Wish reporters had news alert that PTSD doesn't have to be like this!

I get alerts on #PTSD all the time. Honestly, one of the reasons I decided to stop focusing on veterans with PTSD and turn the attention onto everyone that survived the cause of it. Until reporters get that message, nothing will change and we will continue to lose more survivors after they should have been helped to heal.

This will give you an idea of what my email fills up with.

Iraq veteran says friends call him at 3am 'with pistol in hand' over war horrors - The Mirror The Mirror In the two decades since, many of the soldiers who served have struggled with Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD). For some this included calling ... 70 ptsd rating reddit - donationsva.it - donationsva.it Former POW Talks About Her Ongoing Battle With PTSD - fashiononashoestring.co.uk - fashiononashoestring.co.uk

Iraq, 20 Years Later: A Changed Washington and a Terrible Toll on America The New York Times ... 300,000 others returned home suffering from post-traumatic stress disorders. ... but what didn't were the PTSD and the traumatic brain injury.

Rosanne Cash performs at Atwood Concert Hall - Alaska's News Source Alaska's News Source ... with Creative Forces for military veterans suffering from PTSD or traumatic brain injury, writing and performing songs as a form of healing.

Deported: The Iraq War veterans denied the right to live in the US - Sight Magazine Sight Magazine But Segovia Benitez fell on hard times when he returned to the United States, struggling with post-traumatic stress disorder and addiction.

Erskine veterans share Iraq war experience 20 years on - Planet Radio Planet Radio "I don't think I ever suffered from Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) but my wife might say differently because there were times when I was ...

Psychological trauma does not leave the American veterans in Iraq - Globe Echo Globe Echo Like many war veterans, the experience left him with post-traumatic stress disorder and mixed feelings about the war. In an attempt to process his...

Veteran who fatally stabbed his girlfriend in Anaheim convicted of manslaughter New Santa Ana Superior Court jurors that Moseley suffered from PTSD, which stemmed from a traumatic childhood and a tour in Iraq where Moseley, a Navy medic, was ...

There are more on that one email alert but you get the idea. Grammarly freaked out with those headlines and so did my brain.

40 years ago, it made sense that I was reading clinical books in the library about what veterans carried back from wars. After all, the researchers studied WWI, WWII, Korean, and Vietnam veterans because the government funded most of the research. Vietnam veterans pushed for more research and funding so they could understand what was going on with them, as much as they wanted to fight for all generations of veterans.

I grew up with uncles from WWII and my Dad was a Korean War veteran. Later, I married into another family of veterans from WWII and my Vietnam veteran husband. In all the years of research, I never read anything about anyone like me. I was a survivor too, but not from war. I was a multiple survivor of the events that caused it in me, but it didn't dawn on me that was the reason I understood veterans as much as I did.

When it finally dawned on me, I was furious. I had seen therapists and none of them saw it in me. I knew psychologists and other mental health professionals and they didn't see it in me. I did training with groups and no one saw it in me. Why? Because researchers are interested in studying trauma in survivors of all types of events, reporters are not.

This is one of the biggest reasons why I wrote the Ministers Of The Mystery series. The main character was a reporter. All the main characters are survivors of different events. Sure there are veterans in the spotlight but the attention they get is because they understand it so well, they wanted to pass on the hope of healing and help others along the way. That's how it should be.

The thing that got me about the first book, The Scribe Of Salem, was the reviews. Each one focused on a different genre and took away different messages from the same book.

This was my favorite one, but click the link to discover how 4 other reviewers took away different parts of it while giving it 4 5-star ratings and 1 4-star rating.

Reviewed by Anne-Marie Reynolds for Readers' Favorite

The Scribe of Salem by Kathie Costos is book one in the Ministers of the Mystery supernatural series. Chris considered himself an expert on the Witchcraft Trials in Salem, but something is about to prove his knowledge wrong. As a newspaper reporter, Chris has traveled the world and seen his fair share of horror, but nothing could compare to what happened next. On a visit to the Bishop Hotel Bar, Salem, a series of events changes everything he thought he knew and turns his life upside down. Chris has been offered a chance to get his life back on track, and he only has to do one thing - meet a Master Minister. When Chris begins to get his life back, he should be happy, right? But he isn’t; he’s terrified. Change has never done him any good before, so why should it make a difference now? God can’t save him – can he?

The Scribe of Salem by Kathie Costos is a great start to a new series. It’s an intriguing story, blending fantasy and supernatural horror as it delves deep into the Salem Witch Trials. Plenty of novels are based on the Witch Trials, but none are quite like this. It goes into great, descriptive detail about the horrors faced in those times and touches on other themes, such as domestic violence and PTSD. It’s also about having faith, not just in God, but in yourself and the power of friendship. It is a story of horror but also a story of pain, compassion, and healing, a gripping tale that will draw you into its tight clutches. It’s clear that Kathie Costos has done her research, and her characters are realistic people, easy to identify with, and infinitely likable. This wonderful story would make a great movie, and I highly recommend this author. I am looking forward to reading book two.

Go here to discover more 

Iraq War 20 years ago-and last night?

Wounded Times
Kathie Costos
March 20, 2023

20 years later, the bombs stopped falling, soldiers went back home,but for far too many, it never really ended. It never really does. You can see more photos here

March 20, 2003: U.S. Marines prepare themselves after receiving orders to cross the Iraqi border at Camp Shoup, in northern Kuwait.
Eric Feferberg/AFP via Getty Images

If you have PTSD, it is not too late to get help to heal. Yes, heal! Your life can be so much better once you make the connection between what happened, why it happened, and what you can do about it as a survivor of all of it!

