Friday, July 26, 2013

Congress working to help those wrongly discharged

Congress working to help those wrongly discharged for personality, adjustment disorders
WTKR News
by Laurie Simmons
July 25, 2013

Jessica Hinves thought coming forward to report her rape was the right thing to do, but it ended up ruining her budding Air Force career.

“I wasn’t allowed to stay in the military just because I was sexually assaulted,” said Hinves.

Doctors deemed her unfit to deploy and separated her from service.

Instead of giving her a diagnosis of PTSD and military sexual trauma, they diagnosed her with personality disorder.
read more here

A Vietnam war-hero's perspective on P.T.S.D.

A war-hero's perspective on P.T.S.D.
WYMT
MGN Online
By: Eric Eckstrom
Jul 25, 2013
University of Pikeville Professor Basil Clark has been given many titles in his life. Scholar, war veteran, husband and father, but a man with P.T.S.D. was never one of them.

“At the time I just knew I was going through these wrestling phases,” said Clark.

By all accounts, Clark is a war hero, twice being recognized for his bravery during the Vietnam war, earning him a Bronze and Silver Star respectively, but the subsequent mental war was his greatest challenge.

“There's kind of this fog that’s around you, like, what's happening? I can’t see clearly,” he said.

Experts at the National Center for P.T.S.D. say they are currently making progress on diagnostic tools to better identify that fog.

Clark says, for him, it was writing and faith in a higher power that was his compass through the mist....

“Getting it out and getting it on paper was really a catharsis,” he said.

Clark is finishing a new book called 'War Wounded: Let the Healing Begin,’ stemming from conversations with others suffering from traumatic experiences. But it’s a poem Clark recited from memory that perhaps summarizes his journey and so many others like him.”
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Iraq War veterans chilled by country's slide into civil war

'I risked my life, for what?': Iraq War veterans chilled by country's slide into civil war
NBC
By Bill Briggs
NBC News contributor
July 25, 2013

As they watch Iraq’s mounting body count and potential slide into civil war, some Iraq War veterans are more intensely questioning why they went, what it all meant, and whether the deaths of 4,486 U.S. troops on that foreign soil were worth the permanent cost.

Others are concerned about the impact that Iraq’s summer unraveling may have on the morale of active-duty troops who once fought there and who now are trying to finish the equally grinding mission in Afghanistan.

And 10 years after the Iraq invasion, the deployment and re-deployments of 1.5 million Americans, the subsequent execution of ex-leader Saddam Hussein, the rise of new acronyms like IED and PTSD, and a jarring suicide epidemic, a portion of former Iraq War troops say the mental-health struggles faced by so many younger veterans may consequently deepen.

“You think about the guys who lost their lives in World War II, at least there was a higher purpose for risking your life,” said Andrew O’Brien, an Army convoy gunner who served in Iraq during 2008 and 2009, surviving an IED blast. He attempted suicide in 2010. “Now that I’m hearing about this, all I think about is the guys we lost in Iraq. It’s hard to not think that it meant nothing.”
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Three Fort Stewart Solders Killed In Afghanistan

DOD Identifies Army Casualties
No. 535-13
July 25, 2013

The Department of Defense announced today the death of three soldiers who were supporting Operation Enduring Freedom.

They died July 23, in Soltan Kheyl, Afghanistan, of wounds suffered when enemy forces attacked their unit with an improvised explosive device. They were assigned to the 3rd Battalion, 15th Infantry Regiment, 4th Infantry Brigade Combat Team, 3rd Infantry Division, Fort Stewart, Ga.

Killed were:

1st Lt. Jonam Russell, 25
of Cornville, Ariz.,

Sgt. Stefan M. Smith, 24
of Glennville, Ga., and

Spc. Rob L. Nichols, 24
of Colorado Springs, Colo.

Troops afflicted with PTSD, alcoholism

Vietnam veterans learned years ago there is a huge difference between self-medicating and being addicted. Most of the time rehabs did not work for them simply because they were not alcoholics but were just using substances to stop feeling. It looks as if that lesson has not been learned in too many cases of new veterans.
Troops afflicted with PTSD, alcoholism
News 4 San Antonio
By: Delaine Mathieu
July 25 2013

SAN ANTONIO -- Researchers at the University of Texas Health Science Center are conducting a study on veterans with Post Traumatic Stress Disorder and alcoholism. It's the only one of its kind in the nation, funded by the Department of Defense. "I felt that I was successful, because I didn't pick up a weapon and blow my brains out," said Jerry Thornton.

