Thursday, January 2, 2014

Combat wounded Iraq veteran, amputee shocked by pregnancy

Veteran shot in the stomach now pregnant
MSN New Zealand
Matthew Henry
Jan 2 2014

A British female soldier who was told she would never have children after taking a bullet in the stomach in Iraq is "delighted" to be expecting a "miracle baby".

Hannah Campbell, 28, was dug out from underneath a pile of rubble in Basra after a mortar round sent a building crashing down on top of her.

A high velocity bullet damaged her womb while the building's collapse left her blind in one eye and with horrific injuries to her leg, which had to be amputated.

Doctors delivered the devastating news that Ms Campbell would never have children but now, against the odds, she and her partner are pregnant.
read more here

Wednesday, January 1, 2014

DOD does not know how to use what they have to fight PTSD

Department of Defense does not know how to use what they have to fight and defeat PTSD. Two videos prove that. One from 2011 with Medal of Honor Heroes. The other from PBS in 2012.

In 2011 the Department of Defense produced a video with Medal of Honor Heroes talking about PTSD and coming home.

Lt. Col. Bruce Crandall, MOH Vietnam, Battle of IaDrang 1965

Sgt. 1st Class Ronald Rosser, MOH Korea 1952

CWO4 Hershel Williams, MOH Iwo Jima 1945

Col. Charles Murray Jr., MOH WWII France 1944 and passed away the same year this video was made, August 12, 2011.

As of right now it has only been view 314 times.
May 5, 2011
Shell shock, battle fatigue, PTSD - names may change, but the combat stress that many service members face remains the same. Warriors from past wars - including Medal of Honor recipients - understand that reaching out and talking about the psychological effects of combat can make a real difference.

This is from PBS NOW March 31, 2012 with 10,304 views.

Afghanistan veteran with PTSD healing by helping cats

Therapy from 1 wounded warrior to another
The Leaf-Chronicle
BY PHILIP GREY
January 1, 2014

CLARKSVILLE, Tenn. — There are four wounded, ill and injured warriors living in the Voris household. One of them is human; the other three are cats.

Aaron Voris treats the animals like soulmates. A former infantry soldier, he served with the "Red Currahees" of 1st Battalion, 506th Infantry Regiment, 4th Brigade Combat Team, 101st Airborne Division.

As a result of a particularly rough deployment in Afghanistan, he suffers from back and leg injuries, but even more from traumatic brain injury and severe post-traumatic stress disorder.

He's out of the Army now and working toward becoming a veterinary technician.

Together with his wife, Stephanie, and stepdaughter, Ally, he is getting some practice in as the caretaker of three formerly homeless cats — each damaged in its own way.

Aaron said that, like him, they carry the scars and hurts of hard experience.

Lucy, an undersized and sickly cat, has a type of herpes affecting the lungs. It is a permanent condition and expensive to treat, but Lucy is family, and the expense is borne.
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Military Sexual Assaults committed against males 53%

Air Force member's allegation of sex assault brings him more grief
Tribune Washington Bureau
By David S. Cloud
Published: January 1, 2014

TRAVIS AIR FORCE BASE, Calif. — Shortly after he arrived at Ramstein Air Base in Germany in March 2012, Air Force security guard Trent Smith was at an off-base apartment when, he says, a male sergeant touched him and pressed him to go into the bedroom for sex.

"I said, 'No, I don't want to spend the night,' " Smith recalled. But Smith, 20, says he felt he had no choice. "I went along with it."

For Smith, the encounter — which he reported up the chain of command three days later — began an emotional ordeal. As the months passed, his doctors say, the trim, polite airman with an engaging smile suffered bouts of anger, guilt and depression so severe that he contemplated suicide several times.

More disturbing for a Pentagon struggling to gain control of a seeming epidemic of charges concerning rape and unwanted sexual advances in the ranks, Smith's attempts to get help only worsened his troubles. After a lengthy investigation, the military decided that no crime had occurred, and it later moved to discharge Smith on medical grounds.

