Crickets found microphones to share good news you can use. You can heal PTSD!
PTSD Patrol
Kathie Costos
December 29, 2019
If you think that what you have heard about veterans committing suicide is useful information, think again. The only ones benefiting from it are the people raising funds for doing it. Everyone else is being reminded that others have given up, instead of learning how to fight back.
The help they needed to heal has been available for almost 4 decades, but the noise on social media is all about raising awareness that veterans are committing suicide while passing around a fictions number as if it is supposed to mean something. The only number that really means anything is the ONE who could not be reached in time to save them.
LADY MACBETH "I heard the owl scream and the crickets cry. Did not you speak?"
Time for more owls to teach crickets how to scream!
With my work on PTSD, it usually comes up at the strangest times. When I was with my family for Christmas, we got into a conversation about when my ex-husband tried to kill me. Not a very pleasant subject for what was supposed to be a joyous day, but it turned out to be a lesson on healing.
When the police took my ex out of the apartment somehow I knew it was just the beginning of a nightmare. Shock wore off and I went into survivor mode fully prepared to fight whatever he had in mind.
I had nightmares and flashbacks, mood swings and everything else that goes with surviving traumatic events like that. The thing that I could not overcome was paranoia.
My ex always drove muscle cars. I used to love that sound but it became torturous.It is the sound I heard when he violated the restraining order. It is the sound I heard when he would follow me on the road. It is the sound that caused panic whenever I heard it coming from another car. read it here
A report on Military Times should have sent shockwaves to every military family. Considering what we have seen with the rise in suicides among those currently serving, it is an indication that things are about to get even worse.
Considering we cannot even get that through to the public, who has the time to talk about their family members committing suicide? After all, we cannot even manage to talk about what the troops are still going through after billions have been spent to prevent them from committing suicide.
The rest of the report should have sent shockwaves into the veterans community as well. As more and more seem fine with the fact that the VA budget has ballooned to cover private practices picking up the healthcare of our veterans, we also need to think about the ramifications because it is not good in the real world.
"The report noted that the D.C. area is one of the most challenging in the country to hire mental health providers; more than 80 percent of psychiatrists, psychologists and license clinical social workers do not take insurance, operating on a cash-only basis."
Yes you read that right...cash only! How many others are operating the same way? How many veterans are also paying cash so that no one knows they are being treated for PTSD to avoid the threat of losing their guns, or jobs? Any idea how many are still working on jobs that require them to be able to carry weapons?
It is too easy to just assume that all veterans with PTSD are too dangerous to have a gun! Top that off with the providers taking cash only, will not be inclined to see patients sent from the VA, especially when their track record of paying is abysmal!
But is actually even worse than that. Back to the report on Military Times.
"The demand for mental health services has risen across the United States in the past decade as the number of providers is has not kept pace and is barely holding steady. The Health Resources and Services Administration projects a shortfall of 250,000 providers by 2025."
And even more damning...
"And some geographic regions are harder hit by the mental health provider shortage. In these areas, the Defense Department faces even more difficult challenges hiring and retaining an adequate number of personnel."
Take a look at what some want to subject veterans across the country to because if there are not enough providers for civilians, we just sent veterans to the back of the that line!
Studies show in Michigan about 330,000 people live with a serious mental illness, according to the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration, and nearly 60% don't receive treatment because help can be hard to find.
Like most of the country, Michigan is in desperate need of more psychiatrists - especially for children.
According to the American Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatrists, the state had just 239 psychiatrists trained to treat children in 2017, which is 11 psychiatrists for every 100,000 children across the state.
The recent data shows that across the state there is an average of one mental health provider to 957 individuals, but in the Texas Panhandle there is one mental health provider to 4,400 individuals, which makes it hard for those with behavioral issues to get the help they need. Like the rest of the United States, the Panhandle is seeing an increase in patients seeking mental health treatment, but they can’t find enough doctors, nurses, and therapists to treat them.
For years, the center has used remote appointments with local psychiatrists to reach patients in far-flung corners of its coverage area, which spans 20 largely rural counties. But recently, Hill said, it’s been almost impossible to find psychiatrists and psychiatric nurses to do even that. He’s had to turn to providers who conference in from Kansas City, Texas and Tennessee.
There are 431 psychiatrists actively licensed to practice in Kansas, according to the state’s Board of Healing Arts. One calculation by the Kaiser Family Foundation estimates the state needs 53 more to meet its needs.
So do you think that you have been told the truth about any of this? Or are you now aware as to why it has gotten steadily worse for those who serve this country now...those who served it before, and all those who will come afterwards? They are screwed unless we demand a hell of a lot better out of Washington!
When will the government care enough to get it right for veterans?
Wounded Times
Kathie Costos
December 27, 2019
When I read about more politicians seeking answers, I had to walk away from the computer. It is nothing we have not heard before and that is the most troubling thing of all. It is the same "efforts" seeking answers but there is never anyone held accountable for what has not happened.
So, let's begin with the letter that started me off.
We write to request your help in obtaining a true and accurate count of the annual number of veteran suicides in Florida. As members of Congress from Florida’s 12th and 13th Congressional Districts, we are honored to represent more than 110,000 of the 1,500,000 veterans who call the Sunshine State home. At a joint meeting of our Veterans Advisory Boards, local veteran leaders raised concerns that veterans suicide data may not be as up-to-date or accurate as it could be. We need the most accurate data possible to effectively tackle this epidemic facing our veteran community.
