Canada treats veterans poorly, Fredericton doctor tells Desmond inquiry
Chronicle Herald
Aaron Beswick
Published: 6 hours ago
Smith filled out the form. Eleven months later, Desmond would use his licence to kill Shanna, his daughter Aaliyah and mother Brenda before shooting himself.
GUYSBOROUGH, N.S. — A Fredericton family doctor who works with many veterans took a harsh view of how Canada treats soldiers who suffer from post-traumatic stress disorder.
Shanna and Lionel Desmond hold their daughter Aaliyah in this photo from Shanna Desmond’s Facebook page.
“Our (PTSD suffering) soldiers are chastised, treated like lepers,” Dr. Paul Smith told the Desmond Fatality Inquiry on Monday.
“It’s all about pills and psychotherapy. It’s pathetic. There’s nothing about developing relationships, which (are) what makes the world happen.”
Lionel Desmond appeared at Smith’s office in July 2015.
He’d just been discharged from the military, his marriage was on the rocks and money was short.
Diagnosed in 2011 with PTSD and suspected brain damage from concussions during a tour on the frontlines of Afghanistan in 2007, Desmond had already been prescribed antidepressants and drugs to help him sleep. read it here
The recent news about the Department of Veterans Affairs joining forces with faith based groups is something wonderful, yet troubling at the same time.
While more and more groups have been popping up all over the country for over a decade, we have been wondering if any of them noticed what others had already begun long before these new leaders heard the term Post Traumatic Stress Disorder. Wondering what else did they miss?
It is obvious they missed a group dedicated to delivering the awesome power of healing through peer support based on someone else who knew what it was like to be willing to sacrifice His life for the sake of others...Jesus.
If even the Son of God asked for help, there should be no stigma associated with needing your peers to help you. After all, none of you looked down on those you were sent to help. If you were willing to die for their sake, as well as the sake of those you served with, turning to them for your own sake makes sense.
So why is it that the stigma lives on, as strong as ever, while you were brave enough to serve, are afraid to communicate with those you served with?
Leaders in Point Man have been working with the Department of Veterans Affairs hospitals all over the country for years because it works. Yet, much like the 72 Jesus sent to care for others, no one knows their names.
Jesus Sends Out the Seventy-Two
After this the Lord appointed seventy-two others and sent them two by two ahead of him to every town and place where he was about to go. He told them, “The harvest is plentiful, but the workers are few. Ask the Lord of the harvest, therefore, to send out workers into his harvest field.
Luke 10:1-2 New International Version (NIV)
They did not want to glorify themselves, they just wanted to freely share what they had been given by Jesus. It did not matter that no one knew their names, but it was they joy they received in doing the work they were sent to do that mattered the most.
The seventy-two returned with joy and said, “Lord, even the demons submit to us in your name.”
He replied, “I saw Satan fall like lightning from heaven. I have given you authority to trample on snakes and scorpions and to overcome all the power of the enemy; nothing will harm you. However, do not rejoice that the spirits submit to you, but rejoice that your names are written in heaven.”
We live with that joy everyday! There is nothing to compare to what we receive in return for our time than to see a veteran's life change from hopelessness to healing! To see you go from feeling abandoned by God, to knowing you are loved!
New Veterans Affairs rule helps religious organizations provide quality services
Washington Times
By Mike Berry
February 19, 2020
Illustration on veterans and suicide by Linas Garsys/The Washington Times
America faces a crisis of epidemic proportions. The number of Americans who take their own lives by suicide each day is staggering and sobering. Even one suicide is heartbreaking; a recent study estimated that 135 surviving people are affected by each suicide.
The latest data show that 17 veterans tragically take their own lives each day, and the rate shows no sign of slowing. Veterans comprise only 7.9 percent of the U.S. population, yet account for 13.5 percent of all suicides.
Americans know something has to be done to help the men and women who have selflessly served our nation, often resulting in terrible, unseen wounds. Thankfully, some Americans have answered the call to help those “who have borne the battle.” read it here
Helen Ubinas: Veteran’s final words show the true cost of war
Journal Star
By Helen Ubinas
Posted Feb 17, 2020
It’s been six weeks since Rosalind Williams’ 30-year-old son, Army veteran Michael Corey Hadley of Philadelphia, took his own life.
When grieving the death of a child, that’s a moment. A blink of an eye, a flip of a calendar. Barely enough time for Williams to pick herself up and return to the high school where she teaches science.
And yet in that small window, 900 other military parents have been dealt the same blow — left behind to try and find the rhythm of a life that they’ve lost after losing their children to suicide. According to the most recent data from the Department of Veterans Affairs, about 20 veterans, active-duty service members and members of the National Guard and Reserve die by their own hands every day.