MAKE THE CONNECTION!

Find some great vidoes like this one.

Black veterans #PTSD VA claims denied at higher rates

Before you read this, understand that this is not "new" for any veteran. Claims take far too long to be approved and the burden is on the veteran. Always and unrightly so. They have to prove everything and meet time constraints or see their claim having to be refiled instead of continued. It took my husband over 6 years and that was back in the 90s. I've heard even longer cases when families suffered financially and emotionally. To be wounded or injured while serving this country, body or mind and often both, have a medical diagnosis linking it to service, then enduring the VA rejection of the claim is like a dagger to their soul. Now adding in the color of their skin is a barrier to receiving the medical care and compensation they were promised. This story made me grieve!

Black veterans were more often denied VA benefits for PTSD than white counterparts, newly surfaced study shows

NBC News
By Laura Strickler
March 17, 2023

“Ever since I came back from Vietnam, I knew that I had a problem, but I didn’t know what it was," said one Black veteran.

Richard Brookshire co-founded the Black Veterans Project in Baltimore.

A newly surfaced 2017 internal Veterans Affairs report shows Black veterans were more often denied benefits for post-traumatic stress disorder than their white counterparts.

The analysis crunched claims data from fiscal year 2011 through 2016 and showed that Black veterans seeking disability benefits for PTSD were denied 57% of the time, compared to 43% for white veterans. The report emerged as part of an open records lawsuit filed by an advocacy group for Black veterans.

Terrence Hayes, a spokesperson for the Department of Veterans Affairs, said the agency did not immediately have current data on a racial breakdown of PTSD disability benefits awards and said the agency “is gathering the data and will share it once fully compiled.”

Hayes wrote in an email that the agency could not comment on any ongoing litigation but that VA Secretary Denis McDonough is committed to addressing racial disparities as it relates to VA benefits.

In 2015 he applied to the VA for a service-connected disability claim for PTSD. Nine months later the VA turned him down. With the assistance of advocacy groups, he appealed the VA’s decision multiple times and received retroactive approval last month, seven years after his initial denial.

Forbes told Shaban that he believes racism played a role in his yearslong pursuit of PTSD benefits. “I dealt with it in the military and now outside of the military," he said. "As a veteran, I’m dealing with the same issues through this appeal process.”
read more here

Brandon Caserta's death changed nothing and we should be asking why

Wounded Times

Kathie Costos

March 11, 2023

This is one of the reasons I gave up after 40 years of trying to change the end of the lonlyist battles they have.

"In 2021, the latest year for which numbers are available, 519 US service members died by suicide. Though a slight decrease from the previous year’s 582 suicides, the trend over the last decade and more has been increasing."

That came from CNN but while it is a recent report, it has been reported over and over again with different names attached to bills that have resulted in outcomes like this.

The Brandon Act is named after Brandon Caserta, a young sailor whose parents described him as a “very charismatic and upbeat young man” who “always helped everyone he could.”

But in June 2018, Caserta took his own life at Naval Air Station Norfolk, Virginia. In letters to his parents and to his friends, Caserta said he was constantly hazed and bullied in the Navy, and he saw no other way out. He notified his commanders he was depressed but they took no action and showed no sympathy, according to Brandon Caserta’s father Patrick, who served 22 years in the Navy. (CNN)

Joshua Omvig's parents pushed for change and in 2007 President Bush signed the bill in his name too.

In 2007, I did a massive report on what was happening because of wars and battles they fought alone. I was asking why the press wasn't on suicide watch. After all, they spent a lot of time reporting on the wars in Afghanistan and Iraq, but not not so much about what those wars were doing to those we sent to fight them. They didn't report on what was going in the military itself.

Brandon Caserta's parents tried to do something to save lives and spare other families from what they went through. It was the same reason the families of Erie County National Guards Matthew A. Proulx, Andrew L. Norlund, Justin C. Reyes and Gary M. Underhill's families grieved. Kevin Grosser and far too many others suffered needlessly with nothing really changing. I was looking up more of their names and bills attached to their names, but sadness started to take over and I had to stop. 

The problem is, people like me know what the truth is and we know what failed, but the most troubling thing is, we know what has saved lives. We should stop asking why members of the military, so committed to saving the lives of those they serve with, end up being unable to save their own. We should start asking why hasn't the military figured out what we knew 40 years ago!

Kathie Costos author of Ministers Of The Mystery Series

Ukraine: 1 year after trauma of war there's an app for that

The mental health first aiders fighting back in Ukraine

BBC
By Martha Henriques
23rd February 2023

The question is, when an entire country is under siege, infrastructure is being targeted, and movement in the open is dangerous or impossible, how do you provide that essential information before the golden hours are up?

Mental health workers in Ukraine have been providing urgent psychological care since the beginning of Russia's full-scale invasion. Their work could limit the lasting mental health repercussions of the war.

When Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine broke out on 24 February 2022, Iryna Frankova, a medical doctor and clinical psychologist working at Bogomolets National Medical University in Kyiv, knew that she had to act fast. There was the need to check her loved ones were safe, and that she wasn't in imminent danger. There was the question of whether to leave and if so, where to go.

But there was another urgent question too. Ukraine would soon be facing a crisis in mental health and, if previous conflicts were anything to go by, this was likely to be sidelined at precisely the moment when the most impactful help could be given – right at the start.

After a trauma, there is a window known as the "golden hours", a critical period in which action to support people's mental health can limit long-term damage, such as post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), anxiety and depression.