The 58-year-old spent 12 years in the Army as a supply sergeant. The things he saw during Operations Desert Shield and Desert Storm changed him. "I experienced bodies, children." He started drinking while he was in the military, but the PTSD set in later. "I didn't know it was actually affecting me," said Thornton. "But it resulted in a divorce and the loss of my family." He became defensive and nervous. He was afraid of everything, including crowds at concerts, sporting events and even going inside H-E-B.

"It was one door," he said. "One door entering and one door to exit."

He drank to numb the pain.
read more here

DOD clueless on what to do about military suicides and PTSD

DOD clueless on what to do about military suicides and PTSD
Wounded Times
Kathie Costos
July 26, 2013

Erik Jorgensen, Spc. Brandon David Bertolo, Kenneth Jewel Stafford, who was on leave from his duty station in Fort Lewis and Pfc. Jackson Cole Taylor-Smith and Christopher Kent Heinz drowned in lakes. Fort Campbell 2 murders, 7 suicides in only 31 days.

These are just a few of the reports on Wounded Times for July.

If you want to know why. This is the reason. FUBAR results of Comprehensive Soldier Fitness
Suicides on rise among veterans
Idaho Statesman
JOHN SOWELL
July 26

During the year that U.S. Army Pfc. Erik Jorgensen spent in Afghanistan sweeping roads for makeshift bombs, a U.S. soldier died every 36 hours from injuries suffered in improvised explosive device blasts. More than nine troops were injured each day.

Sweeping for IEDs was dangerous, tedious and tension-filled work, said Army Sgt. Bryan Heidkamp, who served with Jorgensen at Joint Base Lewis-McChord near Tacoma, Wash., and deployed with him to Afghanistan. It could take a terrible toll physically and mentally. Seeing four soldiers they served with die added to it, Heidkamp said.

“It was really rough,” he said.
read more here

We can talk all we want about active duty suicides. We can talk about attempted suicides. When we leave out what is happening to them after they are discharged or leave out the National Guards and Reservists, we only know part of the story.

The truth is this program is about as dangerous as it can get. No matter how much money they shove at it, when you see results like this, it proves the DOD doesn't have a clue what to do and that is the most shocking thing of all. After discharge, the DOD can stop counting them.

If your really want to know then read The Warrior SAW, Suicides After War and if you want to know what we knew before Afghanistan and Iraq read For the Love of Jack His War My Battle

Pentagon says public affairs must change and not let Drudge Report get the scoop

Pentagon Spokesman: Public Affairs Must Change With Times
American Forces Press Service
By Karen Parrish
WASHINGTON
July 25, 2013
“When bad things happen, the American people should hear it from us, not as a scoop on the Drudge Report,” he said.


The Defense Department is facing a once-in-a-generation change, and its public affairs practitioners around the world need to communicate that change clearly, the Pentagon’s chief spokesman said today.

George Little, assistant to the secretary of defense for public affairs, spoke to commissioned, enlisted, civilian and contract employee defense public affairs professionals gathered at the Defense Media Activity’s headquarters on Fort Meade in Maryland. Little’s remarks also were webcast.

“Public affairs is an absolutely critical component of our military and our department,” he said. “We operate in a world so tightly connected that every world event, big or small, can be felt in real time.”

Little noted that thanks to the Internet, social media and smartphones, the walls between citizens, journalists and the military have never been thinner. He challenged his audience to consider three factors that argue for a new approach to public affairs:
-- Changes brought about by war and the media’s evolution;
-- An expanding toolbar of essential skills for public affairs professionals; and
-- Military and civilian defense leaders’ responsibility for effective communication.

Little pointed out that the widespread embedding of reporters in Iraq and Afghanistan forged close bonds between military members and the Fourth Estate. As deployments wind down and the services return to a more garrison-centered public affairs environment, he said, “we must look for new ways to enhance these bonds.”