In the quiet that followed the initial flurry of collective shock and grief after his death on Jan. 2, Williams sat with her anguish. She went through old photographs, collected new ones from his funeral and military interment. She read, and reread, the numerous news stories written about her son after the family spoke unsparingly about his death.
“His wounds were slow-acting and invisible, but nonetheless crippling and fatal,” the family said in a statement that spoke of his struggles with depression and PTSD after six years and three tours of duty in Iraq and Afghanistan.
Just as she did when she and the family struggled to find the right way and words to describe the loss of her son, Williams has continued to consider the cause of his death. His PTSD and the mental health issues that medicines and other interventions failed to help — those were merely symptoms, torturous as they were, of what really ailed him. Instead, his mother believed: What finally cost him his life was the traumatic brain injury he suffered after the Army sharpshooter’s multiple deployments. Even in his final letter to his family, which she read aloud to me at her dining room table, he spoke about it.
“I’m so sorry for doing this to you,” Hadley wrote. “I am so grateful to have been born into a loving, strong family. read it here
National Prayer Breakfast — Warriors should seek help during dark times
Fort Carson
By Norman Shifflett
Garrison Public Affairs Office
February 16, 2020
“What I took away was that we are never alone when we are at our darkest,” said Spc. Alexis Garwood, 2nd Infantry Brigade Combat Team, 4th Inf. Div, who was attending her first prayer breakfast.
FORT CARSON, Colo. — During the National Prayer Breakfast, Soldiers eat breakfast at the William “Bill” Reed Special Events Center Feb. 6, 2020. (Photo by Norman Shifflett)
FORT CARSON, Colo. — The National Day of Prayer provides an opportunity for people from various faiths and backgrounds to come together and unite for a prayer for the nation.
About 500 Soldiers, Family members and guests from the local community attended the annual Fort Carson National Prayer Breakfast Feb. 6, 2020, at the William “Bill” Reed Special Events Center.
“The most important part of this breakfast is that it shows the people of America we can come together as different races, colors and creeds and pray for the safety of our nation and hope for the greatness to continue,” said Col. Robert Glazener, senior mission command chaplain, 4th Infantry Division. read it here
When veterans decide to take their own lives, there is a much bigger problem this country has, than most are aware off. There was a time when it was necessary to put all the reports together so that people would do something about it. That time arrived on Wounded Times in 2007. Why isn't the press on suicide watch was viewed over 9,000 times.
I discovered the reports searching for them to do a video on suicides. Before that, it was a topic in the Veterans' Community, but we spoke about it too quietly. Many of us lost parents, as well as other family members, but we thought it was something to be ashamed of, instead of something that needed to be shouted so that everyone could hear us.
Putting together the report and the video, ripped me apart because I knew what that pain felt like. My husband's nephew, also a Vietnam veteran, took his own life. I also know what it is like when they hear there is an alternative to taking your own life with #TakeBackYourLife.
The time to invest in awareness efforts came soon afterwards, when the American people stood up and demanded the government take action. Since then, billions have been spent on some things that are worth every dime. Unfortunately, even more has been spent by the government that are far from worthy of the loss of one single veteran's life. In the process, we managed to also ignore the families, like mine, left behind to deal with unanswerable questions.
How we arrived here is no mystery. Some just decided they had to do something but did not take it seriously enough to know what they were talking about.
CATHOLICS leading the battle against veteran suicide have welcomed the appointment of an independent commissioner to investigate deaths and make recommendations on metal health and wellbeing.
Deacon Gary Stone, the man known as the Veteran’s padre, “hopes and prays” a new government initiative will combat veteran suicide, and benefit the wider community.
“Every suicide seriously impacts families and friends who also need support,” Deacon Stone (pictured), who heads the Veterans Care Association and is a former infantry officer, said.
“For every completed suicide there are 10 others (and their associated families and friends) struggling with suicidal ideation and self-harm.”
What do we see all over social media? Talk about a number attached to veterans committing suicide. We see members of the military, veterans groups, police officers, firefighters and regular citizens, dropping down to do 22 pushups. We see them running, walking and all kinds of other stunts to raise money while claiming they are raising awareness that veterans are killing themselves.
What is the point of all this? Did anyone of them think that their peers are also among those committing suicide and it is not just veterans?
The CDC released a report last year stating, "After a stable period from 2000 to 2007, suicide rates for
persons aged 10–24 increased from 2007 to 2017..."
