Wednesday, June 3, 2015

Asking For Help Saved Lives During Combat And Afterwards

There are too many Marines thinking they should not ask for help after combat.
They forget that they always had help to fight each battle during war.
They are no less of a Marine when they need help because of it.

Just imagine if this Marine wanted to do this alone.
His buddies came and helped him.
And this picture would have looked a lot different if they did not work together.
The battles fought at home should not be fought alone.

Yesterday I was talking to a buddy of mine and I said that it just didn't make sense for veterans to think that asking for help is a sign of weakness.  After all, during combat it wasn't seen as weakness to call in reinforcements when needed.  

Asking for help saved lives.

So why is it that some have decided the enemy inside of them should be fought alone?

PTSD is the enemy of your future.  You can defeat it and survive as long as you stop fighting this battle alone. Ask for help and if you don't find the right kind of help, keep looking until you find what works for you.

The number of veterans committing suicide keeps going up because they gave up. The good news is more veterans are not just healing, they are thriving and making sure they help others survive this battle as well.

During PTSD Awareness Month, talking about the problem has not worked since they started doing this years ago.  It is time to talk about what works and what you need to know.  

Begin with the simple fact you are not a victim.  You are a survivor or combat trauma.  Most of you have survived many events.

You are not weak but the strength of your emotional core is so strong you felt it all more deeply.

PTSD is not new. Many generations of veterans have experienced the same inner turmoils you are going through including recipients of the Medal of Honor.

PTSD cannot be cured but it can be treated and you are not stuck suffering the way you are right now. You can heal and live a better life.

It is never too late to seek help and you are not frozen the way you are today. As soon as you admit you need help and start to seek it, PTSD loses power and you start taking back control.

It is only harder to fight back home if you choose to fight alone. 

Ex-UPS Employee Admitted Stealing Medications From Disabled Veterans

Former UPS employee admits to stealing prescription meds meant for veterans
MLIVE
Barton Deiters
June 1, 2015
In court on Thursday, May 28, Leiber asked Wysocki about the meaning of Memorial Day, which had occurred a few days prior and described the crime as a "tremendous insult" to those who served their country.

GRAND RAPIDS, MI – A former United Parcel Service employee has confessed to stealing $3,350 in prescription medication destined to be delivered to a veterans' hospital. Jonathan Justin Wysocki, 28, confessed to taking methadone pills from the UPS hub in Wyoming on at least 10 different occasions between Sept. 1 and Oct. 17 that were destined for the Battle Creek Veterans Affairs Medical Center. "I was in a very deep depression,"

Wysocki told Kent County Circuit Court Judge Dennis Leiber during a sentencing hearing last week. "I'm sorry." read more here

Tuesday, June 2, 2015

Soldier Murdered In Memphis Buried With Honors

Soldier Killed In Downtown Shooting Buried With Honor
MYFOX Memphis
By Lynnanne Nguyen, Reporter
Posted: Jun 01, 2015

MEMPHIS, Tenn. (FOX13) - Sgt. Calvin Wilhite, Jr. was buried with honor Monday morning as friends, family, and fellow soldiers gathered at the State Veterans Cemetery in East Memphis to honor his life and service.

Wilhite was killed behind FedEx Forum on Memorial Day Weekend while walking from Beale Street with his girlfriend.

Police are still searching for his killer. It's now been more than a week and still no answers for this family.

"It's sad that so many veterans can come and go to Iraq, and make it back, and then when they get back, they get killed at home for trying to protect the same people,” Wilhite's father, Calvin Wilhite, Sr. told FOX13.

It was a burial fit for a hero, though Sgt. Calvin Wilhite, Jr. didn't die in battle, but on the streets of Memphis.

“It's really hard to process losing a soldier in battle is different than losing one on home soil,” Wilhite's Commanding Officer, Capt. Kelly Hendershott, said. “All these soldiers are like my children, I treat them as such."
read more here
FOX13 News, WHBQ FOX 13

UK Soldiers Stories of PTSD and Getting Help

PTSD: The Soldiers' Stories
The Sun Proudly Sponsors Forces TV
Simon Newton June 2, 2015
During the past year some mental health charities for ex-service personnel have recorded a sharp rise in the numbers of veterans seeking their help for post-traumatic stress disorder.

The rise in cases, with most of those being treated having served in Iraq or Afghanistan, has been described as ‘very concerning’.

Three former British soldiers, meanwhile, have told Forces TV about the devastating effects of PTSD on their lives and their battle to recover with the help of the London Veterans' Service.
watch video here

VA Has No Contracts With Outside Hospitals?

VA admits it has no contracts in place for billions of dollars spent on veterans’ medical care
Washington Post
By Lisa Rein
June 2, 2015
But VA officials said they would need to hire at least 600 employees to write and oversee contracts for private care, an expense they cannot afford. They also said that in rural areas in particular, many physicians are nervous about doing business with the government and are wary of the paperwork involved in a contract with VA.

Top officials at the Department of Veterans Affairs acknowledged to House lawmakers Tuesday that they have been spending billions of dollars a year on private medical care for veterans without contracts, and said it would be too costly and cumbersome to put them in place.

