A reader of the SFTT Blog suggested that we “take a look” at Dr. David Cifu, Senior TBI Specialist in the Department of Veterans Affairs’ (“VA”) Veterans Health Administration. Found below is a short video clip of Dr. Cifu testifying at a U.S. Congressional Hearing on concussions in March, 2016.
For Veterans living with the effects of PTSD and/or TBI, I would find his testimony quite disturbing.
The gatekeepers at the Department of Veteran Affairs (the “VA”) remain intransigent in providing urgently need care to Veterans suffering from PTSD and/or TBI. Standard Operating Procedure (“SOP”) at the VA is to argue that FDA-approved clinical studies are needed to sanction treatment methods – regardless if these treatment alternatives have been used with success in many other countries for decades and, in some cases, hundreds of years.
Active Duty military personnel that I know generally despise being used as “poster-boys (or girls)” for political campaigns. In fact, anyone who has served in the Armed Forces is well aware of DoD Directive 1344.10 which prohibits members of the Armed Forces from engaging in “partisan political” fundraising or actively campaigning on behalf of a political party, candidate or political cause.
While these regulations do not apply to Veterans, it has been my experience that most Veterans tend to avoid the limelight ...
Continue Reading →As one who watched a largely unappreciative nation heap scorn on returning Veterans from our war in Vietnam, I am struck by the contrived efforts to celebrate Veterans who have now served in the Afghanistan and Iraq wars. In particular, I shed a tear for Veterans with PTSD who have difficulty coping with an unsympathetic society that seems far different from the camaraderie they experienced while serving in a war zone.
While I do not doubt that many Americans genuinely honor ...
Continue Reading →Found below are a few news items that caught my attention this past week. I am hopeful that the titles and short commentary will encourage our readers to click on the embedded links to read more on subjects that may be of interest to them.
Drop me an email at info@sftt.org if you believe that there are other subjects that are newsworthy.
Military Suicides: Most Appear Before Combat
“We found the highest rates of suicide attempts were among never-deployed soldiers and those in ...
Found below are a few news items that caught my attention this past week. I am hopeful that the titles and short commentary will encourage our readers to click on the embedded links to read more on subjects that may be of interest to them.
Drop me an email at info@sftt.org if you believe that there are other subjects that are newsworthy.
Should women register for the military draft?
The Senate majority leader, Mitch McConnell said on Tuesday that he believed the role ...
Veterans have known for quite some time that something was amiss at the Department of Veteran Affairs (the “VA’) with their “go-to” promotion of prescription pain-killers to treat PTSD.
There are countless well-documented stories of extreme behavior changes – including suicide – of “over-served” Veterans that were provided a lethal cocktail prescription drugs by VA doctors.
A number of Veterans interviewed by SFTT indicated that they simply “flushed the drugs down the toilet,” while many others reported that there was a thriving black market for pain ...
Continue Reading →Found below are a few news items that caught my attention this past week. I am hopeful that the titles and short commentary will encourage our readers to click on the embedded links to read more on subjects that may be of interest to them.
Drop me an email at info@sftt.org if you believe that there are other subjects that are newsworthy.
New U.S. Commander in Afghanistan
After 18 months in command during a period of military and political conflict, General Campbell handed ...
The tragic death of Prince appears to have been an overdose of opioids designed to relieve pain. While we are still awaiting toxicology reports, it does appear the Prince has suffered from excruciating pain for quite some time and was taking ever-increasing amounts of pain-killers to deal with this problem.
At this stage, it is unclear that these drugs were prescribed or that he was self-medicating with drugs ...
Continue Reading →The search to help Veterans and active duty military personnel cope with Post Traumatic Stress (“PTS” or “PTSD”) continues to attract much attention from within the scientific community and alternative medicine pundits.
It seems that almost weekly some promising new cure to treat Veterans with PTSD appears on mainstream media, with the caveat that “it will take years” to prove its efficacy. Must our Veterans wait so long?
While many doubt the efficacy of holistic medicine and practices that date back centuries in the Far ...
Continue Reading →