Ex-soldiers surviving post traumatic stress disorder

Once were warriors
After the horrors of war, many servicemen and women find themselves facing another battle: post-traumatic stress disorder. But a radical programme involving t'ai chi, meditation and Hawaiian "forgiveness" therapy is helping many of them find peace

• This article appears in Sunday's Observer Magazine
Louise Carpenter The Observer, Sunday 1 February 2009

Peter Stone was approaching the end of a long career in the army when he witnessed an event in Croatia in 1995 that was to ruin the next decade of his life. Walking through a village, he came across three Croatian children, aged 11, nine and seven. A father of four himself, Stone's instinct was to talk to them. He even reached into the pocket of his uniform and offered them some chocolate. Later, passing back through the village, he saw them again. They were lying in pools of their own blood by the roadside, their throats cut - punishment for speaking to the enemy.

Stone was an experienced soldier. He had served in Northern Ireland, the Falklands and Croatia. He had seen death and despair, and he had endured and pulled through explosions himself. And yet it was this singular, horrific event that was to be his unravelling. "Those children were innocent," he says, his voice faltering, "and I could not get the memory of them out of my mind, I could not get the thoughts to go [away] that I was responsible, that if it were not for me, they would still be alive today."

Years later, Stone was diagnosed with post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), a common problem that usually becomes apparent in soldiers years after the experienced trauma. It is often triggered by a second, unrelated trauma. In Stone's case, it was the death of his son in a car crash, two weeks before his son's 21st birthday, in 2001. He had been out of the army for a year then, his marriage having broken down due to the stresses of his job.

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Program aims to help vets get good jobs

Program aims to help vets get good jobs
By Matthew Cox - Staff writer
Posted : Saturday Jan 31, 2009 8:55:50 EST

Sgt. 1st Class Chad Sowash never stops working for soldiers.

The Indiana Reserve senior drill sergeant is in his second mobilization at Fort Benning, Ga., in four years.

When Sowash isn’t shaping civilians into soldiers, he spends his time finding job opportunities for veterans in the nation’s top-rated firms.

About 18 months ago, Sowash launched VetCentral, an Internet-based program designed to help veterans find success in the civilian workforce.

“It focuses on connecting Fortune 500 companies with veterans,” said Sowash, vice president for business development for Direct Employers Association, a nonprofit group that works with major corporations to help them recruit more effectively. “The jobs have always been there, but there has never been a pipeline in place to funnel those jobs to the veterans.”

This is particularly important now given that the country is in one of the worst economic crises in history, resulting in hundreds of thousands of layoffs across America.

At the same time, the Army is less willing to pay out large bonuses to keep soldiers in the service.
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Iraq vet helps others adjust to civilian life

Iraq vet helps others adjust to civilian life
The Oregonian - OregonLive.com - Portland,OR,USA
by Barry Finnemore, Special to The Oregonian
Thursday January 29, 2009, 3:00 AM
Joshua Ray joined the Army in fall 2001, motivated to follow in relatives' footsteps, take care of his family financially and serve his country.

He served with the 101st Airborne and was deployed to Iraq before and during the first year of the war.

When he was discharged and moved back to Oregon in 2005, Ray, 28, suffered from depression, post-traumatic stress disorder and physical injuries so acute that he isolated himself from others.

"I basically locked myself up in my bedroom for two years," the Fairview resident and father of three young girls said. "I couldn't find the drive to do anything. One day I said, 'Enough of this.'"

Ray sought help and enrolled at Mt. Hood Community College in Gresham, where he is working toward degrees in business management, marketing and entrepreneurship.
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IG report:No harm done on infamous PTSD email.

Why am I having a hard time believing this report? How do they know for sure this email did not change the outcome for veterans? Personality Disorder discharges were supposed to be appropriate too. Remember them? Diagnosing troops with PTSD as having the pre-existing condition of personality disorder made sure the government had no responsibility in the fact they were having flashbacks and nightmares along with the rest of the symptoms of PTSD. I really wonder how many of them had TBI on top of it but were cut loose by the DOD. As of now, no on knows what happened to the over 22,000 this happened to or if they ever received any justice, or ever will. Now the Inspector General report says the email sent had no bearing on the diagnosis of our veterans. This is really hard to swallow.