“VA acknowledges that our long-standing procurement processes for care in the community need improvement,” Edward Murray, VA’s acting secretary for management and interim chief financial officer, testified, referring to what’s called non-VA care. Murray said that “serious legal questions” have arisen over medical care veterans get outside VA hospitals and clinics, a growing cost that’s expected to reach more than $10 billion this fiscal year.

The hearing before the House Committee on Veterans’ Affairs’s investigations panel was the second of three scheduled for the spring to address allegations of billions of dollars in misspending flagged by Jan R. Frye, VA’s deputy assistant secretary for acquisition and logistics, about contracting practices. The Washington Post reported in May that Frye had sent a 35-page memo to VA Secretary Robert McDonald in March accusing agency leaders of making a “mockery” of federal acquisition laws and spending at least $6 billion a year in violation of contracting rules.
read more here

Canadian Vietnam Fake Hero Author Copied LIfe of Real Florida Veteran

Nanton author Dennis Surrendi plagiarized Vietnam veteran's life story
CALGARY SUN
Michael Platt
FIRST POSTED: MONDAY, JUNE 01, 2015
But when it comes to bragging about fake medals, Mason says he hopes Canadian police throw the book at Surrendi.

“To me that’s the major crime here, and he’s really made some people angry by doing that,” said Mason, speaking to the Sun from his home in Florida.

Dennis Surrendi has admitted that he was never in the Vietnam War and and took large parts of the book he wrote, called "Set Me Free", from a popular Vietnam War memoir, called "Chickenhawk", written by Robert Mason. Nanton News file photo
There, on Page 6 of the Nanton News, is the damning confession.

“Firstly, I am not a war veteran and secondly, much of the material contained in my book was copied from another book written by a Mr. Robert Mason titled: Chickenhawk.”

And with that admission, Dennis C. Surrendi’s deceitful tale of war heroics and chest full of medals earned as a Vietnam helicopter pilot comes crashing to the ground.

It’s a big fall for a man once feted as a local war hero, signing autographs and shaking hands with military veterans.

Surrendi was forced to confess after being confronted by the actual Vietnam helicopter pilot whose words he stole — and to avoid a lawsuit for plagiarism, the author of Set Me Free agreed to admit his guilt in the local paper.

It’s a small ad, with the word “sorry” conspicuous by its absence — but the few words serve to completely discredit a man who’d been posing as a decorated war vet.

“It’s unbelievable to me that someone would do something like that,” said Robert Mason, the actual author of Chickenhawk, the book from which Surrendi stole.
read more here

Robert Mason Chickenhawk

Nation Has Obligation To Correctly Address Military Suicides

When I read something like this I wonder if they think they know what is going on or don't even care.
Nation has obligation to address military suicides
Montgomery Advertiser
June 1, 2015

A near doubling in the suicide rate for military veterans over the last decade has been called an epidemic. Data on the rising military-suicide rate remains incomplete. Some studies contradict the often-cited number of 22 suicides a day.

One thing, however, is clear.

Too many service men and women are taking their own lives and too little has been done to recognize or aid those at risk.

As the Advertiser's Rebecca Burylo reported last week, the most recent data shows 449 military members killed themselves in 2013, 229 on active duty and 220 in the reserve and National Guard.

The Army's suicide rate started to rise in 2004, peaked in 2012 at 185 deaths among active-duty soldiers, but fell to 135 in 2014, according to USA Today.

There are no simple answers to halting the epidemic, especially given the Department of Veterans Affairs' deplorable record on caring for those with mental health issues.
read more here



One thing is clear? Seriously? Not even close. How about they correctly address military suicides before they return to sender?

The numbers didn't go down in 2014 but actually went up considering there were less in the Army do to sequestration. Less serving means higher percentage of suicides.
Department of Defense’s (DoD) new report on military suicides in 2014. The Pentagon reported Tuesday that 434 servicemembers took their own lives last year, including 268 active component servicemembers, 79 reserve servicemembers, and 87 National Guard members.
From Donnelly: New Pentagon Report on 2014 Military Suicide Numbers ‘A Reminder We Still Have Lot of Work To Do’ To End Scourge
434 Servicemembers took their own lives in 2014
The Pentagon report on military suicide in 2014 shows that active duty suicide rose slightly from 254 in 2013 to 268 in 2014. The number of suicides decreased in the National Guard from a record high of 134 in 2013 to 87 in 2014 and fell from 86 in 2013 to 79 in the Reserve. In 2013, a record number of servicemembers in the National Guard took their own lives, and we lost 474 servicemembers overall, more than three times the number killed in combat (132). In 2012, according to new adjusted numbers from the Pentagon, 512 servicemembers took their own lives.

Suicides in the military went up after the DOD started to "address" prevention. Suicides went up after the Congress expanded spending on "research" and funding programs. (Over 900 of them) Doing more "somethings" ended up doing more harm than good. PTSD and suicides tied to military service have been studied for over 4 decades. No one was held accountable for anything they did or failed to do. How about changing the conversation to how these veterans can life and heal and make them aware of what does work? They don't even know the basics and that is the saddest part of all.

