SFTT has long chronicled the abuse by the VA of prescribing painkillers to treat Veterans suffering from PTSD. Most everyone – except the pharmaceutical companies – recognize the hazards, but few take the necessary steps to do anything about it.
In a not too surprising development, President Obama “is expected to announce steps on Wednesday that he hopes will reduce an alarming rise in deaths from drug overdoses, including mandating more training ...
Continue Reading →In yet another disturbing article by the New York Times, entitled “In Unit Stalked by Suicide, Veterans try to Save One Another,” author Dave Phillips chronicles the benign neglect of the VA in helping our brave Veterans to cope with the aftermath of war. With no disrespect to Mr. Phillips, a similar article could be written every week detailing the chronic neglect of the VA for warriors at risk of suicide.
While I ...
Continue Reading →Not long ago I had the opportunity to represent the warrior-run non-profit One Mind for Research at a Hollywood Telethon to raise money for Veteran charities. My role in the production was a live, 90-second interview on stage with actor and host Alan Alda. We talked very briefly about my experience as a wounded warrior with a Traumatic Brain Injury (TBI) and a Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD). Mr. Alda asked me: what did I expect when I returned home from a ...
Continue Reading →COLIN AND KAREN ARCHIPLEY ARE TWO-TIME NATIONAL TREASURES!
The first occasion was defending the nation as a Marine Corps husband-wife team. Colin was not only a Marine Rifleman, he was a Marine noncommissioned officer. While media pundits and politicians focus on super fighter jets, unmanned drones and the Hollywood virtues of thermobaric Hellfire missiles, combat soldiers know that the ...
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Many of us when looking at the chronic problem of PTSD which ail our Vets focus primarily on the needs of Vet. Nevertheless, the family circle is also severely impacted and often there is little the Vet can do to make himself or herself understood with their loved ones. In an moving article cited below, Army Veteran Seth Kastle penned a book called “Why is Dad So Mad?” to help children understand or at ...
Continue Reading →Veteran unemployment continues to be a major problem in assimilating brave veterans back into society after their return from active duty in a hostile environment. While there is an unemployment compensation program administered by the government for ex-service members called UCX, most veterans would prefer to have a job.
While the vast disparity in veteran unemployment compared to civilian unemployment levels that existed in the past has narrowed, a recent government study argues that returning Veterans are ...
Continue Reading →A study entitled “Predictive Modeling and Concentration of the Risk of Suicide: Implications for Preventive Interventions in the US Department of Veterans Affairs,” has recently been published online by the American Journal of Public Health. In the extract cited below, the VA claims that predictive modeling can help identify Veterans with a high risk to commit suicide and, therefore, provide enhanced intervention to prevent Veteran Suicides:
Continue Reading →Objectives. The Veterans Health Administration (VHA) evaluated the use of predictive modeling ...
Editor’s Note: Found below is a very moving letter from Maj. Ben Richards and the benefits he received from being treated by Hyperbaric Oxygen from Dr. Paul Harch. The letter is quoted in its entirety.
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In the spring and summer of 2007 I (Maj. Ben Richards) had the privilege of leading Bronco Troop, 1-14 CAV, a Stryker-equipped cavalry troop, during intense combat operations in and around ...
Dr. Henry Grayson, one of SFTT’s distinguished members of its medical task force always points that there are no two identical cases of Post Traumatic Stress. In effect, each individual brings a set of prior conscious and unconscious experiences – dare I call it “baggage” – that is often triggered in totally unpredictable ways during periods of great stress. Many veterans have suffered traumatic events in combat and this battlefield stress is almost impossible to overcome when these brave warriors ...
Continue Reading →For several months SFTT, its medical task force and its Board have been thoroughly analyzing the battlefield of brave warriors suffering from Post Traumatic Stress and examining the resources and procedures currently available to treat this crippling disability. We have purposely dropped the “D” from PTSD since most scientific research indicates that PTS is far more serious than simply a “disorder”.
There are countless stories of brave young men and women suffering from PTS, ...
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