"It's the idea is that we really need to reach people in a very early stage after the exposure to trauma, in order to be able to prevent mental health consequences," says Frankova, speaking to BBC Future one year after the war began.

On one level, this might seem common sense: a particularly good time to offer someone comfort is when they are reeling from shock. But the evidence suggests that such small acts of support – sometimes as simple as reminding someone that they are not alone – reduces the risk of developing conditions that linger for years.

A year into the war, the app has now reached 81,000 users, and the service is now expanding beyond the automated chatbot service to offer a live chat with mental health professionals. They've had close to 5,000 requests already, Lezin says. Now, the chatbot has become a part of a European Union-funded project on psychosocial support for Ukrainians in bordering countries. They're soon to launch the service on WhatsApp, as well as its own standalone app. "This is a good beginning," says Frankova.
read more here

The late Captain James ‘Dustin’ Samples of the Cleveland Fire Department may still save lives

TN lawmakers name act after firefighter who died after long PTSD battle

FOX 17 Nashville
by Sydney Keller
Monday, January 30th, 2023

"We can’t legislate away traumatic accidents and emergencies, but we can remove obstacles to getting support when firefighters need it. Addressing the crisis of PTSD and suicide in the fire service requires a commitment to both prevention and treatment from all stakeholders and that’s what SB856 aims to do."

Two Tennessee Republican lawmakers filed an act Monday which aims at providing support for firefighters who are diagnosed with post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD).

State Sen. Paul Bailey (R-Sparta) and Rep. Johnny Garrett (R-Goodlettsville) filed the James ‘Dustin’ Samples Act in honor of Captain James ‘Dustin’ Samples of the Cleveland Fire Department who sadly committed suicide in 2020 after a long-time battle with PTSD.

Sen. Bailey says that lawmakers owe it to firefighters and those who work to save lives to do all they can to prevent any risk of injury on the job.
read more here

Journalists vulnerable to trauma too!

If you are a reporter, this is why the main character of the Ministers Of The Mystery series was a reporter! This job you do is one of the lesser talked about causes of #PTSD and I thought it was time to remind people that reporters are only human too! The Scribe Of Salem is the first part and the eBook is free until the end of January. I hope you find some comfort in it! 

I covered murder-suicides, and learned how journalists were vulnerable to trauma

The Conversation
Norma Hilton
Global Journalism Fellow, University of Toronto
Published: January 25, 2023

The Canadian Journalism Forum on Violence and Trauma looked at the mental health of more than 1,200 journalists in late 2021. More than two-thirds suffered from anxiety, 46 per cent reported depression, and 15 per cent said they had experienced post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) over the past four years.

It never really dawned on me how vulnerable journalists were to trauma until I took a job as an investigative reporter. I spent most of 2021 and 2022 verifying, analyzing and writing stories about murder-suicides.

Every morning, I would make myself a cup of coffee in my New York City apartment, then sit down at my desk to pore over cases of murder-suicides — a total of 1,500 a year in the United States at the time.

I was consumed by my work. I was going through every news story about a specific murder-suicide, checking the accuracy of facts like the spelling of names, ages of the perpetrators and their victims and details of where the events occurred and how the murder-suicides were carried out. "" In one case, I spent a month working out the number of children killed by their parents in various parts of the country. When relatives I hadn’t seen in four years came to visit, I spent most of their trip elsewhere, interviewing with experts on gun and domestic violence.
read more here

SCOTUS: Veterans can't get retroactive benefits if they miss window

This article is only part of the story. The thing is, it has always been this way. Ask any veteran before reporters started to zero in on Afghanistan and Iraq veterans, and most had no clue what the hell came back with them from war.

I've been involved in this for 40 years and can tell you most of them had no clue what it was, what name it was called, or understood that waiting to "get over it" was the wrong idea. All they knew was how they changed from the person they were before they went into whatever war they fought. (Hell, most of us had no clue just living as survivors of what civilian life can do to us.)

I don't have a problem with the decision the Supreme Court made regarding a veteran trying to get compensation for #PTSD going back to the Gulf War. While that may shock some of you, the thing is, it has always been this way. I have more of a problem that our country forces the veteran to figure out what their service did to them within a year, instead of being proactive for the sake of the veteran.

The veteran had all the obligations to file claims and appeals on time but the VA doesn't seem to have the same obligation. If you are a veteran, do not fight them on your own. Their rules are rules for all veterans. The thing is, you don't have to fight them on your own. Turn to the DAV, VFW, or any of the other groups out there claiming they help with claims. Turn to your member of the House or Senate because they are supposed to have staff able to help veterans. 

Keep in mind,  you didn't fight the war alone and should have to fight this one alone now! Call in reinforcements!

Supreme Court is unusually late with first opinion of term

The Hill
BY ZACH SCHONFELD
01/23/23

The nine justices sided with the government’s position that veterans can’t receive retroactive disability benefits if they miss a one-year application window.

The Supreme Court handed down its first opinion of the term on Monday, ruling that a veteran who suffers from post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) is not eligible for retroactive disability benefits after he missed a statutory window.

The ruling in some ways marked a return to normal, with the justices resuming the pre-pandemic tradition of announcing opinions live from the bench.

The case involved Adolfo Arellano, a U.S. Navy veteran who suffers from PTSD linked to trauma from his deployment to the Persian Gulf during the Iranian hostage crisis.

Although he missed the window to receive disability benefits retroactive to his discharge date, Arellano argued that the law is subject to equitable tolling, a doctrine that allows for extensions in extraordinary circumstances. Arellano’s attorneys argued he couldn’t meet the deadline because of his mental condition.

