Afghanistan and Iraq, the army took many measures to ease the impact of combat stress. That's why combat troops in Iraq and Afghanistan often sleep in air conditioned quarters, have Internet access, lots of amenities, and a two week vacation (anywhere) in the middle of their combat tour.


But now there's now a more direct program to help troops avoid PTSD. It's called Battlemind, and it involves telling the troops all the army knows about the things that cause combat stress, and how to avoid them. This is all based on information obtained from thousands of combat veterans. click link for more

Monday, January 5, 2009

Wounded Warrior Returns part of Great Americans

This is just one of the videos on GreatAmericans.com site. I received an email about this site. Once I saw what the site was dedicated to, I was hooked. I know my readers feel the same way I do about the troops, veterans and the men and women serving this nation on our police departments and as firefighters. It takes a unique person to be willing to do what they do. Great Americans is celebrating them in videos and interviews. I'm very glad they did.

All too often the only reports we read are when things go wrong. When claims are not approved and veterans suffer. I post them but they break my heart. I'm rejoiced when I read about them overcoming astronomical odds yet still willing to serve, still willing to give back. This they do everyday. I've been part of different groups over the years and have never met finer individuals. They deserve all the positive coverage they can get. To tell the truth, I need to read more positive stories so that I can do what I do when they do fall through the cracks and need us standing up for them. Watch the video and then go to the site to see more.

My videos will be up there very soon and pulled from YouTube and Google. They cannot be bothered to understand what these videos are or what they mean.


Wounded Warrior Returns
This video interviews Garrett Jones, a Marine, who is an avid snowboarder, in spite of the fact that he lost a leg due to an improvised explosive device. Produced by Sgt. Jeremy Ross.


Interviews

Military

Law Enforcement

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NASA

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Sunday, December 28, 2008

PTSD veterans gain strength from eagle's broken wing



Isaiah 40
29He giveth power to the faint; and to them that have no might he increaseth strength.

30Even the youths shall faint and be weary, and the young men shall utterly fall:

31But they that wait upon the LORD shall renew their strength; they shall mount up with wings as eagles; they shall run, and not be weary; and they shall walk, and not faint.


Vet saved on the wings of an eagle
written by: Joe Fryer, KARE 11 News,

MINNEAPOLIS - To many veterans, the original copy of the Declaration of Independence, on display at the Minnesota History Center over the summer, is more than a piece of paper.

"It's a document that goes right down into the heart," said former Marine Mark Lauer. "It just reminds me of why I served and why I was proud to do it."

To vets like Lauer, it's a symbol of freedom - like an American flag, or a bald eagle.

So when Bob Snitgen actually brought an eagle to the History Center, you can imagine the reaction.

Of course, to Bob, Harriet the eagle is more than a symbol of freedom.

"To me, she's a lifesaver," Snitgen said with a smile.

As a young man in the early 1960s, Snitgen joined the Navy. He spent two years on riverboats in Vietnam.

Those two years haunted him for many decades. Like so many vets, Snitgen suffered from post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD).

"I would lay there crying because I couldn't get my husband to even talk to me," said Liz Snitgen, Bob's wife. "He would stay hidden in a room."

It was so bad seven years ago, doctors at the V.A. Medical Center in Minneapolis labeled him "homicidal/suicidal," and locked him up for months.

After Snitgen left the hospital, a friend suggested taking him to the National Eagle Center in Wabasha. click above for more


Friday, December 19, 2008

Dr. Phil show focused on our wounded veterans

More than 170,000 U.S. troops are stationed in Iraq and Afghanistan, sacrificing life and limb to keep America safe. Nearly 40,000 have been wounded, an estimated 300,000 are living with Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD), and in 2005, there were at least 6,256 suicides among those serving in the armed forces. Many vets say when they return home, they feel mistreated and neglected and are forced to fight a medical system bureaucracy that doesn't hear them. Are we doing enough to care for our heroes? Find out what's really going on as Dr. Phil tackles this hot-button issue!