In another report from the CDC, "Suicide is a large and growing public health problem. Suicide is the 10th leading cause of death in the United States. It was responsible for more than 47,000 deaths in 2017, resulting in about one death every 11 minutes. Every year, many more people think about or attempt suicide than die by suicide. In 2017, 10.6 million American adults seriously thought about suicide, 3.2 million made a plan, and 1.4 million attempted suicide."
Tens of thousands of groups have been doing it for over a decade and the trend is growing. What causes most advocates to cringe, aside from the obvious, is there seems to no end to the flood of people making money off this, and no end to the heartache of veterans doing it.
The groups usually use names they think will attract the most attention.
"That number, if we talk about it out of context, it's questionable," Keith Jennings, Iraq combat veteran and clinical psychologist, says. He acts as chief science adviser for a North Carolina-based group called StopSoldierSuicide.org.
There is a problem with the name itself. Stop "Soldier" Suicide, used in context, would mean that they are trying to stop soldiers from committing suicide, not all of the services, and certainly not talking about veterans.
At the time NPR produced this article, the DOD report shows clearly that the following statement is also wrong.
So Smolenski and a team, in a study released this year, dug deeper. They found that vets who had served during the Afghanistan and Iraq wars commit suicide at a rate of about one a day — not 22.
The average of suicides within the military has been 500 a year since 2012. (Add in Active Components with Reserve totals.) Is that what the "team" looked at?
It would make sense however, aside from that, had they really "dug deeper" they would have discovered how many were not included in any of the reports from the DOD or the VA.
If you read Wounded Times, you have seen all the data and links. It is up to them to go and find them, but much like years ago, I offered to help them change the outcome, they were not interested in facts.
22Kill has been studied since they started. "In 2012, the Veterans’ Administration (VA) released a Suicide Data Report that found an average of 22 veterans die by suicide everyday. The 22KILL initiative started in 2013, at first just as a social media movement to raise awareness, and later became an official 501(c)3 nonprofit organization in July of 2015." But had they spent enough time to even read the report? If they had, they would have noticed the number was an average from limited data collected from just 21 states. They would have seen that the majority of veterans in the report, were over the age of 50.
Had they invested time and energy to discover what had been done before the topic struck them?
While the conclusion is, much like this from Task and Purpose,"Likewise, awareness doesn’t do much. You can know a problem exists. That doesn’t mean you are any closer to solving the problem. There are a lot of diseases and societal issues with different color ribbons and special days for awareness, but not a lot of solutions. Veterans dying by suicide has been all over the news since the Department of Veterans Affairs scandal broke in April 2014."
Wounded Times has been covering veteran suicides since 2007, right after it started...and lost money every year since the work of changing the outcome matters a hell of a lot more than anything else. Before the move from Florida to New Hampshire, average page views were over 1,000 a day. Right now, after trying to rebuild from a two month break, it is about 600 a day.
As you can see, over 4 million since August of 2007.
Stop Soldier Suicides says, since they started they served 1,000+ has managed to take in over $3 million in 2018, but they are hardly the largest group.
So where exactly is your money going? Find something that will actually make a difference, like taking the time to know about the topic before you share the stunt. Make sure that what you read, is actually the truth, instead of words that stick in your brain. Until we start using words that change the outcome, we will keep contributing to it.
If you have a group that has been raising awareness, it is time to change the subject and earn the money by helping them stay alive!
Dave Matthews of Remember the Fallen interviewed Mike Damon of Vetunite about a training manual he has on how to heal.
Vetunite.org "Mike Damon" aka (GodFather)
Mike Damon outlined his steps toward healing in Transition Guide For Veterans, as well as how first responders can heal!
Self Care
Service members need to learn how to take care of themselves!
Training
Learn how to use what you have and speak up about what you need.
Mentorship
As you learn how to heal....help others learn too! Peer support
Be around people who understand you and the culture you lived in.
Service to others
You risked your life serving others. You were willing to pay that price for doing that job that served others. You can continue to serve others by helping them heal too! Top that off with the fact it feeds your soul when you do!
Develop a new purpose
He talks about "team mission" and that is something that all responders need to hear. When you are doing your job, you depend on your team members, and they depend on you. It is the same way when you are paying a heavy price for doing your jobs. Your team members are counting on you and you need to count on them too. You never know how many are suffering too.
"Wicked frickin awesome!"
Never Forgotten Memorials and Vetunite endure reciprocity with collaborating resources to assist veterans with the Invisible Wounds of War "PTSD"
How many times do we have to read about a veteran suffering with PTSD taking his or her own life instead of healing before we actually change the outcome?