The justices ruled that Congress specifically provided that courts should not grant those types of extensions for the provision.
read more here

Free gift to readers of Wounded Times

Wounded Times
Kathie Costos
January 25, 2023

When I was writing The Ministers Of The Mystery series, I was thinking of all of you. All the people I've met over the years struggling to heal #PTSD and then turning around to help other people heal too. I am in awe of each and every one of you. I wanted to find a way to let you know that.

The Scribe Of Salem is the first book in the series. I've been auditioning narrators for audiobooks. I found several that delivered the emotions of this rollercoaster ride, as well as had a voice that fit. I had a woman do one chapter from each book and liked it. However, I've decided to go back to my original thought of having a male read it. The main character is male, but there are at least 30 characters in the three books and heavy dialogue going on. It seemed more important for the voice to carry the overall flow. 

Anyway, when I was uploading this video of Chapter 3, The Trials, I decided it was time to thank all of you and anyone else interested in reading these books.

All of us know the way our story happened. It started out with shock, confusion, and feeling lost in our own bodies. For most of us, someone came along to help us find our way back to seeing ourselves when we look in the mirror again. That is the way the first book starts. It is also for all of us, no matter what caused PTSD in us. Remember, the only way to get hit by PTSD is to survive the trauma that caused it, and the only way out of it is to be shown the way to heal. The fabulous thing about us is, we aren't selfish and love to pay it forward, helping someone else the same way others helped us. 

By this chapter, Chris's old friends came back into his life when he needed them the most. He also met Alex and Mary Michaels. They are book publishers he agreed to show around Salem. They are walking around when this story begins to get really strange.

Read The Scribe Of Salem for free until January 31!

Please leave a review of what you think wherever you read it from. It will help me as I write the 4th book. Right now I am still researching it and a good time to discover what hits people the most.

When is a PTSD book not?

Wounded Times
Kathie Costos
January 16, 2023

When is a #PTSD not a PTSD book? When it isn't what you expect or have been led to believe.

"In The Scribe of Salem: Ministers of the Mystery, the first book in the Ministers of the Mystery series, Kathie Costos takes readers on a wild fictional journey that has one foot in reality. Filled with suspense, historical intrigue, magic and scripture, get ready for an edge-of-your-seat novel that’ll leave you wanting more."

The Scribe Of Salem

For 4 decades, I've been saying the same thing but the suffering that didn't need to happen kept happening. What I was saying was not, and is not, wrong. The problem is, this site didn't get through to enough people. The videos didn't get through to enough people. The non-fiction books I wrote didn't get through enough and the fiction ones didn't work. 

I had to find a new way of telling what needs to be known and leave it up to the reader to take away what they need from this work.

The Ministers Of The Mystery Series is about everyone struggling to heal after surviving. There are veterans in it from different decades. A retired police officer struggling to heal after PULSE. Survivors of domestic violence and child abuse. A retired pastor struggling to heal from what taking care of his congregation did to him. And the one they all joined forces to save, a newspaper reporter.

There is a review coming out on Wednesday, January 18th. I couldn't believe how much the reviewer got out of it. Yet, not once did she mention the term PTSD.

I figured, who knows horror more than people that survived the cause of their PTSD?

"Readers will also appreciate the tragic characters that Kathie Costos crafted. Each character has a backstory, a darkness that surrounds them. They try to get rid of that lingering shadow, yes, but it’s always there. This, paired with the author’s atmospheric writing, turns The Scribe of Salem into an almost modern-gothic novel that is in the same vein as Edgar Allan Poe’s works."

I can't wait until you can read the rest but for now, I hope you see that just because a lot of people are doing a lot of things to help others with PTSD, it is because we all matter!

Celebrities and veterans are not the only ones with #PTSD

Wounded Times
Kathie Costos
January 10, 2023

This morning my inbox was filled with news that Prince Harry, Hailey Bieber, and veterans are suffering from PTSD. (I had to look up who Hailey Bieber was. How is it that there were at least 50 alerts on her?)

What I didn't see were alerts on what happens to survivors as humans living through something that could cause PTSD. Sometimes I feel as if I am the only one trying to get reporters to pay attention to all of us, since there are more average people of all ages struggling to heal and trying to get some hope they can do it.

Sorry but, that's all I can write on this right now. It's too frustrating to deal with today.

PTSD Demons On Film

Wounded Times

Kathie Costos

January 8, 2023

If you have PTSD, then you know how to spot the demon someone else is struggling to get rid of. We can all see that all-too-familiar sadness in the eyes of someone else. Once our own eyes were opened by those that came before us, we begin to notice how it has been inflicting people since the beginning of time. You may wonder, as I do, why others never understand what is right in front of them.

If you look up famous movies about PTSD, you won't find the one playing in your dreams every night or in the flashbacks that come without warning. Sadly, if you look online for a list of movies with characters struggling with it, you won't find as many as there have been because the list makers do not seem to understand that is part of the script even if not overtly so.

Most of the lists I found were the same and I picked this one from Ranker to give you an idea.

"This list answers the questions, "What are the best post-traumatic stress disorder movies?" and "What is the greatest post-traumatic stress disorder movie of all time?"