Broken and Forgotten?
Randy, 22, was severely injured during an ambush while serving in Iraq. His mother, Tammy, says when he returned home and sought medical care, he got lost in the system. They say trying to get any help from the Veterans Affairs is a struggle with minimal results.



"They lied to him, they used him, they broke him, and they threw him away."


The Truth Revealed?
Chairman of the House Committee on Veterans' Affairs, Congressman Bob Filner, explains why military heroes like Randy are falling through the cracks. And, Maggie Lockridge from the Iraq Star Foundation shares a surprise with Randy.



"That is a crime, and that's been committed by our own VA."


Substandard Care?
Jerry says he got a "raw deal" when he returned from Iraq, and he's struggling with what he believes to be PTSD. His wife says Jerry is angry and violent, and the situation has reached a crisis point. And, Col. David Hunt shares his strong opinions about the VA health care system.


"If they did their job like my husband did his job, we wouldn't be where we're at."


Failed by the VA?
Kevin and Joyce say their son, Jeffrey, came home from war a changed man, and help came too late. And, Tammy Duckworth, director of the Illinois Department of Veterans' Affairs and Paul Rieckhoff, director of Iraq and Afghanistan Veterans of America, share how Americans can help our wounded warriors. Plus, hear the Department of Veterans Affairs answers to some hard questions!

"We all need to get involved and make Veterans Day every day."

Wednesday, December 17, 2008

Operation Helping Hand at James A. Haley VA Hospital

Giving The Military A Helping Hand
Tampa Tribune - Tampa,FL,USA

By JOYCE McKENZIE

jmckenzie@tampatrib.com

Published: December 17, 2008

UNIVERSITY AREA - U.S. Marine Cpl. Miguel "Mike" Manuel Delgado could not think of a better way to spend an evening in the spinal cord injury unit at the James A. Haley Veterans' Hospital.

"I've been looking forward to this all day," said Delgado, who has been at the hospital since February. He is recovering from a broken neck that happened in a surfboarding accident in California while on leave from Iraq.

Delgado, of Brooksville, was among several other injured and wounded active duty patients and their families honored on Thursday during an annual Christmas dinner hosted by Operation Helping Hand, an initiative of the Tampa Chapter of Military Officers Association of America.

Delgado and his comrades were showered with gifts and a turkey dinner, compliments of Columbia Restaurant, and served by many of the Hillsborough County Sheriff's Office and MacDill Air Force Base's top brass.

"This is cool and it's great seeing and getting kissed by so many hot ladies," joked Delgado, who has aspirations of walking again. He credits his doctors and nursing staff for getting him on track to be discharged within a couple of months.
click link above for more

Sunday, December 7, 2008

Capt. Donald C. Little takes charge of Warrior Transition Unit at Fort Eustis

Warrior transition unit gets new leader
Daily Press - Newport News,VA,USA
Capt. Donald C. Little says that at Fort Eustis, "everybody has the right to their treatment."
BY HUGH LESSIG 804-225-7345
December 6, 2008
NEWPORT NEWS - The special recovery unit for wounded soldiers at Fort Eustis never stops running.

Just ask Capt. Donald C. Little, who assumed command on Friday.

His acceptance speech was briefly interrupted by a faint buzzing sound from the lectern — the official Blackberry passed to him by the outgoing commander. New e-mail had already arrived.

"There it goes," he said with a smile.

Monday, December 1, 2008

Aaron Glantz's new book takes a look at when War Comes Home


"A must-read for anyone who wants to make the phrase, 'Support the Troops,' more than a slogan."--Former US Senator Max Cleland

The War Comes Home is the first book to systematically document the U.S. government's neglect of soldiers returning from Iraq and Afghanistan.

