Veteran fights for help as he copes with stress / LJWorld.com

Archive for Monday, February 20, 2006

February 20, 2006

The war in Iraq was too much for Brandon Price to cope with. Now the former Army reservist is fighting new battles here at home.

The 21-year-old Lawrence man is trying to escape the clutches of alcohol and deal with what may be post-traumatic stress disorder. But despite an honorable discharge last year, he can't immediately get disability benefits and medical help from the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs.

While in Iraq, Price was caught "huffing" from a compressed air container, which can cause someone to be affected by mind-altering chemicals. He didn't finish his deployment.

And because of that, it could be at least a year before he can get any V.A. medical benefits by applying through organizations such as the American Legion or Veterans of Foreign Wars.

Price is in a catch-22 situation that shouldn't be allowed to happen, said Kevin Lucey, a Massachusetts man who has become an advocate for veterans suffering from post-traumatic stress. His son, Jeffrey Lucey, committed suicide after serving as a Marine reservist in Iraq.

"If this country truly supports the troops, then there should not be any barrier to when they should be eligible to receive services," Lucey said in an e-mail to the Journal-World.

Photo by Nick Krug

Former soldier Brandon Price teaches Deaken Frentrop, 4, left, and Brandt Riley, 5, a series of wrestling moves Thursday at Lawrence High School.

In November, Lucey was contacted by Price's stepmother, Leisa Price, after she read a story in the Journal-World about his visit to Lawrence. Lucey had discussed his son's plight after watching a play at Kansas University about a soldier suffering from PTSD.

Leisa Price has spent the last several months writing letters, e-mails and making phone calls to anyone she can think of who might help her son. That includes V.A. officials, congressmen, President Bush and an aide to former presidential candidate John Kerry, Democratic senator from Massachusetts.

So far no one has been much help.

"Here we serve up our son on a platter and take great pride in the fact he's serving our country and fighting in the war overseas," Leisa Price said. "He had a problem. Because he didn't fit into the criteria they set up, now he's lost - totally abandoned. That just gets under my skin."

Brandon Price said that he knew he made some mistakes and that he was trying to recover from them. But he can't help feeling bitter.

"I used to think a great deal of the Army," said Price, who served more than two years in the Army Reserve. "Now it makes me feel like they use you as long as they can, and then they throw you away."

Casualty of war

Brandon Price was a member of the Army Reserve 917th Corps Support Group based in Belton, Mo. He was an E-4 when he was deployed to Iraq in October 2004. Among the duties he had were plotting convoy routes, going out on convoys, construction and various odd jobs.

He refused to talk publicly about what might have traumatized him in Iraq. He has told his parents that it involved a firefight or some type of battle. But the military hasn't been able to confirm that such an incident occurred, Leisa Price said. Jeffrey Lucey, however, also described incidents in Iraq that the military couldn't verify, his father has said.

In April 2005, Brandon Price returned to Lawrence on leave. That was when his parents realized their son had changed drastically. Brandon Price spent most of his time in a hotel room drinking and doing drugs, Leisa Price said. He missed his flight back to Iraq, and the military came looking for him. Army recruiters found him and this time made sure he got on a plane headed back to Iraq, the Prices recalled.

"That was the point when everything just started getting really crazy," Leisa Price said.

Here are some statistics about post-traumatic stress disorder from the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs.

¢ About 30 percent of the men and women who have spent time in war zones experience PTSD.

¢ A 2005 study by the Department of Veterans Affairs found that 1,641 out of 170,000 Iraq war veterans were diagnosed with PTSD.

¢ PTSD has been in veterans of all wars, including among soldiers from other countries.

By June 2005, Brandon Price had been sent back to the United States and was undergoing alcohol and drug rehabilitation at Fort Riley. He encountered more problems while he was there. He was still drinking and didn't feel comfortable participating in group therapy. No individual therapy sessions were offered, and Brandon Price stopped going to the group sessions.

