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!
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
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
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
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.
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!
When it comes to PTSD, the tough talk about it. It takes a lot of courage to talk about something very few understand but it helps when you are talking to others that do. There comes a time in your life when you say that you donÃt care what other people say. You know where you were and you know what you lived thru. You finally understand that not many others can claim the same.
Four days later, I was happy to put up a post about a General that showed great courage in talking about his own battle with PTSD.
How many Medal of Honor recipients have to talk about their own battles with PTSD, before they understand there is nothing to be ashamed of? How many Generals have to talk about their battles, after a lifetime of battles in uniform, before you understand what courage looks like?
Ever wonder why they come forward and talk openly about something they never have to say a word about? Do they need publicity? Do they want to play "victim" and get people to feel sorry for them? Hell no! THEY DO IT TO SAVE THE LIVES OF THOSE THEY WOULD HAVE DIED FOR!
So how did that man with the courage to speak out on what too many were still believing they had something to be ashamed of become less like the Centurion to more like lying like a Pharisee?
Don Bolduc, a retired Army general, celebrates winning the New Hampshire primary in a tight race against state senator, Chuck Morse, on Tuesday evening, September 13, 2022, in Hampton, New Hampshire. He faces incumbent Sen. Maggie Hassan (D) in the general election. JOHN TULLY
From the start, Democrats and his fellow Republicans painted Bolduc as an extremist who took up radical positions in addition to his belief in a stolen election, including advocating for the investigation and possible elimination of the FBI after the raid on Mar-a-Lago and accusing Bill Gates of wanting to use Covid vaccines to implant microchips in Americans.
That was from a new Rolling Stone article written by a reporter that has covered Bolduc for far too long to not be shocked by the change he sees. Kevin Maurer tried to report the truth against what Bolduc appears to be.
In a recent TV commercial and in his official bio, Bolduc’s campaign alludes to, or flat-out claims, him leading “allied soldiers on horseback to kill terrorists.” The story of the Special Forces team that fought with the Northern Alliance on horseback in northern Afghanistan led to a statue in New York and the 2018 movie 12 Strong. But Bolduc didn’t serve with that team. The Washington Post gave a 2020 version of the ad two Pinocchios.
New Hampshire has been my home for the last three years but for most of my life, I lived in New England. This area of the country has never been about putting politics and what was easy above all else. We are made of strong stock and sturdy foundations. Sure, we get political but it was never like I've seen over the last few years. I wish this were a normal political year when I would consider voting for a Republican. As an Independent voter, I vote for one person over the political side they choose. Apparently, Bolduc has chosen power over our country and has caused great sadness in my soul.
I have watched true heroes succumb to the father of lies for pure power and wonder if it was worth surrendering their souls to do it.
"You belong to your father, the devil, and you want to carry out your father’s desires. He was a murderer from the beginning, not holding to the truth, for there is no truth in him. When he lies, he speaks his native language, for he is a liar and the father of lies." John 8:44
How could anyone so faithful to this country betray the foundation it was built on? The rule of law requires evidence, not simple claims of what some believe because they do not like the results. Yet Bolduc supported the wild claims made and set aside loyalty to the country and true moral values?
The Constitution and Bill of Rights built the foundation of this country to provide the people the ability to use their voices to determine the direction this country takes. Yet this party and people like Bolduc want to take that voice away from us, and subvert our votes because they don't like how we vote if it wasn't for them? Did we ever hear someone on that side claim their own election was stolen when they were on the same ballot but won their election? No, it is only when they lose, they make wild claims with absolutely no proof it was.
We are all supposed to have equal rights to believe and worship as we choose, yet that party has decided they should create laws that only support a fraction of the country on "moral grounds" and then turn around selecting what is suddenly acceptable to them? Seriously? They don't even have the morals to defend the truth anymore!
He served with honor but turned around and lied about something he did not do?
What else is he willing to lie about? What else is he willing to sacrifice for the power he hungers for in place of doing the right thing with the power he has now? Speaking out on his own battle with PTSD was the right thing to do. Refusing to speak out on the truth when Liz Cheney and so many others dared to do, is the selfish thing and wrong thing to do.
Of all the people I once thanked God for, showing such courage to speak the truth about the suffering of so many others when PTSD is ripping them apart, Bolduc was one of the last people I thought would sacrifice it all for the sake of the power of pride.
This is the 4th day of PTSD Awareness Month. I think it should be changed from awareness to beware-ness because of the way some reporters cover stories on PTSD.
This is good reporting on PTSD among members of law enforcement.
Public safety officer deaths by suicide, PTSD could soon be considered line-of-duty injuries
Post-Gazette Washington Bureau
ASHLEY MURRAY
May 31, 2022
Law enforcement officers are 54% more likely to die by suicide compared to the general population, according to a 2021 study published by the journal Policing. Authors cite available data from 2017 to 2019 that shows deaths among law enforcement officers were more likely to be from suicide than from accidents or felonious acts.