Iraq veteran, 35, struggling with PTSD 'took own life' in children's park
Mirror UK
ByLuke Traynor Matthew Dresch
13 FEB 2020
In a moving post on website Go Fund Me, a close family friend said: "As with many serving and veteran soldiers, Wes had struggled with PTSD and on the 26th January 2020, he succumbed to those demons of PTSD, sadly taking his own life, at the young age of 35.
Wesley McDonnell has been described as 'one in a million' (Image: handout)
An Army veteran was found dead in a children's park after battling post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD).
Wesley McDonnell, from St Helens, served in Iraq, Afghanistan, Cyprus, Kenya, Canada, Germany and the Falkland Islands during his distinguished career.
Friends say the 35-year-old soldier 'succumbed' to his demons and 'took his own life', with one saying 'stand easy, warrior, your duty is done'.
In a cruel twist, Mirror Online revealed how police misidentified Mr McDonnell and ended up wrongly telling another mother that her son had died.
Relatives said Mr McDonnell, stationed with the Duke of Lancaster Battalion, had suffered with mental health worries, specifically post-traumatic stress disorder, the Liverpool Echo reports. read it here
If you actually think about what "suicide awareness" has achieved, it has delivered the message of other veterans giving up. If you think about what healing awareness does, it delivers a message of hope that they can heal too and their lives can be so much better.
When you hear that the stigma of PTSD is still strong, think about why it is still so powerful when all the evidence has been out there proving there is nothing to be ashamed of as a survivor of something that could have killed you.
Watch this video and you will know what works to support you to #BreakTheSilence and #TakeBackYourLife.
Marine Veteran Mike Damon owned his PTSD. He is using what he learned in his journey to create a guide for anyone to use to conquer their inner battles. The guide is written like guides in the military are written. The principles are easy to understand and implement. Listening to Mike talk about his vision and intent for what he is trying to do makes me believe that there is truly a way to go to 0 for Veteran Suicide.
He is talking about what he went through to take back his life, how he is not only happier, he is helping veterans like you discover what is possible for you too!
There are alarming new numbers about suicide rates among younger veterans. A new report issued by the New York State Health Foundation says rates for those 18 to 34 has more than “doubled” in the state.
7 Eyewitness News met with a war veteran who leads a counseling program at the Veterans One-stop Center of Western New York.
“You feel like you are living on the other side of a pane of glass, like you’re watching everyone around you,” reflected Alyssa Vasquez, program manger, Veterans One-stop Center of WNY.
There was a time when everyone was made aware, the earth was flat. They believed it until they were made aware, the earth was actually round. Until common sense took over, they hated those who were telling them the truth.
The speakers of the truth had to prove what the truth was, until the others became aware they were wrong all along.
That is exactly what has been happening for far too long in this country. The topic this time is suicide awareness being raised while veterans, members of the military, first responders and regular citizens fall off because no one told them the truth...that they could heal.
Speaking the truth about this has created the same conditions for the truth tellers to be hated. If you among those trying to make others beware of awareness, here is proof that you are right, and they are wrong.
We have the press to blame when they do not report the whole truth because they do not know enough to check the facts before they publish news reports. When the Department of Defense began resiliency training, it was a predictable outcome, but reporters continually failed to link it to the increase of servicemembers committing suicide, while in the military, as well as suicides within the Veterans' Community.
The headline from NBC News is "Air Force suicides surged last year to highest in 3 decades" It contained, "According to preliminary figures, the Air Force had 84 suicides among active-duty members last year, up from 60 the year before."
What made this report worse is that the reduction in military personnel went down over those decades when NBC inserted this, "...even as the other military services saw their numbers stabilize or decline, according to officials and unpublished preliminary data."
Suicide Awareness failure was made clearer when Lt. Gen. Brian Kelly pointed to “Suicide is a difficult national problem without easily identifiable solutions that has the full attention of leadership.”
Why? Primarily because civilians did not receive billions of dollars in training to prevent them from happening.
Civilians do suffer from mental illnesses and according the the Sidran Institute "...more than 13 million people—have PTSD at any given time." but do not subject themselves to traumatic events continually. That report is a few years old but more recent ones have a different story.
The Recovery Village states "Statistics on the prevalence of PTSD in the United States vary depending on the specific group or population being studied. Overall, PTSD affects around 3.5% of the U.S. population, approximately 8 million Americans, in a given year." within an article published in January of 2020. So which one is right? Have any reporters contacted the Sidran Institute or any of the others for clarification?
Those who select jobs, putting themselves in danger to save others, should never be linked to all others.
Why? Because they value the lives of others so much so, they were willing to sacrifice their own lives to save someone else. They are not only trained to do their jobs, billions of dollars have been spent to supposedly "train them" to recover from their jobs.
Have any reporters asked about all that? No.