Brandon Price received an honorable medical discharge from the Army in September.

The bottom fell out for Brandon Price in November when he was in Lawrence living in his car and drinking heavily. He ended up at Lawrence Memorial Hospital for self-inflicted mutilation to his arm.

"He was a mess," Leisa Price said. "I'd never seen him that way before. He was sobbing, hysterical and angry all at once."

A hospital social worker sent information about Brandon Price to the V.A. medical centers in Leavenworth and Topeka. The word came back that because he didn't finish his deployment in Iraq he was ineligible for V.A. benefits.

Outside help

Brandon Price hasn't officially been diagnosed with PTSD. But his personal physician thinks the symptoms are there, according to the Prices.The doctor didn't return phone messages Friday.Brandon Price is getting treatment at Bert Nash Community Mental Health Center, but it is for anger management.

In the meantime, he is jobless, and the Tricare medical insurance program he has from the military expires at the end of March. Leisa Price worries her son needs much more help than he's getting - the kind of help only PTSD treatment at a V.A. hospital offers.

Jim Gleisberg, spokesman for Eastern Kansas Health Care, which manages the V.A. hospitals in Leavenworth and Topeka, said he couldn't talk specifically about individuals receiving or seeking care at the hospitals. But he did confirm that a soldier who fails to complete a deployment because he was sent back to the United States because of problems such as alcoholism, bad morale or similar problems, isn't immediately eligible for V.A. health programs. He said it would take action by Congress to change that.

Someone who spent time on active duty and received an honorable discharge can apply for V.A. compensation and pension from the American Legion or VFW, "but it could take up to a year, year and a half to get that done," Gleisberg said.

Brandon Price now lives with his parents. He has done better about avoiding alcohol, he and his parents said. He plays with his younger brothers and sisters, and he helps his father coach a youth wrestling club called the Lawrence Coyotes. He had wrestled in high school.

"Brandon is kind of like the Pied Piper," his father, Chris Price said. "Especially with the younger kids. They just kind of follow him around."

Brandon also credits the support he's received from a church group at Lawrence Free Methodist Church.

"Every day is a stressful one for me," he said. "I just got to do what I can for myself."

He is doing much better at staying sober, Leisa Price said.

"His commitment to his own sobriety seems to increase with every passing day," she said. "It's just too bad that the military couldn't provide him with the help he needed, and that our government can't provide him with continued help and support that he deserves."

Discussion

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20 February 2006
at 3:29 a.m.

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Ragingbear (Anonymous) says…

Working among the homeless, I have found that post-war vets of our more recent wars ending up on the streets is growing commonplace. The things they saw, and the conditions they were in eventually driving them into the clutches of mental illness. Usually medicated with alchohol and/or street drugs.
20 February 2006
at 6:45 a.m.

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Ragingbear (Anonymous) says…

Apparently you have no real idea what it is like to serve in the Army. Try seeing what they saw, and doing what they do for even 4 years. Imagine finding people using 4 year olds to deliver bombs, or even serve as suicide bombers. Or see entire villages massacred because they were thought to be harboring enemies.

At night, you sleep in shifts with your bunkmates, ever wary of the slightest sound around you. The enemy has no problem trying to kill you while your asleep. Instead, you are caught up in your own self to ever see that others actually suffer, and much of it is needless.
20 February 2006
at 8:31 a.m.

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Jean1183 (Anonymous) says…

There is always more to the “story” than what we see in the news.

I personally did not spend time in the Army but my dad was in from 1939 to 1969. He served during WWII, Korea (did TWO tours there), and Vietnam. My son was in Iraq from Feb 2004 to Feb 2005. Neither of them had/have “problems” with alchohol or drugs.

You may be seeing more “vets” on the streets (we haven't had many “new” vets of a war since Desert Storm–so sure there are going to be more as a whole in the general population) but saying that it is “commonplace” is not true. As a matter of fact, I would say “most” vets do fine. Even the article mentions that 30% may have some form of PTSD and it's not always so debilitating that they become alchoholic, drug addicts living on the streets.
20 February 2006
at 8:35 a.m.