WASHINGTON — Just over two weeks ago, Pittsburgh police responded when a 6-year-old accidentally shot himself in the head in the city’s Hazelwood neighborhood. Officers arrived at the home on Johnson Avenue and rendered aid, giving the small child CPR until he could be taken to Children’s Hospital of Pittsburgh in critical condition.
The next morning, a member of the police department’s peer support team reached out to the officers, and the team’s founder and lead, Sgt. Carla Kearns, got in touch with the company behind a smartphone app that local first responders can use as a mental health resource. They quickly added a module on dealing with the crisis of child injury and death, Sgt. Kearns said, and the team reported an uptick in app usage.
The repeated exposure public safety officers face when responding to any number of situations -— opioid overdoses, fatal traffic accidents, mass shootings, and psychiatric distress and domestic violence calls — or other job duties, for example serving warrants to potentially dangerous or armed suspects, contributes to elevated rates of occupational mental health issues.
This includes what psychologists are defining as a “crisis” level of suicides in the profession. read more here
The problem with this is, that too many still have to deal with terrible treatment from their superiors, and sue.
LMPD notified WAVE News that all of former officer Christopher Palombi's cases had been transferred to different investigators following his firing.(WAVE)
Burbrink told Palombi in a text message exchange he could seek inpatient treatment and would be moved to temporary duty to another LMPD unit following treatment completion. Palombi flew to California and enrolled in a 30-day treatment program, which the department paid a portion of the treatment cost.
According to the document, Burbrink was not truthful in his statements to Palombi via text, and once Palombi returned, he was served pre-termination paperwork.
“For an unknown reason he wrecked, upon further investigation it was determined he had shot himself while driving down the road,” the sheriff explained.
“This individual was a previously discharged Marine. Later on we discerned he suffered from PTSD and had some psychological issues and it got the best of him there for no apparent reason,” said Eggleton.
Click the link for more, but I think you spotted the same thing I did. No one gets PTSD for "no apparent reason!"
Some reporters are trying and their timing is terrific. Because of the slaughter of little kids in Texas, they have covered what the families are going through and a lot of reporters are telling the stories of what the kids are going through. The problem is, they did that before with all the other mass murders.
If you're wondering what life will be like for the survivors of the recent mass murderers attacking all over the country, especially in schools, here is a story that sums up what happened to one of them from what he survived five years ago.
Central Texas mother pleads for help as young Sutherland Springs shooting victim continues battle nearly five years later
SAN SABA, Texas (KWTX) - Nearly five years after the Sutherland Springs shooting claimed the lives of 26 people and injured 20 others, a mother in San Saba says her son’s journey to recovery from being severely wounded is far from over.
Ryland Ward was shot once in the shoulder, twice in the stomach, and twice in the leg on November 5, 2017 inside the First Baptist Church in Sutherland Springs.
“As he’s getting older, the more he is realizing what actually took place that day and the extent of it,” Chancie Mcmahan, Ryland’s mom, said.
Ryland is now 10 years old and he has been in and out of hospitals undergoing 30 surgeries. It’s been a fight to recover both physically and mentally.
“His PTSD is really starting to kick in gear,” Mcmahan said. “I have him in counseling and he sees a psychologist. I’m taking all the necessary steps to make sure that he is mentally OK, but he struggles.”
It’s not just a challenge for Ryland, it’s putting strain on his mother. read more here
As a reminder, this is what happened.
Air Force ordered to pay $230 million to Sutherland Springs shooting survivors and families of slain victims
Texas Tribune
The U.S. Air Force was ordered to pay more than $230 million to survivors and families of those killed in the 2017 mass shooting at the First Baptist Church of Sutherland Springs, a federal judge ruled Monday evening.
Judge Xavier Rodriguez had previously found that the military branch was mostly at fault for the mass shooting because it did not report the gunman’s previous assault conviction to the FBI, which could have prevented him from purchasing the semiautomatic rifle he used to kill 26 people.
In the deadliest mass shooting in Texas history, Devin Patrick Kelley fired more than 450 rounds at attendees during the church’s Nov. 5, 2017, Sunday service, injuring 22 and killing 26. He died later that day from a self-inflicted gunshot wound after two men chased him with firearms of their own as he fled the scene.
The thing reporters are missing is, that they need to stop reporting on veterans as if they are the only survivors with PTSD. They need to stop reporting on members of law enforcement as if they are the only ones. Until they decide that they need to remind everyone that survivors of traumatic events have PTSD too, and need help to heal, the toughest among us won't even try to get help. The other factor is, that their bosses will still treat them like crap because they don't understand what they should about what happens to the survivors of the things their responders respond to!
‘You think you’re the only one’: Documentary amplifies voices of military spouses facing PTSD
Idaho Capital Sun
BY: CHRISTINA LORDS
APRIL 25, 2022
“We just felt that we really needed to talk to this group of spouses, which has been silent forever – all throughout history,” Betty said. “We thought we need to get as much history involved as we can.”