1, The Deer Hunter

2, American Sniper

3, Fearless

4, Jacobs Ladder

5, Brothers

6, Perks Of Being A Wallflower

7, Ordinary People

8, Taxi Driver

9, The War At Home

10, First Blood

11, The Edge Of Love

12, Grand Toreno

13, Jackknife

14, Red Dragon

15, The Fisher King

My eyebrows are hurting because I kept waiting to see the ones we know. They aren't there. They do not call it PTSD when they show flashbacks, nightmares, mood swings, or emotional turmoil by characters unable to leave the past in the past. Yet, once you read this list, if you come across a movie you have seen, you'll never think of the movie the same way again when you go back and watch it.

The Best Years Of Our Lives

The Robe

The Messenger

Season Of The Witch

It's A Wonderful Life

Jimmy Stewart brought his demon with him into the role after WWII.

EXCLUSIVE: How Jimmy Stewart's agony in It's a Wonderful Life came from extreme PTSD he suffered after he lost 130 of his men as a fighter pilot in WWII

Actor Jimmy Stewart was haunted by his memories from his time in the Air Force and suffered from PTSD when he returned from World War II

Stewart wrestled with the guilt of killing civilians in bomb raids over France and Germany and felt responsible for the death of his comrades

Stewart never talked about his struggles and bottled up his emotions

But they came out when acting parts he chose when he returned to Hollywood

He tapped into his emotional distress during the filming of It's a Wonderful Life, where his character George Bailey unravels in front of his family

Stewart's anguish is laid bare for the first time in Mission: Jimmy Stewart and the fight for Europe by author Robert Matzen (read more here)

I bet there are even more you may be thinking about right now. Any movie with nightmares of things that have been or flashbacks will have a reason for that being in the script. Use your inner PTSD couch critic and let other people you know see what you see, so they will be able to recognize the demons in the eyes of others. Then maybe we can all decide that there is no reason to hide the battles we fight since they are all watching these movies as entertainment.

If you are involved with church people, then read the Psalms with fresh eyes and you'll find it there too!

Kathie Costos Author of Ministers Of The Mystery The Scribe Of Salem

Wounded Times
Kathie Costos
January 4, 2023

My neck hurts right now. As I was reading the following article, I found myself nodding my head in agreement so much so, I need to share this. Since most of the readers are struggling with #PTSD, we all know that the spiritual battle comes in with the list of things we must overcome to heal. Too many of us know what it is like to seek spiritual help from "houses of worship" and sadly, find no help within those doors.

We are not alone on this. Jesus was not welcomed either. His "house of worship" leaders hated Him because they feared His messages.

The Pharisees and Sadducees were all about money and power. They charged people for everything, from buying the sacrifice, and paying them to do the sacrifice after they paid for a ritual bath before the rest would be done. If they did not have the ability to control the people, they would lose power and thus lose the wealth they gained. Jesus was preaching about a direct connection between them and God, Their Father.

John the Baptist did not charge money to baptize anyone. They hated him too.

But when he saw many of the Pharisees and Sadducees come to his baptism, he said unto them, O generation of vipers, who hath warned you to flee from the wrath to come? Matthew 3:7

Jesus preached about love, compassion, mercy, forgiveness, and taking care of the needy. He preached outside among the people and spoke of how they could seek God directly on their own. Studying scripture, often stuns me how much was left in the approved books of the Bible supporting the fact that we do not need a building to connect us to God. We only need the Son He sent to us.

When you read the following, please go to the link and read the rest of it. Understand that your problem with God may have more to do with what you have seen men do here than what God has done from Heaven. 

Healing spiritually added to mental health help expands your recovery!

JESUS Would Be Considered “NEW AGE” By Today’s CHURCH

Christian Meditations

If Jesus Were Here Today, Would He Be Considered “New Age” by the Modern Church?

As a spiritual leader and teacher, Jesus has had a profound impact on millions of people around the world for centuries. His message of love, compassion, and forgiveness has resonated with people of all faiths and backgrounds, and his teachings have been a source of inspiration and guidance for countless individuals.

But what if Jesus were alive today? How would he be perceived by the modern church, and would his teachings be considered “new age” or outside the mainstream?

To explore this question, let’s take a closer look at some of the key aspects of Jesus’ teachings and how they might be perceived in the modern world.

Jesus’ emphasis on personal transformation and inner growth. One of the central themes of Jesus’ teachings was the importance of personal transformation and inner growth. He encouraged his followers to look within and seek to transform their lives from the inside out. In the Sermon on the Mount, he says, “Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven” (Matthew 5:3). This suggests that Jesus saw true happiness and fulfillment as being a result of inner transformation, rather than external circumstances or achievements.

In the modern world, this emphasis on inner growth and transformation might be seen as “new age” or outside the mainstream. Many modern Christians tend to focus more on external forms of faith, such as attendance at church services or adherence to certain religious practices, rather than on inner transformation and spiritual growth. Jesus’ emphasis on love and compassion. Another key aspect of Jesus’ teachings was his emphasis on love and compassion.

In the modern world, this emphasis on inner growth and transformation might be seen as “new age” or outside the mainstream. Many modern Christians tend to focus more on external forms of faith, such as attendance at church services or adherence to certain religious practices, rather than on inner transformation and spiritual growth. Jesus’ emphasis on love and compassion. Another key aspect of Jesus’ teachings was his emphasis on love and compassion.
read more here

Did you ever wonder why God allowed it to happen?

Wounded Times
Kathie Costos
January 3, 2023

Whatever caused you to have #PTSD, you probably needed to find an explanation as to why it happened to you.