Aaron Glantz, who reported extensively from Iraq during the first three years of this war, interviewed more than one hundred recent war veterans, and here he intersperses their haunting first-person accounts with groundbreaking investigative journalism. This timely book does more than provide us with a personal connection to those whose service has cost them so dearly. It compels us to confront how America treats its veterans and to consider what kind of nation deifies its soldiers and then casts them off as damaged goods.
http://www.aaronglantz.com/

Thursday, November 27, 2008

Thankful for General Carter Ham



I am thankful for all of the men and women serving this country and those who served coming forward to talk about PTSD. All these years later after the first studies were done, there are now so many that soon no one will ever wonder again what PTSD is. There are literally hundreds of their stories on this blog but the most magnificent thing about all of them is that they were willing to talk about it no matter how much others wanted to stigmatize them. Their courage is a testament of the human spirit.

When commanding officers are willing to say they have PTSD because of their service, it sets and example for all others to follow. Because of General Ham, his willingness to face this wound without any kind of shame will allow all others to come forward to seek the help they need to heal.

Thankful story two belongs to General Carter Ham. As you read his story think of all the others coming forward and know we all owe them a debt of gratitude.

PTSD:General's story highlights combat stress
Gen. Carter Ham, to call him a hero would be putting it mildly. He's a hero to the troops not just because he's a high ranking officer, but because he is willing to speak out on having PTSD. That is a kind of courage very few in his position are willing to do.When men like my husband came home from Vietnam, they knew something had changed inside of them but they didn't know what it was. They suffered in silence just as generations before them suffered. When PTSD was first used in 1976 with a study commissioned by the DAV, news was slowly reaching the veterans. While they fought to have it recognized as wound caused by their service, it was very difficult to talk about. The perception that there was something wrong with them kept too many from even seeking help to heal.

Friday, November 21, 2008

National Resource Directory For Wounded Warriors, Families And Caregivers

Department of Defense Launches National Resource Directory For Wounded Warriors, Families And Caregivers


The Department of Defense today launched the National Resource Directory, a collaborative effort between the departments of Defense, Labor and Veterans Affairs.

The directory is a Web-based network of care coordinators, providers and support partners with resources for wounded, ill and injured service members, veterans, their families, families of the fallen and those who support them.

“The directory is the visible demonstration of our national will and commitment to make the journey from ‘survive to thrive’ a reality for those who have given so much. As new links are added each day by providers and partners, coverage from coast to coast will grow even greater ensuring that no part of that journey will ever be made alone,” said Lynda C. Davis, Ph.D., deputy under secretary of defense for military community and family policy.

Located at http://www.nationalresourcedirectory.org , the directory offers more than 10,000 medical and non-medical services and resources to help service members and veterans achieve personal and professional goals along their journey from recovery through rehabilitation to community reintegration.

“The VA is extremely proud to be a partner in this innovative resource. This combination of federal, state, and community-based resources will serve as a tremendous asset for all service members, veterans, their families and those who care for them. The community is essential to the successful reintegration of our veterans, and these groups greatly enhance the directory’s scope,” said Karen S. Guice, M.D., executive director, federal recovery care coordination program at the Department of Veterans Affairs.

“The National Resource Directory will prove to be a valuable tool for wounded, ill, and injured service members and their families as they wind their way through the maze of benefits and services available to them in their transition to civilian life. The Department of Labor is pleased to have the opportunity to work with our partners at DoD,” said Charles S. Ciccolella, the assistant secretary of labor for the veterans’ employment and training service.

The National Resource Directory is organized into six major categories: Benefits and Compensation; Education, Training and Employment; Family and Caregiver Support; Health; Housing and Transportation; and Services and Resources. It also provides helpful checklists, Frequently Asked Questions, and connections to peer support groups. All information on the Web site can be found through a general or state and local search tool.

The National Resource Directory’s launch in November is a key feature of Warrior Care Month.

http://www.defenselink.mil/utility/printitem.aspx?print=http://www.defenselink.mil/releases/release.aspx?releaseid=12357

Monday, November 17, 2008

Veterans Airlift Command reunites wounded vets and families

Giving Vets A Lift
Veterans Airlift Command is an organization that offers free flights to soldiers and their families with pilots volunteering their services, planes, and paying for the fuel costs. Chip Reid reports.
November 17, 2008

Watch CBS Videos Online

http://www.cbsnews.com/video/watch/?id=4608140n