‘I Married the War,’ a new film produced and directed by Idahoans about the wives of combat veterans, will make its Idaho premiere May 4
During filming of a new documentary titled “I Married the War,” Director of Photography Bill Krumm captures military wife Laura Daniero Nickel for an interview with Lucien Nickel. (Ken Rodgers)
After the success of their first documentary film “Bravo! Common Men, Uncommon Valor” in 2011, Betty and Ken Rodgers felt in their bones there were more stories to tell.
Their project got men who hadn’t shared their Vietnam War stories in decades — or, in some cases, ever — to open up their experiences. It helped people who didn’t live through the war know what that conflict was really like. And it helped Vietnam veterans connect with perhaps the only people who truly knew what they had gone through – each other.
Perhaps most importantly, for some veterans, it allowed them and their families to start to heal from their trauma.
But there were others who deserved to have their voices heard, their stories told, Betty said.
What about people like her, the wife of a Vietnam veteran? What about their experience healing their marriage from Ken’s post-traumatic stress, caused by his combat experience as a U.S. Marine trapped in one of the worst sieges in American wartime history – the siege of Khe Sanh in Vietnam? What about the wives of these veterans from every American war who come home battered physically and mentally and need care and understanding? read more here
When I wrote my first book, For The Love Of Jack back in 2002 (republished in 2012) it was to #breakthesilence too many of us were living with. It was hard for veterans to talk, even to other veterans. It was even harder for wives to do it. When we did, we not only discovered we were not alone, we found support, gained knowledge and learned the ways of helping those we loved heal.
I am torn about the project above. I am grateful they were doing this at the same time greatly saddened that after all these years, anyone still feels as if they have something to hide or struggle with talking about it, makes it seem as if efforts among the pioneers like me, failed. If we succeeded, the stigma would be gone, hope would take over fear, knowledge would replace gossip and assumptions and no one would ever feel ashamed of surviving what they did, or loving them.
No battle in combat is ever fought alone and no one heals from what it does alone either!
If a veteran being shot and killed by police after being called by a family because he was in crisis, doesn't bother you, you are not thinking. If they have PTSD and need help, but end up being killed, the rest of us don't stand a chance either.
There are millions of American joining the PTSD club every year and none of us want to belong to it, but when we are not getting the help we need when we are in crisis, it doesn't make the news. When veterans are killed, it does.
Veterans do, and always have had my heart. I got into working with veterans 40 years ago and have not stopped, even though now my efforts are for everyone struggling after surviving. I am one of them.
When you read the following story about Jonathan Pears being killed by police officers after his family tried to get him help, understand that it could be you or someone you love this happens to. If the police still don't understand how to respond to someone in mental health crisis, even with so many officers dealing with PTSD, the rest of us can very well end up with the same fate. We survive what happens to us and then, too many cannot survive what comes afterwards. We've been doing this for far too long to still be losing so many lives out of lingering ignorance.
Family of veteran with PTSD killed by Alabama deputy wants answers, new body camera law
Associzated Press
Published: Mar. 30, 2022
Born into a military family, Jonathan Pears had served first as an airman and then as a contractor in Afghanistan. When he returned, he struggled with post-traumatic stress disorder and other mental health issues, according to his father, retired Air Force Col. Andy Pears.
Andy and Mary Pears stand with a photo of their son by the memorial to him in the front yard of their home in Elmore County, Ala., on Nov. 5, 2021. Thirty-two-year-old Jonathan Pears was shot and killed by deputies on July 28, 2021. The couple said their son, a military veteran suffered PTSD and depression after returning from Afghanistan, and they called 911 seeking help for him during a mental health crisis. The Elmore County Sheriff's Office said Pears was holding a large knife and refused commands to drop it. His parents maintain deputies were a safe distance away and did not have to shoot their son. (AP Photo/Kim Chandler)AP
When Mary Pears called 911 because her veteran son who had PTSD appeared to be having a mental health crisis, she had hoped to get him help and keep everyone safe.
Within minutes, 32-year-old Jonathan Pears was dead, fatally shot by a sheriff’s deputy in the front yard of his parents’ Alabama home.
“I wanted someone to talk him down. I wanted someone to come help us to get him calmed down. I absolutely did not want them to kill my son, nor did I ever think that would happen,” Mary Pears said.
The tragic end to their call for help didn’t have to happen, the family said. Now, they want changes in how officers respond to a mental health crisis and have filed a lawsuit accusing the Elmore County Sheriff’s Office of using excessive force.
read more here
Fighting to help people heal #PTSD is a long war. It is not fought with bullets or bombs, yet far too many end up in mass graves. Graves that should not have been filled for many more years but they were still casualties of the wars they sent to fight. This long war claims more lives than wars declared by governments, yet they refuse to prepare for the veterans created who will carry the title of veteran all the days of their lives. If they are still having increased suicide rates within the military, it will become significantly higher in the veterans community.