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Centrist (Anonymous) says…

To me, it appears a simple case. Unfortunately, he has to wait because of the reason he was discharged. In the meantime, he'll just have to get a j.o.b … after all, they ARE going to help him, after he waits, per VA policy. For those of us in the private sector, we get zero help, stressed or not.
20 February 2006
at 8:55 a.m.

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passionatelibra (Anonymous) says…

Amen holygrailale! Well said. Thank you.
20 February 2006
at 9:08 a.m.

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passionatelibra (Anonymous) says…

I was wondering about that… thought maybe it was an old acid flashback!
20 February 2006
at 9:17 a.m.

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passionatelibra (Anonymous) says…

*lol* I am anything but liberal but it's easy to get labeled on these boards *lol*

20 February 2006
at 9:24 a.m.

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just_another_bozo_on_this_bus (Anonymous) says…

Well, Porky, this site has only one purpose, and that is as a vehicle for the J-dub's ads. Anything that doesn't pass the arbitrary standards of the moment for that purpose is subject to removal.
20 February 2006
at 9:27 a.m.

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meburr (Anonymous) says…

This is truly an unfortunate scenario that I'm sure we'll be seeing more of. Brandon has my complete support for serving our country. Unless we've been there and seen what they saw, there is no way anyone can predict how they would act or not act.

Hoever, what I'm thinking of reading this article is…it's only been 3 months since his breakdown. I'm hoping that Brandon is clean/sober and getting some type of therapy as he's working with children.
20 February 2006
at 10:29 a.m.

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passionatelibra (Anonymous) says…

holygrailale it was weird. I responded to your post and then it was gone. Pretty freaky. It's back now though :o)
20 February 2006
at 10:55 a.m.

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badger (Anonymous) says…

If what he did was so bad as to deny him med benefits, he should not have received an honorable medical discharge.

It's as simple as that. If he received the honorable, then as far as I'm concerned, he deserves full benefits now regardless of whether he completed the tour. The nature of the 'medical' reason he was discharged shouldn't come into it. Honorable medical is honorable medical whether it's a gunshot wound, mental illness, or debilitating IBS. To heck with the semantics; you are medically no longer able to carry out your duties and you are not being discharged dishonorably, end of explanation. If he'd had a foot blown off and received an honorable medical discharge two months into a one-year tour, would he be being denied VA coverage for a year?

If not, then get the man his help today. If so, then fix the Army; it's broken. You don't keep people who suffered any form of medical issue as a result of the choice to serve their nation from getting the treatment they need because of some BS bureaucratic rule.
20 February 2006
at 11:02 a.m.

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corrienteroper (Anonymous) says…

How do you get to read the removed posts anyhow? I always miss out on the exciting stuff!
20 February 2006
at 11:07 a.m.

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commonsense (Anonymous) says…

I served in the USMC (Active Duty) and served in Desert Storm. When I returned and finished my tour of duty, I put myself through college, graduated, and began my professional career. I enjoyed my time in the Corp and I consider myself a grounded individual who enjoys life to the fullest. I'll admit that I have some bad war-time memories, but I don't let them interfere with my daily life or happiness.
Now then, I'm not going to sugarcoat this, so here we go. When you sign the dotted line, you are accepting the fact that you belong to Uncle Sam and you follow orders. It's called serving your country. As an American, you have a right to refuse service which is fine with me. That's what makes America great—Choices! Now then, if you decided to join the military, don't go crying to everyone because you became a junkie or were a junkie prior to leaving. You signed the dotted line and you have professional responsibilities. This young man, unfortunately, did not live up to his responsibilities. He let down the Army, his unit, his friends, his family, and himself. I hope he gets the help he needs. I hope he eventually realizes that he made a committment and failed and going to the newspapers is not the way to handle a difficult situation. A few people here are blaming the government. I bet Mr. Price's team members in Iraq are blaming him!
20 February 2006
at 11:52 a.m.