The case highlights a little-recognized reality for the male-dominated military. Although members of Congress have focused their outrage on abuse of women in uniform, the Pentagon reported in May that 53 percent of the estimated 26,000 troops who were raped or forced into sex last year were men.
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Wallet stolen at church, veteran has life turned upside down

Veteran's life turned upside down after wallet is stolen from church
The Trentonian
By Penny Ray
POSTED: 12/31/13

TRENTON — On a Sunday last month, Yvonne Harris-Johnson began the day in a joyous mood, with plans to worship at a church in Trenton. But she had no idea that her life would be turned upside down before lunch.

Harris-Johnson attended the 8 a.m. service that day, and afterward she stood at a podium in the church foyer and greeted people as they arrived for afternoon worship. She left her purse, Harris-Johnson says, next to a bench in the foyer, no more than four feet away from the podium. And in that purse was her wallet, which contained five credit cards, two debit cards, her driver’s license, her military identification card, and her car keys. The wallet also contained her husband and son’s social security information.

“I’m the secretary in the house,” Harris-Johnson said in a conversation Tuesday. “When I call the doctor’s office, they ask for my family’s information. So, I keep it all in my wallet.”

Harris-Johnson, who is a retired veteran of the U.S. Air Force, says she stood at the podium for about 15 minutes before a deacon asked her to move her car. So, she grabbed her purse and then ran outside to her vehicle. And that’s when she realized that her wallet was missing.
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Iraq veteran motivated to act to save veterans from suicide

Iraq vet biking across US to raise awareness about military suicide
Austin American-Statesman
By Claire Osborn
Published: December 31, 2013

AUSTIN — He’s had a soda can thrown at him, a logging truck try to run him off the road and a man warning him he might get shot if he rode his bike at night in the town of Sanderson, about 280 miles west of Austin.

Matthew Jarrett, a 31-year-old Iraqi war veteran, survived the perils of cross-country biking and made it to Austin last month as part of a tour to raise awareness about suicide in the military. The Colorado native, who had never pedaled a bike 10 miles before starting his tour April 19 in Yorktown, Va., has now ridden more than 8,000 miles in 14 states.

“I’m not raising money. I’m just trying to spread a message,” Jarrett said while sitting at an Austin Whole Foods store on a sunny December day.

“Twenty-two veterans commit suicide daily,” he continued. “That makes me feel disturbed and uncomfortable and we need to be doing something about it.”

He said veterans who return from war can take years to readjust to civilian life. Jarrett, a U.S. Army veteran, declined to discuss whether he had trouble readjusting after he served in Iraq in 2003-04.
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Slaid Cleaves’ 10th release “Still Fighting The War”

2013: The Year in Roots Music
Voice of America
Katherine Cole
December 31, 2013

As we close out 2013, it's time to share some highlights of American Roots music highlights for the year.

They include Slaid Cleaves’ 10th release-“Still Fighting The War.” The original inspiration for the song came to Cleaves from a series of Pulitzer Prize-winning photos of Iraq War veterans suffering from post-traumatic stress disorder. It’s a song that ended up taking him four years to write.

“I’d seen stories in the news about Vets coming back and having a hard time and you know, frankly, I knew…I remember writing down in a notebook when we went to war in Iraq… I said ’10 years from now, we’re going to have Iraq War Vets on every street corner, they’re going to be homeless," Cleaves said. "They’re going to be having a hard time adjusting. It’s going to be the Vietnam situation all over again.’ I wanted to write a song that kind of told their story. Not to advocate or anything. But just tell their story-that people are having a hard time coming back.”
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First pot purchaser in Colorado, Iraq Vet with PTSD

Iraq vet with PTSD makes Colorado's first legal recreational pot purchase
NBC News
By Tracy Connor, Staff Writer
January 1, 2014

Colorado's legal recreational marijuana industry kicked off Wednesday with an Iraq war veteran who suffers from post-traumatic stress disorder making the first pot purchase under the new law.

Sean Azzariti of Denver, who helped campaign for Amendment 64, bought an eighth of an ounce of a strain called Bubba Kush and a pot-infused edible truffle for $59 at the 3D Cannabis Center — one of about a dozen retailers that began selling up to an ounce of weed to adults starting at 8 a.m. mountain time.