This long war is only won by giving them reason to fight to take back their lives from PTSD. They won't find it unless they have the knowledge and support they need to do it. The stigma is still alive throughout the country when survivors of all traumas end up still believing they have a reason to feel ashamed when in fact, they should celebrate being a survivor with one more injury to heal. WHY DIDN'T ANYONE TELL THEM THAT with the power to get them to listen? It isn't that I didn't try.
My repulsion comes when I see the groups claiming to be helping veterans fail to actually do it yet manage to increase their funding while using the false claim of "22 a day" referring to veterans committing suicide. Knowing that when they came out with that number, they grabbed if from the headline of reporters instead of actually taking the time to read the VA report itself which stated clearly it was taken from just 21 states limited data. Each and ever other report since then, has also failed to compile the data from what they omitted. If they were members of the National Guard or Reserves, and not deployed into a combat zone, they were not counted on the death certificates as veteran. If they were not honorably discharged, they were not counted as veteran but they were discharged by the thousands under personality disorders instead of being diagnosed and treated for PTSD. It was easier to just get them off the books than care for them the rest of their lives. The same lives that were shortened by this reprehensible treatment.
In 2013 I wrote The Warrior SAW, Suicides After War. A non-fiction history of how we ended up spending billions while numbers of families had to bury more veterans who survivided combat but not what it did to them. Back then I thought if people only knew, they'd do something about it. They didn't.
The question is, if I figured it out so long ago, why didn't the "experts" manage to do it?
Now we see that efforts have not come close within the military and that is frightening.
USA Today just posted an article 'Still too high': Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin orders independent panel to study military suicide
by Tom Vanden Brook
WASHINGTON – Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin on Tuesday ordered the creation of an independent panel to review suicides in the military focusing on nine bases, including three in hard-hit Alaska.
Congress required the Pentagon to create the committee, independent of the Defense Department, to review suicide prevention programs and find ways to improve them. The announcement, and the inclusion of bases in Alaska, comes after USA TODAY reported earlier this year that there were 17 suspected or confirmed suicide deaths in 2021 among the 11,500 soldiers based in the state. That was more suicides than the previous two years combined for U.S. Army Alaska.
"It is imperative that we take care of all our teammates and continue to reinforce that mental health and suicide prevention remain a key priority," Austin wrote to the Pentagon's senior leadership. "One death by suicide is one too many. And suicide rates among our service members are still too high."
Rep. Jackie Speier, D-Calif., who chairs the personnel panel of the Armed Services Committee, successfully amended the National Defense Authorization Act to require the independent review commission. It is modeled on the committee that investigated problems at Fort Hood surrounding the murder of Army Spc. Vanessa Guillen.
“I have spoken to many spouses and family members who have lost their children or spouses to suicide in the military,” Speier said Tuesday. “The numbers have painfully grown by 40% over 5 years. I will not rest until we change this tragic trajectory." read more on USA Today
I've heard that so many times over the last 40 years that I lost hope a long time ago they would actually live up to the claim. Considering they have been making the same fatal mistakes over and over again, we continue to see the senseless loss of life. It's not like it was not known what had to be done.
This is from the Makua Aloha Center and was a long time ago considering it says that I was doing this work for 25 years, but this is now my 40th!
This shows that I "dominated this topic" before all the nonsense came out.
I continue to be stunned by the fact no nation takes care of their service members or veterans with PTSD. As bad as that is, it is even more a sickening they fail to see the rest of the people in their country feel the sting of the stigma inflicted upon them as survivors of the traumas they face too.
Getting PTSD because you serve your nation, was job related. Getting it because Israel requires service of everyone, then being denied mental health care and compensation is mashugana!
The Jersualem Post
By ELIAV BREUER
Published: DECEMBER 5, 2021
47-year-old Itzik Chen, who was injured in Lebanon in the early 90s, committed suicide while fighting for recognition of his post-trauma.
A protest by disabled IDF veterans in Tel Aviv, April 18, 2021
(photo credit: AVSHALOM SASSONI/MAARIV)
Itzik Chen, who served as a paratrooper in Lebanon and Nablus, committed suicide on Sunday morning, Israeli media reported.
Chen, 47, was recognized by the Defense Ministry as a disabled veteran but had been fighting for additional recognition of mental illnesses stemming from his service.
The Defense Ministry’s Rehabilitation Department has long been criticized for being excessively reticent in recognizing veterans’ claims of injury during military service. Until a veteran’s condition is recognized – a process that can take years in some cases – they are not eligible for assistance.
“We are hurting and stunned by the suicide of the disabled veteran Itzhik Chen,” the IDF Disabled Veterans Association said on Sunday. “This is exactly the cry that we have been raising the whole time. There are disabled IDF veterans who have been waiting for recognition for years, falling through the cracks over time and not receiving proper treatment.” read more here
My mother married the Korean War. My mother-in-law married WWII. I married the Vietnam War. They fought the battles in combat, but we fought the battles they brought back with them. Chances are, if your reading this site, you did too. Maybe the one coming home was your wife, son, daughter or friend. You know what it's like when things are going fine, as much as you know what things are like when they are not so great.