Inspector General Releases Investigation on VA Staffer's Email ...
Hawaii Reporter - Kailua,HI,USA
Chairman Akaka remains concerned that VA is overburdened and underfunded
By Jesse Broder Van Dyke, 1/29/2009 9:06:10 AM
WASHINGTON, D.C. – U.S. Senator Daniel K. Akaka (D-HI), Chairman of the Veterans’ Affairs Committee, commented today on a new VA Inspector General (IG) report into an email sent by a VA psychologist last year that appeared to discourage health care staff from diagnosing veterans with post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD).
The IG investigation, requested by Akaka and released today, found that while the email was poorly written and inappropriate, it did not result in a change in diagnoses at that VA facility.
“I appreciate the IG’s investigation into this matter. It is fortunate that the actions of a single health professional did not result in an artificial decline in the number of veterans diagnosed with PTSD. I remain concerned that VA’s health care system is overburdened and underfunded as the needs of veterans grow greater and more complicated. I will continue to work towards making VA funding more timely, predictable, and robust,” Akaka said.
Chairman Akaka requested the IG’s investigation when the email was brought to light last year. He held a hearing on systemic indifference to invisible wounds on June 4, 2008.
The VA IG report is available here. VAO report
Jesse Broder Van Dyke is a spokesperson for U.S. Sen. Daniel Akaka

Weakened Warriors?

Weakened Warriors?

by Chaplain Kathie

Iraq, Afghanistan VA Patients Exceed 400,000

Thursday 29 January 2009

by: Maya Schenwar, t r u t h o u t Report

As the number of veterans seeking health care continues to rise, the VA is straining to meet demands.

Amid talk of a drawdown of troops in Iraq, new statistics from the Department of Defense (DoD) and the Department of Veterans' Affairs (VA) show that US casualties are still climbing quickly. Iraq and Afghanistan battlefield injuries and deaths number 81,361, up from 72,043 last January, according to data obtained through a Freedom of Information Act request by Veterans for Common Sense (VCS). Veteran patients - including those who didn't seek care until their return home - shot up to 400,304 (from 263,909 in December 2007).

For the thousands of soldiers flooding the VA, mental illness tops the list of ailments. Forty-five percent of VA patients have already been diagnosed with mental health conditions, including a startling 105,000 diagnosed with post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD). These data do not include the incalculable number of mentally ill veterans who have not received a diagnosis or haven't sought treatment at the VA.

Health care for veterans has improved substantially in the past year, mostly due to legislative changes and funding boosts, according to Raymond Kelley, legislative director of AMVETS. The recently passed Dignity for Wounded Warriors Act entitles veterans to up to five years of free health care for military-related medical conditions. Other legislative victories include improvements to VA facilities, increased mental health care research and a boost for the claims processing system, which has been vastly understaffed and overburdened throughout the "war on terror."

However, many barriers to adequate care and compensation remain, particularly for veterans filing for disability benefits. Delays and denials of those claims are routine. Among vets with PTSD, 59 percent have not been approved for benefits, meaning that their claims are pending or rejected - or that, due to any number of deterrents, they have not filed a claim.

According to Paul Sullivan, executive director of VCS, the average wait-time for veterans to receive an answer after filing for disability compensation is more than six months. A recent VCS lawsuit against VA showed that PTSD patients face even longer delays.

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Suicides are up again. The cases of PTSD are going up and up, which is not totally a bad thing because it means more are seeking help for PTSD. The bad part of all of this is that the DOD and the VA are still not able to take care of all of them. They keep saying they're doing more but over and over again we find their "more" is not even close to what needs to be done.

For years they've relied on a program called "BattleMind" that was designed to prepare the warriors for combat and then casually addressed the fact that they could be wounded by PTSD after they told them they needed to mentally prepare for combat. The problem is how they did this ended up telling them that if they were weak, their minds not toughened enough, it was basically their fault they ended up with PTSD. This was not the intention of the program but the message was received this way.