There was real evil in Salem in 1692. It did not live in the accused but in the accusers. They broke most of the 10 Commandments. They murdered innocent people, put another God ahead of God, blamed God by Name for what they were doing, stole, lied, and used the power of faith to corrupt others into the service of the father of lies. They turned against the faith they claimed to have and turned to the lust for power over others. The survivors were left to wonder why it happened to them after they were falsely accused, tortured, and faced death. Then, after they were released to live among their accusers, imagine how they felt. The more I know about PTSD, the more I don't have to imagine what that is like. How many times did it happen to you when you were falsely accused by people you knew because they didn't know any better? If you take nothing else away from this post, imagine how the people at the time had no other explanation for any of it, yet we do. We know that as survivors, there is a reason for the cause of our suffering, just as much as there is a reason for our healing!

 

It did not just happen in Salem.

Beyond Salem: 6 Lesser-Known Witch Trials

Lancaster Castle, where all but two accused witches were put on trials. (Credit: Dave Moorhouse/Getty Images)

Pendle: England, 1612–1634

"Required to report anyone who refused to attend the English Church or take communion, the local Justice of the Peace, Roger Nowell, was also tasked with investigating claims of witchcraft." 

People all over the world suffered because of wars, illnesses, famine, and things they could not explain. They had to find someone to blame. Some said God let it all happen. Others said the devil did. They pointed their fingers at others. 200,000 dead. They died because people lied about them and called them witches. They died because some of them were poor. They died because some of them were rich. They died because some of them did the right thing and tried to stand up for them against the false accusations, and ended up being accused too. They died because of greed, power, and hatred. They died in the name of their religion.


Did you ever wonder why God allowed it to happen? He couldn't have been pleased to see His name used to cause all that happened. While we know eventually all the trials ended, we question why they were allowed to happen at all.

Whatever caused you to have #PTSD, you probably needed to find an explanation as to why it happened to you. No matter what it was, it caused you harm and made you fear for your life. When it was over, and your life was no longer the same as it was, either you were grateful you survived, or you took the event itself as a judgment from God.

I know because I did the same thing. I think it can be worse for those who do believe in God than for those who do not. After all, if you believe in God then you know nothing is impossible for Him. So why didn't He prevent it if He didn't cause it?

That is why I wrote the Ministers Of The Mystery Series.

In The Scribe Of Salem, Chris was born and raised in Salem. He always saw the love that conquered the evil done there because people did the right thing even though they had seen others pay the price for defending the innocent people accused and tortured as witches when they too became the accused.

In chapter 2, David was trying to get Chris to seek the help of the woman that healed him five years before. Chris survived all the times he went to Afghanistan and Iraq to report on the wars. He survived a bomb blast that left him covered with scars on the right side of his body. He survived his ex-wife trying to kill him. The night before this conversation, Chris also survived the threat he was to himself as he held a gun to his own head.

“What did all that do to you?”

“You know, with the wars I covered and getting blown up didn’t do as much damage to me as she did. I had nightmares and flashbacks, mood swings off the charts and so filled with anger, I had to go to the gym just to beat up a bag.”

“How did you manage to get the divorce if she didn’t want it to end?”

“I told her I kept the knife with her fingerprints and my blood on it and I’d turn her in for attempted murder if she didn’t agree to it. Then the day of the divorce, she told me I’d never be done with her and I’d always be looking over my shoulder. The thing is, she was right. I left her in LA and came back here, and was still looking over my shoulder, having a panic attack whenever I saw a red Mustang.”

“How long did that last?”

“Strange thing is, until last night when I found out she died. It was the first good night of sleep I’d had. On the way here, there was a red Mustang on the road and it didn’t bother me at all, other than the fact I was shocked I didn’t care.”

“I think you may want to take a trip to Gabriel and see if you can talk to Mandy.”

“No, I’m not a veteran.”

“She helps anyone God sends her. Trauma doesn’t just hit veterans.”

“I don’t have any extra money and besides, I wouldn’t know how to find her.”

“If you’re supposed to find her, trust that and you will.”

Chris shook his head. “You have no idea how strange that sounds to me right now. Up until you guys walked into the bar at 7:00, I would have told you what I thought about God,” he looked down, “that He’s a vindictive son of a bitch playing around with people’s lives and making us suffer for fun. Now I don’t know what to think.”

“You suffered for seven years, so ya, I get how you would feel that way. I did too for a while. The thing is, the explosion happened at 7:00 too, so maybe this time, He’s moving things around so you open your eyes to how wrong you were. Come on Bill is still waiting for us.”

It took his friends and strangers coming into his life to open his eyes so he would see that God did not do anything to him, but tried to prevent it from happening. When He couldn't, He saved Chris.

Chris thought it would have been easier to have not loved God in the first place, so it would have made it easier to walk away from Him. He had to be able to see what God did to try to prevent what happened to him. The same thing He does for all of us, but because we all have the free will to do as we are asked, or guided to do, we are free to dismiss it. Chris dismissed it and then blamed God for letting it all happen to him.

On a personal happier note, I finished therapy today and so glad I did it when I needed it.

If you are contemplating a field in mental health, God bless you

The clock is ticking at worldometers! 8 billion people as of January 2, 2023, at 8:15 on the east coast of the United States. As for the US, "DEC. 29, 2022 — As the nation prepares to ring in the new year, the U.S. Census Bureau today projected the U.S. population will be 334,233,854 on Jan. 1, 2023."

We know that PTSD does not just happen to veterans in the US. We know that it strikes human survivors. And now we know that most of the causes are because of what other humans do. The top five causes are all about other people doing something to cause the trauma.

(Check the link and see where the information came from.)