"It's pretty surreal," the cashier told Azzariti, who grinned widely.

"Thank you so much," he said as he accepted the package and held up his receipt for a phalanx of television cameras at the carefully choreographed inaugural sale.

"I feel amazing. This is a huge step forward for veterans," he said. "Now I get to use recreational cannabis to alleviate my PTSD."
read more here

90% of firefighters suffer psychological trauma

While the research was done in Israel, think about our firefighters in the US.
90% of firefighters suffer psychological trauma, expert tells Knesset committee
Jerusalem Post
By JUDY SIEGEL
01/01/2014

Safety engineer Dr. Mark Lugasi presented research into the situation of firefighters: More than 43 percent have been hurt in work accidents.

Nine out of 10 firemen suffer from symptoms of psychological trauma, according to an expert who spoke before a session of the Knesset Labor, Social Welfare and Health Committee on Tuesday.

The meeting was part of a day to honor the Israel Fire Service and its personnel.

Safety engineer Dr. Mark Lugasi presented research into the situation of firefighters: More than 43 percent have been hurt in work accidents.

Fully 24% of those who actually fight fires suffer from post-traumatic stress disorder and 67% suffer from partial trauma – compared to 5% and 45%, respectively, in the general population.

According to Lugasi, firemen who undergo blood tests have significantly higher cholesterol and glucose levels than the general population.

“They are exposed to a wide variety of dangers, including collapsed buildings, dangerous chemicals, missiles and rockets, accidents, terrorism, natural disasters and more,” he continued.

The chief of the Fire Service, Shahar Ayalon, added firemen have poor lifestyles and quality of life. “There is inadequate information and research into the field. Quite a few firemen suffer from cancer and are being treatment. Much needs to be done in this field,” he said.
read more here

New Year Begins To Heal Veterans

New Year Begins To Heal Veterans
Wounded Times
Kathie Costos
January 1, 2014



Fireworks fill the air over the San Francisco skyline
near the San Francisco Oakland Bay Bridge, as part of
New Year's Eve celebrations just after midnight on Wednesday, January 1.
Click through to see other New Year's celebrations around the world

One thing was added to my daily routine this morning. I took down the old calendars and put up the new ones for 2014. A new year begins with hope for everyone. Gone are the days of the past, at least for some but for others, the days remain as fresh as living them.

Looking back on the reports from last year, by the 4th day of 2013, it did not start out to be a very good year at all.

One January 3, 2013, Bill Briggs of NBC wrote this about military suicides.
Some Army families who recently lost members to suicide criticize the branch for failing to aggressively shake a culture in which soldiers believe they'll be deemed weak and denied promotion if they seek mental health aid. They also blame Army leaders for focusing more heavily on weeding out emotionally troubled soldiers to artificially suppress the branch's suicide stats versus embracing and helping members who are exhibiting clear signs of trouble.

Furthermore, in September, two U.S. lawmakers pressured the Pentagon to immediately use unspent money specifically appropriated to the agency to help slow the suicides within the military. Rep. Jim McDermott, D-Wash., and Rep. Leonard Boswell, D-Iowa, also pushed for increased anti-suicide funding for the Department of Defense in 2013.

On January 9, The Fold on The Washington Post released the story of Navy SEAL Robert Guzzo who "went to be with the angels" just after Veterans' Day in 2012.


Everyone was talking about Zero Dark Thirty but no one was talking about Robert, the family he left behind including his Dad, also a Navy SEAL, or the hundreds of enlisted personnel and thousands of other veterans across the country committing suicide after surviving combat.

Robert was not afraid to risk his life as a SEAL. He was afraid to ask for help because he was a SEAL. He "was told he would lose his security clearance and it would end his career as a SEAL." He was told to not report it.

The Navy denied it.

Guzzo went to a private psychiatrist for help. Help that was not enough for him to recover, heal and live to fight this nation's battles.

He just couldn't find what he needed to fight as hard for himself as he did for his brothers in combat.

The same day The Fold released another video report,
Army psychiatrist Christopher Ivany discusses what it being done to combat the high number of suicides by members of the armed forces.
The Fold/ The Washington Post
Veterans Suicides may very well have increased to 22 a day.