That is one of the problems. The fact they have yet to understand what causes PTSD in some and not in others has been another problem. They don't understand there are basically three different types of people. One may be more self-centered. I have yet to hear from a veteran that was self-centered before combat developing PTSD. Another is the middle type, a little self-centered and a little sensitive. Some of them can and do become wounded by PTSD if their exposures to traumatic events happens one too many times. The other group, they are more sensitive and compassionate types. They seem to be wounded the most and the deepest. Being sensitive has nothing to do with not being courageous. Often it's the other way around. They see someone in need and because of their compassion, they do things no one else would dare to do in order to help.

The other thing that needs to be pointed out is that when they are deployed into combat, they do what needs to be done out of that same courage. They know lives depend on them and they set themselves aside to live up to the challenge. They put their own pain aside thinking of others. It is not until the lives of others are out of danger they crash. Most will not acknowledge they need help until they are far from danger. It's one of the biggest reasons they do not commit suicide while in a fire fight or on duty. They do it when they are in their bunks or back home.

While the Army study showed the redeployments increase the risk of PTSD by 50%, the DOD and the VA failed to do anything about it. Units are redeployed over and over again. Then there are the National Guardsmen and Reservists, also redeployed and on top of the stress of going into combat, they have the added stresses of trying to come back to their "normal" lives into a nation that has been oblivious as to what was expected of them and the hardships they had to endure.

BattleMind made them feel as if they were "weakened warriors" unable to cope with what was asked of them. It was not their fault. It was total lack of knowledge of what makes them so different.

I'll never forget a Marine I met at the VA in Orlando. He was trying to fill out paperwork to begin a claim with the VA as he sought treatment. He saw the Chaplain shirt I had on and we began to talk. The Marine put his hand over his face so that I would not see the tears coming. He said he was ashamed. He said he was a Marine and trained to be tough. He was falling apart because no one told him that he did his duty and was able to do whatever was asked of him because of his courage and was sustained by the dedication he had to his brothers. He didn't understand how much courage that took. There he was wounded by PTSD yet he was able to go into battle, able to overcome his own pain until he was no longer needed and back home.

This is what BattleMind should have addressed so they would not feel as if they were weak and it was their fault. They returned home feeling as if they just couldn't cut it.

Then when they came home, they realized they could no longer stuff the pain in the back of their minds. They knew they needed help but when they went for it, either their commanders belittled them or help was not able to keep up with the need. No one was prepared and they still are not even close. The VA is not able to help all of them even though data was known and there is no excuse for the lack of preparedness except the fact the people in charge thought they could get away with turning veterans away, denying claims and breaking them to the point where they simply dropped their claims. This is not a new attitude. It's been going on for a long time. What is new is the total contradiction of actions taken.

On one hand the VA and the DOD are reaching out to raise the awareness of PTSD, but the other hand is doing very little to be able to deal with the influx of new disability claims and treatment programs.

The VA and the DOD will pat themselves on the back for their suicide prevention programs but they will not address the fact the suicides have gone up every year or the fact that they are even brought to that point when treatments are supposed to be available so that no one should ever feel so hopeless they even contemplate suicide.

If people look back at what happened to Vietnam veterans they would have known exactly what was going to happen, but they didn't. Over and over again, I read "new studies" being done that were done over 30 years ago. I keep hoping for something new but they are wasting time.

This only address the issue of PTSD but then you have to add in Traumatic Brain Injury, other illnesses caused by contaminated water, depleted uranium, white phosphorous, Agent Orange and the host of other factors contributing to Gulf War Syndrome. The suffering of our veterans goes on and on. When they file a claim for what they know was caused by their service to this nation lead to being denied treatment and compensation for their condition, it dishonors the service they gave to the nation.

It is time we got this right or stopped pretending we are a grateful nation to them. We failed them and will keep failing until we do all that is necessary to meet the challenges we have when they come home, when their duty is done and their own challenges have been met because they did their duty.