Post-traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) Statistics: 2022 Update
CFHA

Report Highlights
6% or 3 in every 50 American adults will have gone through PTSD or post-traumatic stress disorder at some point in their lives [9].
The leading cause of PTSD is sexual violence at 33%, with 94% of rape victims developing symptoms of PTSD during the first two weeks after their traumatic experience [23] [28].
PTSD is most prevalent among American adults between the ages of 45 and 49 years old at 9.2% [12].
Women have a lifetime PTSD prevalence rate of 9.7%, compared to 3.6% in men [17].
Civilian women have a lifetime prevalence rate of 8%, compared to 13.4% among military women [24].
11% to 23% of veterans have experienced PTSD within a given year [2].
About 17.2 veterans die by suicide each day, with veterans being 1.5 times more likely to die by suicide than civilians [2].
3 in 10 or 30% of the first responders have PTSD [6].
6 weeks of cognitive behavioral therapy can help ease symptom severity by about 50% in 21% to 46% of patients with PTSD [7].
People with PTSD who use cannabis for their symptoms are 2.57 times more likely to recover from this condition [3].
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention defines post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) as an intense, uncontrollable emotional and physical reaction to a reminder of a traumatic event or distressing memories [4]. This abnormal response to triggers can last for days and even years after the harrowing incident or traumatic event.

Think about what that all means to people in the US, as well as around the world. For all we know about PTSD and the results of the causes, we will never know how many people have PTSD.  There are far too many that will not be diagnosed and never enough people to be able to diagnose and treat the survivors. As long as we keep doing a lousy job of letting people know what PTSD is, why they have it, and give them hope, as well as a way to heal, we will keep seeing the suffering that does not have to happen.

Take the information you just learned and try an experiment on your own. Ask a friend or family member what they know about PTSD. If the response you get is the same one I've gotten for the last 40 years, they will say it is something veterans get. While we know that is not true, we know that they are the only group reporters want to cover. Even fewer reporters want to cover those serving today as if that makes sense to them. Why bother to report on when the events take place?

The clock is ticking around the world on the population of the planet but it is also ticking on the time lost when people survive what others do to them, but they don't have someone doing something for them.

If you are contemplating a field in mental health, God bless you because the world needs more people like you!

Kathie Costos author of Ministers Of The Mystery series

PTSD: The trauma experienced by migrants is typically two-fold

Border crisis complicated by migrant PTSD: report

NY Post
By Jesse O’Neill
January 1, 2023

A Border Protection officer leading zip-tied migrants after they were taken into custody on January 1, 2023.James Keivom

The trauma experienced by migrants is typically two-fold: they are suffering from the memories they left behind while also carrying around mental anguish from their journeys, Byimana explained.

As a surge of asylum seekers overwhelm southern border cities, “most” of the migrants are suffering from post-traumatic stress disorder from their harrowing trip into the US.

The migrants’ arduous ordeals are often marred with violence, kidnappings and sexual assaults, according to Dr. Brian Elmore, who volunteers for weekend shifts at a shelter in El Paso, Texas.

“Most of our patients have symptoms of PTSD. I want to initiate a screening for every patient,” said Elmore, an emergency medicine doctor at Clinica Hope.

In many cases, the grueling hardships had been exacerbated by the pandemic emergency measure Title 42, which has been used to expel more than 2.5 million migrants from the US since March 2020, according to the Saturday report by the Associated Press.
read more here

Ukraine's children fighting PTSD--teaching all of us how to heal

Providing Psychological Support to Ukrainian Children

United Help Ukraine Through a unique international collaboration, United Help Ukraine is sponsoring and raising funds for the Hibuki Therapy Project. “Hibuki” means “Open Embrace” in Hebrew.

First developed by Israeli child psychologists in 2006, the Hibuki intervention uses a specially designed toy dog to support the mental health and recovery of children impacted by war trauma. Now we are bringing Hibuki dogs to Ukraine and countries of relocation to help countless children who have experienced the unimaginable.

This play-based intervention brings comfort and helps children share their emotions, which are often hard to process or communicate to adults who can – and want – to help. Hibuki dogs and therapy are provided to all families free of charge through a network of specially trained mental health professionals.

In Ukraine, children are one of the most vulnerable groups and are severely impacted by the ongoing crisis, and UHU is committed to providing psychological aid through the Hibuki Therapy Project.

All of the Hibuki toys and therapeutic support is provided to Ukrainian children free of charge through a network of specially trained volunteers and mental health professionals.

Israeli innovation helps Ukraine's PTSD-afflicted children

By JERUSALEM POST STAFF
Published: DECEMBER 6, 2022

Kinder Velt Child Trauma Center in Ukraine

(photo credit: Courtesy)

The children's trauma center in Ukraine draws on experience from another country that knows war and terror too well: Israel.

As war rages on in Ukraine and a season of bitter coldness and erratic electricity commences, a center started by an Israeli-Ukrainian is administering developmental and psychological therapies to the nation's children.

“When we began seeing how deeply the children were suffering, we resolved to take action,” said David Roytman, who splits his time between Israel and his native Odessa, and founded the Kinder Velt (Children's World) Center nearly three years ago.

Roytman, an internationally-acclaimed artist and multimillionaire whose luxury Judaica company earned him the reputation as the ‘Jewish Louis Vuitton,’ is familiar with anxiety and trauma from war.
read more here

From me,

We learn how to heal after others did so we can learn from them. We can learn from their mistakes and pass on their successes. The most important thing we gain from listening to other survivors battling PTSD is hope! Our world may be dark one day but does not have to stay dark forever. Their struggles shine a light on the way to healing.