Little said new approaches should include engaging more with nontraditional journalists such as bloggers and tweeters, who sometimes break news but also may report gossip and rumor.

“We must be constantly listening for new voices on defense issues,” he said, “and develop those relationships as well. … We must engage with anyone and everyone who is interested in what the department is doing. … In order to effectively communicate our message, we must be communicating across all platforms, new and old. By creating richer, more interesting content, we can create a deeper connection with the American public, and nourish the growing news appetite, on our terms.”
read more here

Marine with PTSD joined to save lives not take them

This is what I keep saying. Too many forget why they wanted to join the military in the first place. It was honorable to want to save lives and protect the country. When they stop believing that, they regret what they did for love.

The number one post on this site is "For those I love I will sacrifice" and from a tattoo on the chest of Pfc. Kyle Hockenberry, who was injured by an IED.

It pretty much sums up how they all feel. They are ready to face danger and ready to save a life even if it means they lose their own. If you want to see how much they care about each other, go to the link below and see the pictures going with this article. If you want to know why they are willing to do all of this, read it and know this isn't about killing. It is about caring.

They risk their lives because they love and that requires a deep emotional connection. In other words, the strength of their ability to care. It also opens the door to feeling the tremendous emotional pain. Once they understand this, know where the pain is coming from, they can begin to heal. Until then all the horrors of war stay with them until they no longer remember why they went.

Local Marine carries memories of war, for better or for worse
Cleveland Advocate
By STEPHANIE BUCKNER
July 26, 2013

Freedom does not come without a price, and that price for United States Marine and Cleveland resident Adam Brochin is constant anxiety and persistent memories of his active-duty experiences, which haunt his dreams like a roadside bomb waiting to explode.

According to the National Center for Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD), an individual can develop PTSD after being exposed to one or more traumatic events, including serious injury or threat of death.

Some of the symptoms associated with this affliction are disturbing and recurring flashbacks or dreams, high levels of anxiety for an extended period of time, or a complete numbness affiliated with memories of the events which the mind has deemed traumatic. Approximately 20 percent of those suffering from the disorder in 2009 were veterans of the Iraq and Afghanistan wars.

For Brochin, PTSD is something he has come to be very familiar with in his everyday life. This affliction has been amplified by the fact that a friend, fellow soldier and PTSD sufferer took his own life because of his personal traumatic combat experiences.

“I joined the military because I really wanted to make a difference,” said Brochin. “I remember sitting in my first period English class on 9/11 and watching the trade centers go down. People around me who knew that I was going into the Marine Corps just looked at me and I was just thinking that this is why I joined. I wanted to save lives, not take them. I wanted to protect what we have and support the American way of life.”

read more here

PTSD I Grieve from Kathleen "Costos" DiCesare on Vimeo.

Lincoln Memorial was vandalized

Lincoln Memorial Vandalized: Monument Closed While Statue Is Cleaned (VIDEO)
Huffington Post
Posted: 07/26/2013

The Lincoln Memorial in Washington D.C. was vandalized overnight.

According to NBCWashington, green paint was splattered inside the chamber of the memorial, on Lincoln and on the floor around it.
read more here

Thursday, July 25, 2013

Soldier and Wife Save Teens from Burning Vehicle

Soldier Saves Teens from Burning Vehicle
Army.mil/News
by Maj. Penny Zamora
Jul 25, 2013

NINEVEH, Ind. -- It was a scene from a parent's worst nightmare: a car full of teens had hit a tree head on, and the car was now on fire. Thanks to Staff Sgt. Michael Peters and his wife, Debra, all the teens survived and are on the road to recovery.

Peters and Debra were driving home from work at Camp Atterbury Joint Maneuver Training Center, or CAJMTC, Ind., on July 19, 2013, when they came upon a car accident moments after it occurred. A 15-year old passenger had gotten out of the vehicle, but the three other teens, aged 14, 16, and 18, were still inside.

When Peters, a trainer/mentor assigned to 2nd Battalion, 289 Field Artillery, 157th Infantry Brigade, First Army Division East, and his wife stopped, two of the teens were pinned in the front of the vehicle. A third teen was unconscious in the back seat.

"We didn't think about it; we just pulled over. Our thought was to clear the teens out before the vehicle was entirely engulfed," said Peters.
read more here