As you know, Congress tasks the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) to report annual veterans suicide data, along with general data on mortality and life expectancy. However, because not all veterans use the VA, they also rely on a combination of U.S. Department of Defense service records and state death certificates. Unfortunately, state death certificates do not always tell the full picture. After a death, veteran status is indicated on a form filled out by a funeral home; however, when local medical examiners take over death investigations in cases of suspected suicide, they do not necessarily investigate whether the deceased is a veteran. We are concerned that this dynamic is leading to an undercount of veteran suicides. (click the link for the of the letter.)
In other words, they still do not know how many veterans have committed suicide. So when do they admit that with the known percentages rising, what they have done added to the misery veterans face everyday?
When do they hold anyone accountable for any of this? When do they demand answers as to why the "data" seems to keep changing as if they are making it all up?
When does someone hold all the charities collecting millions for "raising awareness" accountable and make them stop taking advantage of veterans?
Top all that off with veterans like this show up in a crime report along with their family members.
Rio Rancho police found Carlos Velasquez, 50; Marilyn Velasquez, 45; Robert Velasquez, 22; and Adrian Velasquez, 14, dead inside the family’s Rio Rancho home on Christmas Day.
All four had been shot to death. According to a search warrant, the gun was found underneath Carlos Velasquez’s body. Those documents say the couple was going through a divorce.
"It hurts me to see or hear all the screaming and the crying and the people that they've lost, just to see that was very heartbreaking for me and my family," said a neighbor who wants to remain anonymous.
Next time you hear someone say they know how many veterans have committed suicide, make them aware of this. Then ask them "What is the point of telling veterans what they already know...how to die?"
Of all the Christmas music that has been recorded, there is one song that I believe should be played all year long. It is "O Holy Night" because while we do not know the day He was born, we know it was a Holy Night, not a holiday.
I was asked to give a blessing during a dinner a few weeks ago and I told the story of how a group of Chaplains were sitting among members of the clergy when a discussion about the Birth of Jesus caused an argument.
Some pointed out how the traditions of Christmas were incorporated into a Christian celebration but the time of His birth would have to have been sometime in the spring. This went on and on until one elderly Chaplain said, "What difference does it make when He came? The fact remains He did and brought God's love. That is what the day is supposed to be all about. God's love and the love we have for others." The arguing stopped. The room was quiet, tempers cooled and hearts were filled with the real meaning of the season.
The dinner I gave the blessing at was with a group of veterans and they knew full well what it is to do for others because of love. They were willing to die to save strangers. Jesus came into the world to do that out of love. We forget such unselfish acts, just as we forget the price that they pay in return for that level of love.
We forget that throughout the centuries, the price paid by suffering souls has been documented across the world. There are many parts within the Bible that addresses this and what is possible to have victory over the misery of the moment.
Psalm 23 King James Version (KJV)
23 The Lord is my shepherd; I shall not want.
2 He maketh me to lie down in green pastures: he leadeth me beside the still waters.
3 He restoreth my soul: he leadeth me in the paths of righteousness for his name's sake.
4 Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil: for thou art with me; thy rod and thy staff they comfort me.
5 Thou preparest a table before me in the presence of mine enemies: thou anointest my head with oil; my cup runneth over.
6 Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me all the days of my life: and I will dwell in the house of the Lord for ever.
When someone puts their life on the line for the sake of someone else, they feel the worth of their soul and find the courage to do what they need to do. Why can't they feel the worth of their soul afterwards? Why can't they find the courage to ask for help because of what they were compelled to do? They asked for help to do what they did in battle with enemy forces. PTSD is an enemy force they do battle with daily but they have a hard time asking for help to defeat it.
Part of that is they do not have faith that it can be defeated. Yet over and over again, there is documented evidence, that while it cannot be cured, it can, and has been, defeated.
Do you want your soul to feel its worth again? Do you want to know who you are again? It is all there within you. God put it all there. Everything you needed to do what you were sent here to do, is there. Everything you needed to be able to heal from doing it, is all there.
Today may be a very hard day for you but tomorrow can be the beginning when misery ends and you start to heal. Contact Point Man on Facebook and start the "new and glorious morn" that you now know is possible and rejoice!
Watch: 11-Year-Old Boy Reunited With Military Brother While Christmas Caroling At Woodbury Senior Center
By CBS3 Staff
December 18, 2019
“For weeks my parents have been asking, ‘What do you want for Christmas?’ And I kept saying each and every single time, ‘I want to see my brother,'” Mark said. “Until a day ago they said, ‘So you are sticking to your word?’ And I said ‘Yes.’ And today he’s here.”
WOODBURY, N.J. (CBS) — Military homecomings always pull on the heartstrings, especially during the holiday season. An 11-year-old boy from Deptford Township had his Christmas wish come true while caroling with his Oak Valley Elementary classmates at a senior center on Wednesday morning.
Mark DiTizio told the audience at Atrium Post Acute Care of Woodbury all he wanted for Christmas was for his brother, Private Second Class Eric Shaw, to come home from the military. read it here