When I got into all of this, no one was talking about what it was like. My parents kept it all a secret and so did my husband's parents. It was almost as if they felt they should be ashamed of something. I had to learn what it was all by myself and eventually, wrote For The Love Of Jack, His War/My Battle.
Today I received an email about a fabulous documentary, I Married The War, and happy to share this. The thing is, their service is a part of them. Combat is a part of them. When we marry them, that is included in the deal. When I watched some of the videos, I thought, wow, this is for the rest of us who fight their battles back home.
Official Trailer for I Married the War
We are thrilled to release our new Official Trailer for I Married the War. Created by our stellar Director of Photography, Bill Krumm, it offers an introduction to all eleven women, and clear insight into what the film is all about.
We couldn’t be more grateful to these women for their honest and candid interviews about their experience as wives of combat veterans. Even though less than 1% of our country’s population currently serves in the Armed Forces, we still have 5.5 million military caregivers living with veterans from WWII, the Korean War. the Vietnam War, Desert Storm, and OEF/OIF (the Middle East Wars).
It is our goal that I MARRIED THE WAR will help foster the national dialogue about supporting our veterans when they return home forever changed, and their families who are not prepared for that change when the war comes home with their loved ones.
What Does God Look Like?
PTSD Patrol
By Kathie Costos
September 1, 2021
Today on ptsdpatrol.com I wrote something I would like you to read if you are struggling with the way the war in Afghanistan ended.
Set aside the politics and decisions leaders made. The facts will all come out but you are not responsible for what they decided to do. You are only responsible for what you decided to do, and that was risk your life for the sake of those you served with, for our country, and to help a many Afghan people as possible. The rest is, as they say, "above your pay grade."
I know what it is like to struggle with not being able to save all the ones you wanted to. No, I didn't serve but for almost 4 decades I struggled with not being able to save all veterans that my heart was ripped out and I had to walk away for a while. Then I was reminded that God, with all His power, and Jesus, could not save everyone. The thing is, They did not give up on those they could save.
Please read the following and then go to the link for the rest so that you will see that you served for a reason.
What color is God? What color eyes does God have? What color is God’s hair? What size is God? When you think about the image of God, what does God look like to you?
God has plans for all of us. Some of us do not follow where our soul leads us and they remain unhappy. Others, always seem to know exactly what they are supposed to do with their lives and they are happy. Right now I am thinking about all those who served in Afghanistan for almost 20 years. They are struggling with the outcome and wondering what all their sacrifice was for if the country returned to Taliban control, just as it was 20 years ago.
The thing is, it is not the same as it was because military men and women gave them a chance to change. Some rejected it. Others had longed for it and did everything they could to make the lives of others better. Afghanistan will never be what it was because of what all of you did for their sake.
Each one of you, risked your life for those you served with and volunteered to join the military knowing all the hardships you’d have to endure along with all the risks to your life. That desire came from your soul and God equipped your soul to be able to do it, as well as putting into place all you need to heal from all of it. read more here
'Mental health is health. Period.' Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin decries stigma in message to troops
USA TODAY
Tom Vanden Brook
July 26, 2021
WASHINGTON – Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin expressed deep concern about suicide among troops during a visit to U.S. forces stationed in Alaska where there has been an alarming spike in those deaths.
At least six soldiers have died by probable suicide in Alaska since Dec. 30, and suicide is suspected in several others, USA TODAY has reported. That surge has followed several years of increases in suicide deaths among troops across the armed services.
In 2018, 326 active-duty troops died by suicide, with the toll increasing to 350 in 2019 and 385 in 2020, according to the most recent Pentagon figures. The number of suicide deaths fluctuates over time as investigations establish the cause of death.
read more here
'He deserves to have justice': In memory of their son, parents fight for mental health services in the military
Arizona Republic
Andrew Favakeh
July 15, 2021
Brandon Caserta was one of 325 active-duty service members who died by suicide in 2018, and one of 68 sailors, according to military data. Suicides have risen since then. In 2019, 348 active-duty service members died by suicide. In 2020, that number rose to 377.
Teri and Patrick Caserta bought a new car and drove it from Peoria to Washington, D.C., in the summer of 2019.
They scheduled appointments with members of Congress and went door to door through Capitol office buildings to gain support for the Brandon Act, a bill they created in honor of their son.
Brandon Caserta died by suicide three years ago while stationed in the Navy in Norfolk, Virginia.
He could not get the help he needed. Normally, sailors have to report their mental health issues to their commanding officer, who then initiates the referral. Or, if sailors do bypass normal routine and report straight to a mental health official, that mental health official has an obligation to tell their commanding officers.
If a service member mentions the Brandon Act, that would be the safe phrase that would trigger a confidential referral for mental health treatment. Service members who experience mental health issues would receive care without having to notify their command. read more here
Why is it that too many think PTSD strikes only veterans? That is because veterans get all the attention. Rightfully, that is true but you may not know why they deserve the bulk of the attention. It isn't for the most obvious reasons. It is for the reason few know about. Had it not been for them, hardly no one would understand what trauma does to survivors, including me.