"The willingness with which our young people are likely to serve in any war, no matter how justified, shall be directly proportional to how they perceive veterans of early wars were treated and appreciated by our nation." - George Washington

Army says body armor is "safe" for soldiers in combat

Army: Body armor safe for soldiers in combat
By Richard Lardner - The Associated Press
Posted : Friday Jan 30, 2009 5:58:09 EST

WASHINGTON — No U.S. troops have been killed in Iraq and Afghanistan because their body armor was flawed and failed to protect them, a senior Army official said Thursday as the service defended how the lifesaving gear is tested before being used in combat.

A new audit by the Pentagon inspector general said the specially hardened ceramic plates from one body armor manufacturer — Armor Works of Chandler, Ariz. — were tested improperly and may not provide troops adequate protection.

The audit recommended that nearly 33,000 of the Armor Works plates be withdrawn from an inventory of about 2 million produced by nearly a dozen different companies.

Army Secretary Pete Geren disputed the inspector general’s findings, but agreed to withdraw the Armor Works plates as a precautionary step. In a move underscoring the tension between the inspector general’s office and the Army, Geren has asked a senior Pentagon official to settle the disagreement.

In a separate action, the Army in December voluntarily withdrew just over 8,000 plates because of testing gaps. Those plates were made by Armor Works and other manufacturers, including Ceradyne of Costa Mesa, Calif., and Simula, which is part of BAE Systems.
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Sen. Claire McCaskill wants answers on military substance abuse program

When they have an addiction and want help, that takes courage. I know because my father was not only a disabled Korean War veteran, he was also an alcoholic. It took a lot for him to get to the point where he wanted to do whatever it took to stop drinking. To have them made to feel as if they should have never sought help if appalling.
There is one more thing that needs to be considered here. That's self-medicating. Most of the time without the diagnosis of PTSD, self-medicating can appear to be the same as an addiction. The problem is, they are not addicted to the chemicals but addicted to killing off feelings they don't want to feel and claiming themselves down. Too many have been treated for addictions when they were not addicted and PTSD had gone untreated, so the treatment for addiction was worse than a waste of time. It prolonged the agony.

Senator wants substance-abuse program review
By Rick Maze - Staff writer
Posted : Thursday Jan 29, 2009 17:31:54 EST

A Missouri lawmaker wants service members who seek help for substance abuse problems to be shielded from disciplinary action.

Sen. Claire McCaskill, D-Mo., a member of the Senate Armed Services Committee, is pushing for a review of military treatment and prevention programs for alcohol and substance abuse to look at whether the threat of punishment for admitting a problem is discouraging people from getting help.

She also is concerned about mismanagement and chronic understaffing of substance abuse programs.

Both Defense Secretary Robert Gates and Army Secretary Pete Geren have promised McCaskill they will investigate problems, but she is pressing ahead with legislation calling for a comprehensive review of current programs, new research into substance abuse treatment and an independent study of substance abuse in the ranks.

In a statement, McCaskill said her concerns come after looking into whistle-blower complaints involving the substance abuse program at Fort Leonard Wood, Mo., where the Army employee who pointed out problems said he later suffered reprisals. click link for more

DOD names soldiers from Kiowa Warrior helicopeters that crashed

Latest Coalition Fatalities
ICasualties.org
DOD names soldiers from Kiowa Warrior helicopeters that crashed
01/29/09 DoD Identifies Army Casualties (4 of 4)
Chief Warrant Officer Benjamin H. Todd, 29, of Colville, Wash...assigned to the 6th Squadron, 6th Cavalry Reg, 10th Combat Aviation Brigade, 10th Mountain Division...died from wounds suffered when two OH-58D Kiowa Warrior helicopters crashed...
01/29/09 DoD Identifies Army Casualties (3 of 4)
Chief Warrant Officer Joshua M. Tillery, 31, of Beaverton, Ore...assigned to the 6th Squadron, 6th Cavalry Reg, 10th Combat Aviation Brigade, 10th Mountain Division...died from wounds suffered when two OH-58D Kiowa Warrior helicopters crashed...
01/29/09 DoD Identifies Army Casualties (2 of 4)
Chief Warrant Officer Matthew G. Kelley, 30, of Cameron, Mo...assigned to the 6th Squadron, 6th Cavalry Reg, 10th Combat Aviation Brigade, 10th Mountain Division...died from wounds suffered when two OH-58D Kiowa Warrior helicopters crashed...
01/29/09 DoD Identifies Army Casualties (1 of 4)
Chief Warrant Officer Philip E. Windorski, Jr., 35, of Bovey, Minn...assigned to the 6th Squadron, 6th Cavalry Reg, 10th Combat Aviation Brigade, 10th Mountain Division...died from wounds suffered when two OH-58D Kiowa Warrior helicopters crashed...
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Body of Central Coast soldier who died in Afghanistan returns home