Canadian veteran's best therapist has four legs, and really big ears!

A friend named Bert: A Canadian veteran living with PTSD finds hope in a donkey

CTV News Canada
Joel Haslam
CTV News Ottawa Multi-Skilled Journalist
December 27, 2022

Karen is living with PTSD. She is a veteran of the Canadian Forces, doing her best to live with a painful past.

Karen Stacey, a Canadian Forces veteran living with PTSD, enjoys a gentle stroll with her friend Bert (Joel Haslam/CTV Ottawa)

Karen Stacey swings wide a creaky, stainless steel gate, announcing her arrival.

“Good morning, Bert. Are you still sleeping?”

She’s come to see a friend; a soulmate of sorts, who’s changed her life.

“Hi, buddy,” she says with a smile.

Bert turns his head toward her, clearly recognizing his visitor.

His ears point to the sky.

“Hello, handsome,” Karen whispers.

She locks her arms around his neck and gives him a gentle peck between the eyes.

“He’s a blessing. I couldn’t have asked for a better success story than to have a donkey as my best friend.”

Karen and Bert’s friendship began at the Women Warriors Healing Garden in Blackburn Hamlet.

“It still hurts. So, finding this place and being able to let everything go is fantastic. This is 52 acres of freedom that I can wander as I want. No judgment, no stress, no pain. Just a lot of love,” she says.

Co-founded by an American military veteran, Erin Kinsey, and an Ottawa psychotherapist, Elaine Waddington Lamont, the garden is a place for veterans to heal.
read more here

A civilian message to military members

Military suicides have become slightly less common, but are still a 'massive problem' American Homefront Project

By Steve Walsh
Published December 11, 2022

Though military suicide has been a problem for decades, critics say the Pentagon hasn’t come to terms with the fact that anyone can potentially be at risk.

More than 500 military personnel die by suicide each year, though the number dropped slightly last year. This summer a Pentagon Committee visited bases around the world including Nellis Air Force Base in Nevada, Fort Campbell in Kentucky, Naval Air Station North Island in California, Camp Lejeune in North Carolina, the North Carolina National Guard, and Camp Humphreys in South Korea. The panel also visited three bases in Alaska, where there have been several suicides.

Despite the scrutiny, another four suicides took place in November at the Navy’s Regional Maintenance Center in Norfolk, Virginia. Earlier in the year, in nearby Newport News, seven suicides were reported on the USS George Washington.

After visiting the ship, Master Chief Russell Smith told Congress in May that he once struggled with suicidal thoughts. He also recounted a story of a colleague - a Navy SEAL - who died by suicide.

“Suicide is a massive problem for us, because it’s the one thing we can prevent absolutely by getting inside people’s headspace and connecting to them,” Smith said.
read more here

Now that you read that, read this.

I never served, but I survived. I never fought in a war, but I fought battles to heal. I've listened to veterans for 4 decades but one conversation still sticks out in my mind.

A veteran, tough as they come, took offense when he asked me about my service. I told him I didn't serve. He started shouting at me about how I had no clue what it was like for him. I told him he was right. Then I listed the things I survived, all ten of them. I asked him if he had a clue what any of that was like for me. He said he didn't. Then I asked him if he could understand what all of that did to me. He was silent for a while, and I heard him sniffle. He said he did.

I can't understand what WWII did to my uncles, or Korea did to my Dad, or Vietnam to my husband. I can understand what surviving did to them because I survived what I did.

If you can't understand how surviving anything changes you, then do some basic research on all the others that end up fighting a battle with the demon PTSD, and know, you are not alone. You are human and survived something most people will never know. Don't expect them to understand. Don't dismiss them when they may be able to help you, even though you did not have the same experience cause it.

National Center for PTSD

We are the world's leading research and educational center of excellence on PTSD and traumatic stress.

PTSD is a mental health problem that some people develop after experiencing or witnessing a life-threatening or traumatic event. If symptoms last more than a few months, it may be PTSD. The good news is that there are effective treatments.

Look over on the right for the dropdown menu. Read the lists of others that also fight their battles with PTSD. Then understand something. Most of the time, PTSD strikes after just one exposure. How many did you go through? 

Once you've learned more about #PTSD, consider something else. If you were willing to die to save someone else, are you willing to heal to save others too? If you share your healing with others, they will find the hope they can heal too and they are not alone. They will pass it on. Think of all the lives you'll be able to save by sharing your struggles with us, and we can do the same for those who serve this country. We may not all understand the cause but we can all speak the language of healing! Would be a great way to start the New Year!

PTSD in Minnesota's Deputy worthy of death benefit

Appeals court rules spouses of officers who die by suicide are entitled to death benefit

KSTP
Eric Chaloux
Updated: December 21, 2022

“They see things regularly that if we saw one of those things in our life time, we’d be affected by it for the rest of our lives,” Cindy Lannon said.

The Minnesota Court of Appeals found that a surviving spouse of a public safety officer who dies by suicide is “entitled to the death benefit for survivors of officers ‘killed in the line of duty’ if the officers death resulted from post-traumatic stress disorder from the job”, according to the court’s opinion.

For more than 30 years, Jerry Lannon protected and served the community, including since 1999, as a Deputy Sheriff in Washington County.

“Jerry always loved his job, he loved going to work, in the last few months of his life, it completely turned, and he was dreading going to work,” said Cindy Lannon, Deputy Lannon’s wife.

58-year-old Deputy Lannon died by suicide in November 2018.
read more here