Vietnam veterans, came home the same way all other generations came home with the traumas of war tagging along deep inside of them. Unlike other generations, they decided that even though the American people basically gave up on them, they did not give up on us doing the right thing for them.
They pushed for all the research and funding that began everything available to them, as well as civilians. While we focus on veterans and PTSD, we do them a disservice by ignoring the others with PTSD from all other traumas. If we point out that humans develop PTSD from just facing trauma as a civilian, they are more able to understand why they get hit as hard as they do after facing multiple traumas while deployed.
If we withhold the commonality they share with members of emergency responders, again, we do veterans a great disservice.
In total, 47% of the sample screened positive for PTSD, which is approximately 9 to 10 times greater than the prevalence seen in the general population. Further, 29% of the sample was in the moderate to very severe range of anxiety, which is approximately 2 times greater than the prevalence seen in the general population. Finally, 37% of the sample was in the moderate to very severe range of depression. This is approximately 5 times greater than the prevalence seen in the general population.
ALBANY, Ga. (WALB) - First responders are nearly 10 times as likely to contemplate suicide than other adults, according to the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration.
I was thinking about movies that came out long before the Vietnam War but PTSD is obvious to anyone who can see it within themselves.
In 1946 The Best Years Of Our Lives was about veterans of WWII coming home changed. Roger Ebert wrote "The home front is also not without its casualties" in 2007. It is a really great read especially about the veterans the movie focuses on, including an amputee veteran.
Russell won an honorary Oscar, "for bringing hope and courage to his fellow veterans through his appearance." Although he was actually nominated for best supporting actor, the Academy board voted the special award because they thought he didn't have a chance of winning. They were wrong. He won the Oscar, the only time an actor has been given two Oscars for the same role.
"As long as we have wars and returning veterans, some of them wounded, "The Best Years of Our Lives" will not be dated."
The movie The Robe was one of the first movies I saw that was about PTSD. The Robe came out after WWI, WWII and the Korean War ended the year it was released. No one made the connection to the movie and how it was like what the memories of veterans. It had it all! The power of the past haunting us. A woman thinking that love could heal the afflicted. Some people thinking the one with PTSD had gone insane.
By the time I was old enough to watch it on TV and enjoy it, my Dad, a Korean War veteran, said it was haunting. I didn't understand why until he used the word "shell shock" to explain what veterans went through. I just associated it with my own traumas and struggles between what happened why clinging onto my faith.
Marcellus (Richard Burton) became haunted and Diana (Jean Simmons) loved him. She thought that he was possessed and said "you're ill" when it was clear he was not the same man she fell in love with. At one point, when he returned to her, he attempted suicide.
He had nightmares and flashbacks, mood swings and paranoia. It is all in this movie including the fact that he was healed and became happier!
Marcellus Gallio (died 38 AD) was a Roman military tribune and Christian martyr during the 1st century AD. He was the commander of the detachment which crucified Jesus in Jerusalem in 33 AD, and he won Jesus' crucifixion robe in a dice game. After experiencing the robe's miraculous powers, Gallio became a Christian, and he was martyred by the Roman emperor Caligula in 38 AD because of his conversion.
The first movie ever filmed in CinemaScope, The Robe was nominated for five Academy Awards in 1953, including Best Picture and Best Actor for Richard Burton. Burton stars as Marcellus Galilo, the Roman centurion charged with overseeing the crucifixion. But when he wins Christ's robe in a gambling game at the foot of the cross, his life is forever changed.
Also in this movie is the healing power of spirituality. This movie took hold of me to the point where when I was working for a church, I was told I'd be giving the Children's Sermon at the last minute. As a matte of fact, 10 minutes before the service began.
The new Pastor didn't like me very much, and he problably thought he could trap me, or cause me to walk out. I looked up to Heaven and said, "take this over" because I knew I wouldn't be able to handle it.
My heart was racing and all of a sudden this scene popped into by brain.
That was what I talked about to the children. It turned out, the grownups were listening too. After the service, many told me it was the best sermon I ever gave. The Youth Pastor, who was a friend, told me how wonderful it was and event the new Pastor congratulated me. Both of then wanted to know where it came from.
I told them while I knew what was in the Bible, I couldn't quote chapter or verse and wasn't sure where I read it. That night I had a dream about Victor Mature, also in the movie, and Cecil B. DeMille. The next morning I told both Pastors where it came from and we had a good, long laugh about it. Really funny considedring that had I remembered the real director's name, Henry Koster, it wouldn't have dawned on me that was a movie. My brain always associated movies to DeMille.
Another movie that explains PTSD is It's A Wonderful Life (1947)
An angel is sent from Heaven to help a desperately frustrated businessman by showing him what life would have been like if he had never existed.