They have not linked in the fact that the Suicide Prevention Hotline from the Veterans Administration, has "Since late 2018, VA screened more than 4 million Veterans. Crisis Line is taking more than 1,700 calls each day, and VA takes emergency action on about 100 of those calls." Still this gets worse when you are aware of how long this had been in operation. This was released in 2018, by the American Physiological Association. "Launched in 2007, the service has more than 500 phone responders, who to date have answered over 3.5 million calls and sent emergency services to more than 93,000 people. The Crisis Line expanded to add an anonymous chat service in 2009 and text messaging in 2011."
They have not reported that as the number of groups raising awareness that veterans were committing suicide, all this, and more, was happening masquerading as helpful efforts to make people aware, of things they did not know.
Suicide Awareness does not work but, those speaking the truth, must never give up on making people beware of what others want them to pay attention to. The subject of those willing to risk their lives to save others, demand facts so that real solutions will be known to those we want to save.
I am so proud to have served my country. I would have done it again if called. I had just turned 19 when the call came for service. Went to training for 11bravo in California. Sent to Nam and landed 14 July 1969. I felt the heat and the smell, oh my God the smell.
Now I was taken to the unit were I was assigned. 1 week orientation then out to (FSB) Normandy III. Next day my intro to C-Rations as the "newbe" lima beans. Next came my first ride on a chopper. 20 minutes from take off to LZ it seem like a lot less. The bird never touched down we just jumped and headed for the bush, all 7 of us. I remember asking myself “where the hell is everyone else why are we only 7?”
We walked down a small trail for a few minutes, whatever it took us to go 150 to 200 yards. Then there was gun fire all over the place, I hit the ground watched in to the bush for a few seconds.
An enemy soldier landed next to me, with his face maybe a foot from me. Our eyes locked as life left his body.
To this day can still see him, as if he were talking to me, or trying to reach out to me. The fire fight ended just like it started. We checked to see if anyone else was hit...nope all clear. We just walked away and left him there. I just couldn’t make myself look back at him.
I had to learn to hold my feeling and emotions in side of me. And I still do.
Late at night he walks into my bedroom and I get up and walk into the living room never turning on a light. Hoping at times to speak to him and knowing I can’t, so most time I just drink some water and lie down again. But sleep rarely comes. It is hard for me to walk in the dark now at my age.
After the 10 day operation we went to Hq area and it hit: How the hell did that gook get so dam close to me? Who was watching my back? The more I thought about the angrier I became. I kept in and determined not to let it happen again. I trusted no one. This has taken its toll on me. I spend a lot of time alone and have for the last 50 or so yrs. I will help you but it is hard for me to trust. I have very few friends (2) and my family stays away because I’m to straight forward. And now you know.
I have found peace in helping other vets with their struggles. I know my God has given me this struggle so I could help my brother find peace.
The Lord is my peace and when I am down, He is there to hold me. I was called to do what I do. I never wanted anything to do with this helping other thing. But now I love it so, to the point that I hurt when it seems that I have failed to reach my brother that is hurting.
(correction: edit "enemy soldier" was made to correct edit to veteran's letter)
If you think for a second I am competing with you or anyone else...you are not thinking at all! I have been researching PTSD since 1982...writing about it since 1984 and have about 40,000 posts that you can still find going back to 2006. (And yes, I am pissed off!)
“My whole adult life I’ve had Cena. When I was 19 overseas learning how to be responsible, I had Cena. And now I’m 27 and I’m having to say goodbye to one of the biggest pieces of my life.” Jeff DeYoung
Losing a dog is one of the hardest things a person can go through. After all, dogs are there for us through every step of the way, so they deserve to be honored. This is exactly how Marine Corporal Jeff DeYoung felt when he learned that his beloved dog, Cena, was diagnosed with terminal bone cancer. Not only had Cena been his loyal companion, but they had also served 3 tours overseas together.
Cena and DeYoung’s Bond
Cena and DeYoung had been together for a long time. In 2009, DeYoung was first paired with Cena, who was a talented bomb-sniffing dog. The pair grew very close during that time, and they protected each other through the most difficult parts of their service.
In 2014, Cena retired from his duties, and DeYoung decided to adopt him. From there, Cena became his service dog to help him with his post-traumatic stress disorder.
Cena always knew how to cheer DeYoung up, so he was the perfect companion. The two were inseparable from that moment on. Cena even helped DeYoung through some of the hardest moments in his life, including the 3 weeks where 7 of his friends passed away.
“We may not have been the same species, but we were most definitely brothers.” Jeff DeYoung
Long Island veterans groups demand Gov. Cuomo provide state aid for peer-to-peer programA fight for funding is underway in Albany for a program that helps veterans deal with the unseen wounds of war.