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jg (Anonymous) says…

It is easy for people to judge. Most people can and do come through war time military service just fine.

But the military does not determine a person's tolerance for exposure to trauma, pain etc, before they allow them to enlist. Not everyone has the same ability to just “suck it up” and deal. If the military will take you as cannon fodder, they need to help put you back together again, emotionally as well as physically.
20 February 2006
at 11:55 a.m.

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badger (Anonymous) says…

Commonsense -

It is good that you had a positive experience; however, the military is not a positive experience for everyone. This comes from the child of a 25-year career officer. For the first two decades of my life, the military clothed, fed, and sheltered me by ensuring that my father was able to do so. I have no resentment towards the military at all; I make that clear so you understand that I'm not attacking the military just because it's hip.

Some people sign up because they have bought into the cultural myth of the warrior the recruitment posters put up, and then they find out that entry into the military doesn't make them into the warrior they thought they'd be. They're still scared, powerless little boys; some of them have the epiphany that life is about keeping on and doing your best when you're scared and powerless, some of them don't.

We all sign up for things in this life, and sometimes it's more than we can handle. Some people grit their teeth and push through, some beg off, and some burn out. I watched some of the best and brightest of my generation fail in academic promise and end up drug-addled near-vegetables pushing brooms at McDonald's because they signed on for more pressure than they could handle and tried to push it through.

However, my issue with this is that if he failed so seriously in his commitment, he should not have received an honorable medical discharge.

I agree that he failed in his commitment to himself, the military, his nation, and his comrades-in-arms. But by giving him an honorable medical discharge and then treating him dishonorably, the military is failing in its commitment to him, and also in its commitment to us, that if it stamps the word 'honorable' on a discharge it's not just lip service to the word, and when we look upon someone as having been discharged honorably, we can believe he fulfilled his commitment to the best of his abilities. I know a lot of employers give a great deal of weight to the classification of a discharge from the military.

It may be that he did fulfill it to the best of his abilities. By giving him the discharge that it did, the military said to the rest of the world, “He is leaving the military because he is medically unable to continue his duties, and not for any other reason.” When they say that, to me it closes the book on the gradations of what sort of soldier he actually was, and entitles him to the full benefits that would be accorded any other soldier with the same type of discharge.

Would a soldier who had been injured physically six months into his tour and given an honorable medical discharge for that physical wound have to wait for treatment? If the issue is that 'certain sorts' of honorable discharges are 'less honorable' than others, then they don't need to be represented the same way.

20 February 2006
at 12:06 p.m.

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wesmith1970 (Bill Smith) says…

This young soldier and veteran served his country - that is not in question. The problem that needs to be addressed is how quickly the military will turn it's back on those who are willing to serve but becuase of the atrocities of war are unable to. Let's face it folks - how many of us would be able to tolerate on a daily basis seeing bloody often dismembered bodies, not knowing if the child that is approaching you will blow him/herself up, the constant sound of gun/artillery fire, or just being in a combat zone? Just because a person signs there name on a line and volunteers to serve their country does not automatically make them immune to being human or from experiencing the emotions that make us human.

I thank this soldier for doing what he has done to serve this country the best he could. He DID NOT let the Army, his unit, his friend, his family, or himself down. If anything the Army has let him and so many other veterans down by not providing adaquate mental health services to those who are in harms way. It is not enough to just say “suck it up and move on soldier”. I wish him and his family the best and hope that he is able to recieve the help he requires and deserves as a veteran.

I served in the Army for 3 years of active duty and 5 years of reserve duty. I am also a veteran of Operations Desert Shield and Storm, and a Bronze Star recipient for my service during Desert Storm. I do not want to diminish the service of my fellow Gulf War vets, but those of us who served during that time had it easy compared to what our service members are experiencing today. However, if I could serve again, I would. But another flawed policy of the military prevents me from doing so - Don't Ask, Don't Tell.

http://www.hrc.org/Template.cfm?Secti…
20 February 2006
at 12:09 p.m.