They are doing more and more of everything even though it doesn't work.  How about they stop doing what failed and start doing what was learned over the last 40 years that did?

Godsmack Joins Forces With Red Sox Home Base

"What's Next" for Godsmack? Supporting the Troops and the Home Base Program 
WAAF
Submitted by Mistress Carrie
06/01/15

GODSMACK PARTNERS WITH CHARITY HOME BASE WITH SINGLE "WHAT'S NEXT"

CHARITY BENEFITS TREATMENT FOR POST-9/11 WAR VETERANS RETURNING STATESIDE

NEW YORK, NY - Always extending a helping hand to veterans and supporting the U.S. military whenever they can, Grammy Award-nominated multi-platinum Boston hard rock heroes GODSMACK have joined forces with a fellow Beantown institution, the Home Base Program.

Home Base was created as a joint venture between Massachusetts General Hospital and the Boston Red Sox,and its goal is to help and heal post-9/11 veterans and their families by treating the invisible wounds of war that those who bravely serve carry home. The initiative emphasizes clinical care, wellness-based programs, community outreach, and education. To date, it has successfully served over 7500 veterans and their families in addition to training more than 10,000 clinicians nationally for specialized Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) treatment.

As part of their partnership, GODSMACK is giving away a free download of their new single "What's Next?" from last year's 1000HP [Republic Records] to anybody who donates to Home Base via this special link on the band's web site.

About the partnership, the group's members; Sully Erna [vocals, guitar], Tony Rombola [guitar], Robbie Merrill [bass], and Shannon Larkin [drums]; announced in this video, "We felt that this song represented the story. It's about the only things that are certain, life and death, but "What's Next" has always been the big mystery. For these noble brave soldiers who put their lives on the line every day for us to allow us to live freely and fearlessly in the greatest country in the world, they don't know what's next now, and they need our help."
read more here

Why Did Honored Iraq Veteran End Up This Way?

Records: Estranged wife suspected war vet husband in deaths 
Associated Press
By NICHOLAS K. GERANIOS
June 1, 2015
(Colin Mulvany/The Spokesman-Review, via AP). This Feb. 2011 photo shows decorated Iraq War veteran Roy Murry. Murry's estranged wife, Amanda, told authorities her husband suffered from post-traumatic stress and was becoming increasingly delusional
SPOKANE, Wash. (AP) - The estranged wife of a decorated Iraq War veteran said she had no doubt who law officers should investigate when her mother, stepfather and brother were found shot to death at their rural home.

Amanda Murry told law officers that her husband, Roy H. Murry, 30, of Lewiston, Idaho, blamed her family for the couple's marital woes.

"Amanda Murry said that Roy Murry was the only person who she suspected had any reason to do harm to the residents," according to court documents released Monday.

Roy Murry is scheduled to make his first court appearance Tuesday afternoon after he was arrested on three counts of first-degree murder.

Amanda Murry told authorities her husband suffered from post-traumatic stress from his service in Iraq and was becoming increasingly delusional, according to court documents.

Roy Murry earned a Bronze Star for valor as an Army National Guard sergeant in Iraq, where he was severely injured by a bomb. He has had a series of run-ins involving weapons with law enforcement officers since his return from the war.

Murry remained in custody after surrendering to authorities on Saturday, four days after the home of his wife's family was set on fire near Colbert, Spokane County Sheriff Ozzie Knezovich said.

The three bodies were found with numerous gunshot wounds on the rural property.

Amanda Murry, a nurse, told investigators that she had moved in with her mother, stepfather and brother in December and wanted a divorce.
read more here

Monday, June 1, 2015

PTSD Awareness From Department Veterans Affairs

PTSD Awareness Month 
Department Veterans Affairs
Help Raise PTSD Awareness

Spread the word! Join our efforts spread the word about PTSD and effective treatments during PTSD Awareness Month. Everyone makes a difference.
Help Raise PTSD Awareness printable PDF.

Learn: PTSD Treatment Works

  • Discover the facts.
    Start with PTSD Basics, key information about trauma, PTSD and treatment options. For more advanced information, watch our PTSD 101 Course:PTSD Overview. We offer many free, in-depth Continuing Education Courses for Professionals as well.
  • Explore your options.
    Take the mystery out of PTSD treatment. Our short whiteboard video PTSD Treatment: Know Your Options reviews the best treatments. And visit AboutFace, a website where Veterans, their family members and clinicians talk about turning life around with PTSD treatment.

Connect: Reach Out to Someone

Share: Spread the Word!

  • Pass along what you learn. 
    Use Facebook or Twitter to share up-to-date information or ask us questions about PTSD and treatment. Subscribe to our email publications - PTSD Monthly Update, Clinician's Trauma Update-Online, or PTSD Research Quarterly - and let others know they are free. Our printable PDF with ways to raise PTSD awareness is also easy to share.
  • Work together. 
    Join our PTSD Awareness campaign! We have promotional materials to help you organize an event or share information about PTSD and effective treatments.