News 12
February 6, 2020
A cry of protest has arisen from Long Island veterans who are furious Gov. Andrew Cuomo has not included funding to a peer-to-peer program that helps veterans facing the challenges of post-traumatic stress disorder.
Assemblyman Mike LiPetri, along with several Long Island groups, are demanding the $4 million in state aid needed for the Joseph P. Dwyer Veterans Peer Support Project be included in Cuomo's budget.
Morris Miller, a Vietnam veteran who volunteers as a peer counselor, understands the importance of the peer-to-peer program.
"PTSD is not just for Vietnam veterans, it's Iraq, Afghanistan, Desert Storm, Desert Shield. There are our younger veterans, and we have to, as older veterans, stand up for these guys," says Morris. read it here
HIS NAVY SEAL SON COMMITTED SUICIDE, NOW HE FIGHTS FOR HIS NAME
SOFREP
by Stavros Atlamazoglou
59 minutes ago
Following President Trump’s statements about TBIs after Iran’s missile attack on U.S. bases in Iraq, Mr Frank Larkin penned a letter to the President, explaining the hidden aspects of the problem.
On a Sunday morning of 2017, Ryan Larkin, a Navy SEAL with four combat deployments under his belt, committed suicide. He was just 29 years old.
He was haunted by a Traumatic Brain Injury (TBI) that was caused by repeated exposure to concussive blows and explosions. But the Navy and the Department of Veteran Affairs (VA) thought he was crazy.
His father, Frank J Larkin, also a former Navy SEAL and the 40th United States Senate Sergeant at Arms, is now fighting to raise awareness about the multiple facets of brain injuries that can lead to behavior change, other medical problems, or even suicide.
Special Warfare Operator 1st Class Ryan Larkin had completed four combat deployments as a Navy SEAL to Afghanistan and Iraq. He had completed the Special Operations Combat Medic (SOCM) course and the Navy SEAL Sniper course; he was also a qualified breacher.
After coming home from his third deployment, the Navy docs diagnosed him with Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) and referred him to a variety of programs. The common denominator between the different programs, some of which were helpful, according to his father, was the medication. Throughout the duration of his two-year treatment, the doctors prescribed him over 40 different medications. And yet he didn’t seem to get any better. In fact, they made him worse. read it here
WPSD NBC 6 News
Jennifer Horbelt, Michael Bradford
Feb 5, 2020
In patients like JJ, there's no way to definitively say PTSD is the cause, but researchers are starting to look for that link between mental health and the decline of brain function. In 2010, a National Center for Biotechnology Information study found veterans with PTSD were at a nearly two-fold higher risk of developing dementia. In 2018, another NCBI study went even further: "While causality cannot be determined, it is likely that PTSD and depressive disorders are related to an increased risk of dementia in military veterans."
PADUCAH — Trauma changes the brain. Studies show that the impacts of physical and mental trauma are measurable. In more recent years, research is starting to examine the long-term effects of post traumatic stress disorder, or PTSD. Millions of veterans and their loved ones are personally invested in those results.
The Department of Veterans Affairs estimates 11-20% of Operation Iraqi Freedom and Operation Enduring Freedom veterans live with PTSD. For Gulf War veterans, it's 12%. For Vietnam veterans, 30% brought PTSD home with them when their tour of duty ended.
James "JJ" Jernigan is one of them. In 2018, he was proudly taking part in the arrival of The Wall That Heals. In early January 2020, JJ was one of several veterans who received a Quilt of Valor in Paducah. JJ's wife, Sandy, spoke with us on camera that day. Click here to watch that story. JJ couldn't, because for the past year dementia has been stealing his memories and, many times, his ability to communicate. It's a price he may now be paying for his Service and Sacrifice. read it here
But yet again, research on this connection was done a long time ago.
You are getting the idea, but one of the most troubling ones was PTSD Meds May Increase Dementia Risk in 2017...but no sign any of these studies changed much at all considering what you just read!
VA, DoD recommended PTSD therapies don’t help many military patients, review finds
Marine Corps Times
Patricia Kime
February 4, 2020
Pfc. Linaeja White, a health care specialist with Special Troops Battalion, 3rd Infantry Division Resolute Support Sustainment Brigade, scrunches up her face April 2, 2018, during a Mindfulness Monday class at Bagram Airfield, Afghanistan. Therapies such as transcendental meditation have been found to be effective in treating PTSD. (Sgt. Elizabeth White/Army)
The psychotherapy approaches considered by the Departments of Veterans Affairs and Defense to be front-line treatments for military-related PTSD don’t work for up to two-thirds of patients, a new report published in JAMA Insights finds.