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mefirst (Anonymous) says…

Oh commonsense…so profound, yet so cliche! So your experience is universal? How long did Desert Storm last, again? Were you in the infantry? Just because people “serve” in a given region or on a given mission doesn't mean their experiences are the same as another.

There are thousands who came home from Vietnam, perfectly fine, but you cannot deny those who didn't. Their experiences are very real, everyone knows it. I worked in a VA hospital for a year. I know what I saw.

Perhaps the military will wise up and start putting in their contracts

“That you (the recruit) swear to never, ever whine about your war time experience. That you solemnly swear to suck it up and never make demands upon your government or hold your government accountable for the promises it made to you as incentive for enlisting. That you promise to always have a flag on hand and be ready, within a moment's notice to wave it vigorously thus demonstrating your undying, undeniable love for your country.”

Then everyone will be clear about the expectation when they sign on the dotted line and come under the ownership of Uncle Sam.
20 February 2006
at 12:33 p.m.

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ben_ness (Anonymous) says…

Janine and Porkribs - I would assume PTSD and alcoholism do not affect all combat veterans; however, your ignorant and completely insensitive remarks regarding Brandon's problems have not hit on some of the most important variables. One, as PTSD is both Psychological and Physiological it occurs on a person to person basis. What adversely affects one doesn't neccessarily affect another. I would assume it also can be related to how much combat they have actually seen, or trauma they have been exposed to. I am not a veteran; however, I think it is the lowest of the low when you criticize a person who is most likely your junior and a hell of a lot braver than you.
20 February 2006
at 1:26 p.m.

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ben_ness (Anonymous) says…

holygrailale - Great point on commonsense. In respects to your comment regarding Gulf War 1. I remember to that it literallly happened in the blink of an eye and very few, if any, combat troops were exposed to prolonged combat or the fatigue of being on gaurd 100% of the time. While I have the utmost respect for commonsense's time in the military, my guess would be he didn't face the prolonged combat Brandon has.
20 February 2006
at 1:27 p.m.

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Multidisciplinary (Anonymous) says…

J- I cant' believe you wrote that.

I hope you learn more about compassion and soon.

Don't anyone underestimate what ANY vet has gone through, and what mental stress they will suffer for the rest of their lives.

J- you were very full of compassion for Bryce's family and what they are going through. You think that what a veteran experiences is somehow less traumatic? That they are somehow invested with an internal suit of armor that they won't be affected by having horrors engraved in their minds forever?

Sorry to get angry, but vets are one subject I get very defensive about. I know too many, I've seen too many wake up in terror, too many struggling everyday, too many end up in divorce,some drinking, drugs,many their lives eventually alone, in ruin. Good, brilliant men. %^&* it.
20 February 2006
at 1:36 p.m.

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Multidisciplinary (Anonymous) says…

Also everyone, FYI.
Due to the lowered volunteers enlisting, they have lowered ratios for who they are letting in now. I won't be able to quote this exactly, and I don't have the link to post here…but they do testing and limit the number of enlisted by their scores. Meaning the higher the score, the better the recruit, the better the army. They are now allowing more recruits from the lower groups, and some from groups they wouldn't allow before as I recall.

So, since they have proved lower test scores equate to lower success on tasks (hitting the target, mission failure, etc…and much higher expense to the tax payer–you miss with a million dollar missile..oops) expect more traumatic experiences to occur. More PTSD, more men and women trying to escape the horrors when they get home.
20 February 2006
at 2:04 p.m.

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mztrendy (Anonymous) says…

well, I'm proud of this kid for going there in the first place. I feel sorry for him that he isn't getting the treatment he needs. My best friend is in Iraq right now, and luckily I get to email him and talk with him everyday, but not all soldiers are that fortunate.
20 February 2006
at 3:50 p.m.