Body of Central Coast soldier who died in Afghanistan returns home
MSNBC - USA
Wednesday, January 28, 2009
Reported by: Danielle Lerner

Dozens of people gather to honor a local soldier who died in Afghanistan.
Staff Sergeant Joshua Townsend served in the Special Forces of the U.S. Army. Two weeks ago, the 30-year-old was found unconscious in his room and rescue crews were unable to revive him. Wednesday, family and friends gathered at the Santa Barbara Airport to receive his body.

For those who knew the Santa Ynez Valley High School graduate, it was another step on their long road to recovery. Many people in the crowd never met the soldier, but they say every hero deserves a homecoming.

The charter plane carrying the body of Staff Sergeant Townsend taxied on the runway as a patriotic crowd waved the American flag and saluted the fallen soldier. His brothers in green were waiting to receive him.

"We're here to honor him, and his sacrifice to this country, and to support his family at this time," said Chaplain James Rose of the U.S. Army.

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PTSD new pin coming soon

I received permission to post on this now. A member of NAMI designed a pin to honor the PTSD veterans. As veterans seem to be divided on awarding the Purple Heart for PTSD (and TBI) none of them seem to be confused as to what PTSD is and that is a wound.

It is my strong belief that we need to get this right. From the beginning of time people have been wounded by traumatic events. Regular people, caught in the wrong place at the wrong time often walk away changed in profound ways. Police and firefighters, facing traumatic events in the line of duty, exposed to the traumas of nature and man, often face them one time too much and end up wounded by PTSD. When it happens to them, well it seems to be easier to understand than when it happens to a combat warrior trained to go into where others run from. It is not just the attitude of the "tough" Marine or the "Army strong" soldier that gets in the way. It's the total disconnect between society and them. It's almost as if we want to be able to depend on them to defend this nation but want to avoid any knowledge of what they have to do in order to do it. Then we say we don't want to be bothered when they come home with wounds that need to be taken care of and lives to be provided for financially since their wounds prevent them from earning the wages they could have if they had not served.

Coming up with an award to show understanding of what they went through, giving them the honor we should show out of appreciation for what they went through, is only the right thing to do. I don't know if this pin will begin a wonderful action, inspire others to come up with an award the military can accept to honor the wounded with or not, but I have a feeling it just got us closer to it.

Max A Gabriel from NYS NAMI - I am designing a PIN for Vets who have PTSD...I would like to know if you feel this would be a good idea to send out to the body of the National for their comments...I am looking at presenting these to Veterans who are rated with PTSD but are not getting any awards for it...such as the Gov't is not giving purple hrts for it... but will give a rating...this pin is 1 1/4 " round with a crouching black figure head in hand/ at the top -Cap letters PTSD...curved from left to right the words - wounded internally in the mind.
I would sell them for $2.50 a pin postage included to wherever they would be sent...production time for these is about 3 1/2 weeks and my 1st
order is for 1500..if you think it would go.....Sooooo I am asking if you would send out a blanket E-mail and get a response. I also got hold of a Gov't Contract Mgr/GSA and am looking into a 1.25" medal w/red white & blue 2" ribbon antique brass finish octagon...again with PTSD...
hoping to do this as a NATIONAL campaign ..............again looking into a grant for this one....thanks MAX