Cognitive processing therapy, or CPT, and prolonged exposure therapy, PE, are two approaches for treating post-traumatic stress disorder that focus on a patient’s traumatic experiences and helps them process the memories associated with the horrific events.
But a review of results from several large clinical studies conducted since 2015 on military personnel and veterans, researchers with New York University’s Grossman School of Medicine found these psychotherapies have limited success in these patients, despite recommendation as preferred treatments in the VA/DoD Clinical Practice Guidelines for the Management of PTSD and Acute Stress Disorder.
In fact, according to the review published Jan. 30 by JAMA, interventions that don’t focus on traumatic events, such as present-centered talk therapy, transcendental meditation and medication, seem to work about as well as emotionally charged PE and CPT.
“Overall, these new findings suggest that first-line psychotherapies do not effectively treat military-related PTSD in large proportions of patients and do not outperform non-trauma-focused interventions,” wrote lead author Maria Steenkamp, clinical assistant professor of psychiatry at Grossman. read it here
How many veterans do we have to lose before we actually do better?
Wounded Times
Kathie Costos
February 4, 2020
Why do I still believe we will do the right thing to stop men and women, who risked their lives to save others, will finally risk their pride to save themselves? Because I have seen it happen too often to dismiss what is possible.
Air Force Suicides went up last year. "The U.S. Air Force says 137 airmen across the active duty, Guard and Reserve died by suicide in 2019, a 33% increase over the previous year." The annual report released last year for 2018, showed that suicides have gone up to the highest on record.
Col. Michael A. Miller, commander of the 2nd Bomb Wing at Barksdale Air Force Base in Louisiana, reportedly commented that "killing yourself is a chickenshit way to go" during a 1.2 mile "resiliency day" run with personnel...
Since the start of Gen. Robert Neller’s tenure as commandant in 2015, nearly 224 Marines have ended their own lives. That’s more Marines than an entire rifle company, he noted in a recent two-page letter on mental wellness.
In 2018, 354 active and reserve Marines attempted suicide, and 77 Marines died, numbers that are greater, Neller wrote “than any previous year recorded."
In his letter to the entire Corps, posted via Twitter in May, Neller called on Marines to address “collective mental wellness," spiritual fitness and to seek help to combat the suicide epidemic across the Corps.
But they are not alone with that type of thinking. It has been happening for decades because "leaders" refuse to learn about what PTSD is and what it does. They cannot accept that the men and women they command valued the lives of others so much so, they were willing to die for their sake, but could not risk their pride to admit they needed help to stay alive. These "leaders" cannot even recognized they have supported silence instead of encouraging service members to #BreakTheSilence so they can heal the wound of Post Traumatic Stress Disorder.
Now, according to court documents, the timeline for the documents to again be visible is clear: at least 90 percent of the pre-April 2019 Air Force, Navy and Coast Guard decisions will be reposted on the website by Jan. 31, as will all Army decisions from 2009 to April 2019. By Feb. 14, the remaining Air Force, Navy and Coast Guard decisions will be reposted, and by Feb. 28, all Army decisions prior to 2009 will be reposted.
And by March 31, the services, including the Coast Guard, will repost all decisions through Dec. 31, 2019.
But I do still believe that one day, we will arrive at a time and place where no one will ever be ashamed of PTSD, especially when it was caused by their heroism. I believe because of these leaders.
"Marines are in a fight to save their fellow comrades, and they must approach that fight with the same intensity they apply to other battles," he added. In the nearly four years Commandant Gen. Robert Neller has led the Marine Corps, the service has lost a rifle company-worth of Marines to suicide, and he says it's time to have a frank conversation about what's causing that.
"Let me be clear up front, there is zero shame in admitting one's struggles in life -- trauma, shame, guilt or uncertainty about the future -- and asking for help," he said in a two-page letter about mental illness addressed to Marines, sailors and their families.
Blumenthal to bring uncle of Marine who committed suicide to State of the Union
The Day
By Julia Bergman Day staff writer
February 03. 2020
"Our nation has abjectly failed to provide the care our heroes need to fight these invisible wounds — mental health services to diagnose and treat them effectively. The loss of Tyler Reeb as well as his courage and strength should inspire us to do better." U.S. Sen. Richard Blumenthal
The uncle of a Marine Staff Sergeant Tyler Reeb, who died by suicide last fall October following multiple tours of duty in Iraq and Afghanistan, will be the guest of U.S. Sen. Richard Blumenthal, D-Conn., at the State of the Union address on Tuesday.