How about we start to let veterans know, while they are different from us, we have a lot more in common with them than they are aware of and maybe, they'll understand exactly how human they still are after all.
Here are some more movies you may not think about that are also addressing what comes after trauma.
"Post-traumatic Stress Disorder is a condition that may develop in people who have experienced a traumatic event. While it’s widely associated with veterans returning from war, victims of sexual abuse and assault, domestic violence, or robbery, any serious physical or psychological injury can be affected by this disorder."
1. The Deer Hunter (1978)
2. Coming Home (1978)
3. Born On The Fourth of July (1989)
4. The Perks of Being A Wallflower (2012)
5. First Blood (1982)
6. Jacob’s Ladder (1990)
7. Forrest Gump (1992)
8. Saving Private Ryan (1998)
9. Iron Man 3 (2013)
10. Mystic River (2003)
find out why from InspireMalibu.com
1. Maleficent from “Maleficent”
2. Elsa from “Frozen”
3. Quasimodo from “The Hunchback of Notre Dame”
4. Merida from “Brave”
5. Stitch from “Lilo and Stitch”
6. Pocahontas from “Pocahontas”
7. Sadness from “Inside Out”
8. Cinderella from “Cinderella”
9. Princess Jasmine from “Aladdin”
10. Ariel from “The Little Mermaid”
11. Mowgli from “The Jungle Book”
12. Belle from “Beauty and the Beast”
13. Rapunzel from “Tangled”
14. Jim Hawkins from “Treasure Planet”
15. Eeyore from “Winnie the Pooh”
16. Mulan from “Mulan”
17. Chief Tui from “Moana”
18. Tinker Bell from “Peter Pan”
19. Alice from “Alice in Wonderland”
find out why from TheMighty.com
Seeing it in others, helps them to know, they are not alone and shouldn't think they should try to hide from us, especially when it is within many of us!
This is about Stellate Ganglion Block treatment. It works for some. This is not an endorcement of it. What is really important about this is the fact they acknowledge the need to treat the whole person and to change the conversation! Now that, I fully endorce!
The War Inside: Near death experience pushes veteran to search for help
CBS 21 News
by Michael Gorsegner
July 5th 2021
“It's not about treating the veteran, it’s about treating the person that is really in pain,” said Dr. Sean Mulvaney, Regenerative Medicine Specialist.
York, PA — Over the past several days, a significant step was taken in the post 9-11 conflicts as more American troops exit Afghanistan. However, the brave men and women who put their lives on the line for our country are facing an increase threat at home, suicide.
In the final story of a three-part series, CBS21’s Michael Gorsegner is pulling back the curtains on this growing epidemic and the push to expand a treatment that is saving lives.
“I feel so fortunate,” said Robin Cody.
Nurse, mother, veteran, Robin Cody wears many hats. On the surface, this career woman is the face of success. But underneath was a deep dark struggle.
“The body and the mind don’t forget trauma even if you are trying to will yourself to forget it,” she said. read more here
When you read this story, notice that it was known he had PTSD and had been deployed multiple times. The last listed deployment was in 2008. The question is, why didn't he get the help he needed to heal during all these years back home?
Did the Army fail him? Did the VA fail him? Did all the suicide awareness groups out there fail him? The truth is, they all did and so did the rest of us!
Greek-American Man Suffering from PTSD Kills Family in Murder/Suicide
Greek Reporter
Patricia Claus
June 25, 2021
The Greek-American man had served in the U.S. Army from April 1993 through July 2013 and retired as a staff sergeant according to US Department of Defense records. He had been deployed to Afghanistan from January 2002 to July 2002, and served in Iraq twice, from February 2003 to February 2004 and then again from September 2007 to November 2008.
Nick Mavrakis and his family. Mavrakis shot and killed his own family on Father’s Day in a murder/suicide. Credit: Facebook/Nick Mavrakis
Nicholas Mavrakis III, of Jackson Township, outside Canton, Ohio, allegedly shot and killed his wife and two children before turning the gun on himself in a murder/suicide on Father’s Day.
The shocking incident took place at the family home in Jackson Township, five miles from Canton, Ohio according to police and local media reports.
The Greek-American man was a U.S. Army veteran who had served in both Afghanistan and Iraq.
Local police, in a post on Facebook, reported that Mavrakis, along with his wife Lesley Mavrakis, 37, and children Ace Mavrakis, 13, and Pippa Mavrakis, 5, “were found dead shortly after 4 PM Sunday in their home.” read more here
WASHINGTON – Six soldiers stationed in Alaska have died by apparent suicide in the first five months of the year, an alarming number of deaths after the Army poured more than $200 million into the state to combat the mental health crisis it identified in 2019, according to Army figures released to USA TODAY.
The 2021 suicide toll among the roughly 11,500 soldiers stationed there already has nearly matched last year when seven soldiers died by suicide while stationed with U.S. Army Alaska, whose principal posts are Fort Wainwright in Fairbanks and Joint Base Elmendorf-Richardson in Anchorage.