The first time I took down a calendar while thinking about suicides tied to the military was on January 1, 1983, 31 years ago today, long before most of the servicemen and women were born. It was the first year of full knowledge that I was in a battle I didn't ask for. It started out as trying to help my own veteran heal in 82. My eyes were shockingly opened and the notion of this nation taking care of our veterans evaporated like the smoke from my cigarette.

As the years went by and more calendars were replaced, I made a promise to not give up until no veteran was left behind. I knew we couldn't save all of them. All they needed was a chance to heal. We didn't have the internet. There were few support groups. There was no national attention and even the local press didn't want to hear anything simply because we were talking about Vietnam veterans.

I called the newspaper in my hometown to let them know what was going on in 2004. The reporter told me what I had to say sounded like "sour grapes" and no one was interested in what they were going thru. He as right. No one was but us. Families like mine were suffering and we were losing our veterans every day of the year.

Testimony presented to the Massachusetts Commission on the Concerns of Vietnam veterans in Greenfield, Massachusetts on May 4, 1982, declared that "Vietnam veterans have nationally averaged 28 suicides a day since 1975, amounting to over 70,000." Point Man International Ministries started in Seattle Washington in 1984 by a Vietnam veteran and Seattle Police Officer Peter Landereth. He was seeing more and more Vietnam veterans suffering and wanted to do something about it. While he was trying to keep crime off the streets he was also trying to keep more veterans from losing hope and save their lives.

One of the founding members of Point Man was Chuck Dean, "publisher of a Veterans self help newspaper, Reveille, had a vision for the ministry and developed it into a system of small groups across the USA for the purpose of mutual support and fellowship. These groups are known as Outposts. Worldwide there are hundreds of Outposts and Homefront groups serving the families of veterans."

Nam Vet by Chuck Dean was released in 1990.
Although the Vietnam War officially ended in 1975, it still rages in the lives of thousands of veterans and their families. Note these statistics: Since 1975 nearly three times as many Vietnam veterans have committed suicide than were killed in the war; the divorce rate among Vietnam Veterans is above 90 percent What's behind these frightening numbers? Why do so many Vietnam veterans suffer from flashbacks, depression, fits of rage, nightmares, emotional numbing, substance abuse, and helplessness? Author and Vietnam veteran Chuck Dean endured years of agony before he found the answer. In Nam Vet, he explains what caused these symptoms and suggests how veterans can break free from self-destructive behaviors... through the saving power of Jesus Christ.

Knowing what works in the battle of PTSD, or Combat Post Traumatic Change, as I think it should be properly titled, every year I made a promise that I will fight harder to save more lives and heal more families. This year I don't know how I can do that.

I don't know how many more books I can write, information I can post, videos I can make that will finally increase healing enough so that we don't start one more year of reports of more dying after war than during it.

This started out to be a post on looking back at 2013 posts on Wounded Times but I couldn't get past the 9th. I just couldn't read more of what happened last year and be reminded of the fact that for all these years the answers have been known but maybe it is because the healing involves matters of faith and Christianity reporters ignore it.

We don't advertise on TV with heart-tugging images or raise funds to "raise awareness on PTSD" because we are raising awareness for free everyday. This is what we believe.
Heal the sick, raise the dead, cleanse those who have leprosy, drive out demons. Freely you have received; freely give." Matthew 10:8 New International Version (NIV)
To heal the veteran researchers are claiming all kinds of nonsense as if any of it is new while ignoring what is old and proven.

Until they take care of the whole veteran, mind, body and spirit, we will see more ending their own pain by ending their lives instead of healing.

Will you help? Will you talk to a veteran and tell them that they don't have to fight this alone? That you care about them? That tomorrow can be a lot better than today was? I will keep fighting as hard as always but I can't fight alone any more than they can. If you find something helpful or hopeful on Wounded Times this year, pass it on to them. The years of excuses we had ran out in the 90's long before the troops were sent into Afghanistan and Iraq. They can now find more information than ever but they are overwhelmed by too many places to find and the lack of true healing leaves them frustrated to the point where they just give up the search. Help them find what you did so they can help others as well.