Tyler Reeb, a decorated Marine Corps sniper who grew up in New Canaan, died in October. He led more than 100 combat missions against the Taliban, according to a news release from Blumenthal's office. His uncle, Christopher Reeb of Weston, will represent the family at the State of the Union.
"Our nation has abjectly failed to provide the care our heroes need to fight these invisible wounds — mental health services to diagnose and treat them effectively," Blumenthal said in a statement. "The loss of Tyler Reeb as well as his courage and strength should inspire us to do better."
Last week, the U.S. Senate Veterans' Affairs Committee approved legislation, authored by Blumenthal, that would establish targets to evaluate the efficacy of the VA's mental health and suicide prevention outreach campaigns and would create a process to oversee these campaigns.
The proposal adopts several recommendations from a Government Accountability Office report publicly released in December 2018, which found the VA's suicide prevention outreach activities had "dropped off in 2017 and 2018, and the office responsible for these activities lacked consistent leadership." read it here
When you read about Tyler Reeb in days to come, think about what you just learned and then ask yourself what you can do to deliver the message to others, that Tyler Reeb should have heard.
That’s why I joined Senator Mark Warner (D-VA) to introduce the IMPROVE Well-being for Veterans Act. This legislation would create a VA grant program to leverage veteran-serving non-profits and other community networks and create a common tool to measure the effectiveness of programs in order to reduce veteran suicides and save lives
But it only sounds great until you get to the part where with all the groups out there, no one seems to be doing much to hold any of them accountable. What is worse, is when members of the House and Senate, write bills, they do not seem too interested in what was done before.
They also do not seem to interested in what they say is true...or not.
What U.S. Sen. John Boozman claimed
The Annual Suicide Report released by the Department of Defense (DoD) four months ago shows an increase in suicide among active-duty personnel in 2018. The National Guard experienced the highest rate of suicides among active duty and reserve members.
Suicide prevention has become a priority at DoD and the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) in recent years.
What the truth is.
Back in 2008
The VA said it has hired more than 3,000 mental healthcare professionals over the past two years to deal with the increasing number of PTSD cases, but the problems persist. In response to the federal lawsuit, the VA set up a suicide prevention hotline. The VA said it has received more than 43,000 calls, 1,000 of which were from veterans who were on the verge of suicide and were rescued.
What U.S. Sen. John Boozman claimed
From Fiscal Year 2010 to 2020, the mental health and suicide prevention budget at the VA increased by 83%. During that same period, the suicide prevention outreach budget alone increased by 233%.
What the truth is.
This will explain a lot of that increase in the budget, but also think about how much more money was given to private providers instead of into the VA itself.
What U.S. Sen. John Boozman claimed
Despite the $222 million in funding for suicide prevention, the VA estimates that around 20 veterans commit suicide each day. That number has unfortunately remained roughly unchanged even with this dramatic infusion of resources.
What the truth is.
Actually the latest report from the VA is the "number" is 17. But that is not really true either. Read it and you'll see what I mean.
What U.S. Sen. John Boozman claimed
There are more than 50,000 organizations that provide suicide prevention services for veterans. Allowing the VA to tap into this network is a commonsense approach to ensuring improvements that have the potential to make a difference.
What the truth is.
Donors who want to make contributions towards charitable programs that serve the military and veterans face an almost overwhelming volume of choices with, by some accounts, the existence of over 40,000 nonprofit organizations dedicated to serving the military and veterans and an estimated 400,000 service organizations that in some way touch veterans or service members.
But above that, we should also notice that while all of these groups popped up, the numbers got worse.
St. Louis is one of 18 cities helping to spearhead the shift in healthcare.
ST. LOUIS (KMOV.com) -- Employees at the Veterans Affairs got to try a new approach to healthcare on Saturday.
Acupuncture, Tai Chi, hypnosis and other methods were part of the VA Employee Whole Health Wellness Retreat.
"I think it's a fantastic concept and a great way to model healthcare," Susan Boyle said. "I think it's what our veterans need instead of looking at them as being sick individuals." read it here
When you know how long people have been openly talking about PTSD, discovering a widow seems to think it is just males who need to speak up...it proves we failed!
Anil wasn't diagnosed with PTSD until four years after he left the armed forces (Image: Hull Daily Mail)
Army veteran Anil Carbon took his own life in February 2019 after finding it hard to adjust to civilian life.
Anil was suffering with post-traumatic stress disorder, but wasn't diagnosed with it until four years after he left the armed forces.
Despite having symptoms, he would always say "I'm fine, it's nothing".
Now his wife Myshelle Carbon wants to raise awareness of men's mental health and how important it is that men feel they can speak up, reports Hull Live. read it here