While suicide rates among troops overall are comparable to the civilian population, the rate within the relatively small population of Alaska-based soldiers appears to be nearly four times the general U.S. rate. read more here
Why? Why after all these years are the numbers still going up? Because what they are doing is not working, yet they keep doing the same things that already failed. The question is...why?
February 7, 2021, Army Times reported this, "After Army Alaska’s alleged suicides, one battalion gets ‘sensing sessions’"
A command team from the Hawaii-based 25th Combat Aviation Brigade visited one of their battalions at Fort Wainwright, Alaska, in January to hold sensing sessions in which troops discussed their opinions on mental health, loss and grief.
The trip came after two soldiers from 1st Battalion, 25th Aviation Regiment, died by suicide in late December and January, and a third soldier attempted suicide in that same time period, according to two people and an email from a unit official obtained by Army Times that describes the three incidents.
Because they have not changed what they are doing anywhere! It shows.
Military Deaths by Suicide Jumped 25% at End of 2020
Military.com
By Stephen Losey
5 Apr 2021
The number of deaths by suicide among military service members increased alarmingly in the fourth quarter of 2020, according to the Defense Department's latest quarterly report.
The military recorded 156 deaths by suicide among all services, including active-duty, National Guard and Reserve troops, from Oct. 1 to Dec. 31 last year. That is a 25% increase from the 125 such deaths that occurred in the last quarter of calendar year 2019. read more here
Exactly when will the Joint Chiefs be forced to change what they are doing so that they can actually change the outcome?
Winston-Salem knife maker creates works of art. Army veteran's hobby led to stint on "Forged in Fire."
Journal Now
Fran Daniel
June 12, 2021
“It’s very therapeutic for him, which is good,” Robin Lopez said. “But his creativity started coming out and it was allowing him to express that…I think it’s positive that we all have that creative outlet.”
After noticing that making knives soothed and brought him peace, Lopez began reaching out to other veterans who are dealing with PTSD and interested in making knives.
In the spring of 2014, U.S. Army veteran Fermin Lopez decided to make his own knife.
At the time, he was dealing with post-traumatic stress disorder.
Lopez, who now lives in Winston-Salem, said he did a tour in the Middle East as a helicopter medic when war broke out in Iraq in the early 2000s.
“I was having a lot of issues with memories from the war and things like that, and I needed an outlet,” Lopez said.
To make his first knife, Lopez used a bag of charcoal he bought from Walmart.
“Then I used my grill and a hair dryer, and I actually was able to forge a knife,” he said. “It was mild steel. It was not like the ones I make now. It was just something to play with.”
He decided to make more knives, saying it helped take his mind off things.
“I felt a lot more relieved,” Lopez said.
His skills as a bladesmith, which is the art of making knives, swords and other blades, have come a long way since then. read more here
"The loneliest kind of lonely" is when there is no one else like you. I know that feeling because when I started working on PTSD, I didn't know anyone like me. It was lonely because we didn't have the internet and the only information I could find was at the library reading clinical books. Nothing strange about that since it was in 1982.
In 1993, I finally got a computer and then I found other people talking about PTSD. I started my first site on AOL, then it was on a website where I went by NamGuardianAngel. Back then, since I was unique, I had a lot of emails and phone calls. There were even more when I wrote my first book in 2002.
In 2006 I started making videos on PTSD on YouTube and in 2007, I started Wounded Times.
All that work was worth it even though it was never to make money. Sure I wanted to at least break even but the thing was, the work itself kept me going. Getting feed back and reading messages let me know, it mattered to the people I was trying to help.
In 2007 I posted a massive post about suicides hoping that someone with the power to do something would. Once all the groups started to pop up all over the internet and social media, the emails and messages started to go down. I was reading more and more about veterans suffering and very little being done to help them. The problem was, they were doing something about it by using them to make money.
I didn't give up and made more videos, posted more and tried to reach out as much as possible. It got lonelier and lonelier. In 2017 I started PTSD Patrol hoping that with PTSD in the title, I could gain control over the conversation again, and give veterans hope and families understanding.
Last year, it was too much for me, reading the reports of suicides going up in the veterans' community and within the military itself. My heart was breaking. I decided to stop focusing on them and started to open the work up to anyone with PTSD. PTSD Patrol passed 100,000 page views recently.
I do not follow anyone or take from anyone because I am too busy making my own "music" to march to! My work, has been stolen and copied for decades, but it doesn't bother me anymore. My mission hasn't changed because of them. The work was to offer hope and if others can reach more than I can...that's OK with me. I know that one day, they will get what they deserve for what they did with my work. I pray that those who go to their sites receive the help they were looking for and find the encouragement they need to #BreakTheSilence and #TakeBackYourLife from #PTSD.
Wounded Times reached 5 million page views because people shared the work.
So, if you are doing anything for the right reasons, if you know that you have something to give the world, then give it freely. I am living proof that even if no one tells you that you matter, you do!