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commonsense (Anonymous) says…

Holygrailale,

This will be my only response. I'm not here to argue, just give an opinion like everyone else. I wasn't on a ship. I basically ran security patrol approx. 15 km from the Iraq border. 16-18 hour days for 4 months straight w/ one day off, Christmas. I dug so many holes and slept so many nights under the stars that I haven't been camping since. Got burned out I guess. When the war started in mid Jan., it was in and out of the bunkers every night. When the ground war started, which lasted only 96 hours, it was definitely a piece of cake compared to what some of our guys are doing now. Fact is, during the day-to-day boredom during the war, I didn't complain, sob, or try to get high. I did what I had to do so I could get home safely. But really, huffing from an air compressor? I refuse to just let this kid off the hook and say, “it's ok young man, we all make mistakes.” Believe it or not Holygraileale, I really do hope this kid gets help. I hope he learns to cope with his addiction. He's a soldier and he did his time, which is an honor if you've been there. I just don't like the way he went about his dilema.
Oh yeah, I received $350 per month for 36 months. That money went right to my rent, plus I had to add a little extra. You know expensive Lawrence can be! School was paid for by working full time and student loans…

20 February 2006
at 5:23 p.m.

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badger (Anonymous) says…

Some people never get past, “I did it, so everyone else should be able to suck it up and do it because I did it.”

It's not a particularly useful mindset, because obviously, given the number of vets with PTSD, the number of vets getting mental health assistance, and the number of vets each year that commit suicide, give in to drug and alcohol abuse, or flip out and beat the tar out of some poor slob in a bar fight, more than just the 'isolated misfit few' aren't making it after the fighting's over.

I figured out at about age 19 that there are things I can do that other people can't, and things I can't do that other people can, and I lost all sense of arrogance or resentment for the accidents of genetics, upbringing, and education that make people have different physical, emotional, and intellectual skills.

Instead of whipping it out for comparative measurement (so surprised you didn't put in what you could bench-press, there, commonsense, or other vital measurement statistics) and talking smack on the people that couldn't make it , what about looking into WHY some people can't just 'suck it up and get over it'?

What about actually having the military accept that though they've come a long way since the 60's and 70's, they still have a serious drug, alcohol, and morale problem? We haven't had a long-term deployment combat military for thirty years. Maybe someone, instead of going all GI Joe and 'well, the weak just wash out and the real men make it, should try to figure out why the numbers for drug and alcohol abuse inside the service are going back up, figure out why too many vets came back from Desert Storm with PTSD and serious mental issues for it to be a 'statistical blip', and figure out why kids like this break down.

And then, if you can't stand to give an addict a dishonorable discharge, you create a 'special class' of medical discharge that indicates you were discharged for chemical abuse, so you don't have one standard for the 'right' kinds of honorable medical discharges and another for the 'wrong' kind.
20 February 2006
at 10:31 p.m.

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Hong_Kong_Phooey (Anonymous) says…

Why are the soldiers of Vietnam and the post-Vietnam era so susceptible to this? It seems like these guys are all going nuts, but the guys who saw true horrors (WWII vets) were able to handle it. What has changed?
20 February 2006
at 11:06 p.m.

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Multidisciplinary (Anonymous) says…

No, they weren't more able to. It's documented all the way back to the civil war. Why do you think all of those WWI, II and Korean war vets drank so much, spent so much time gone on hunting and fishing trips? That was their way to escape. They just didn't “talk” about the family problems like we do now. If you research VA hospitals, you'll find out it's been there. Research the homeless, the rescue missions….they have the real stories. We just didn't have the mass media to cover those eras like we do now.
20 February 2006
at 11:16 p.m.

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bearded_gnome (Anonymous) says…

Brandon, if you're reading this comment board, thank you for serving. we do care about what you are going through. I know that PTSD is very real, perhaps more real than a broken ankle. and it certainly takes more to heal.
if I can be of support to you, click on my screen name and please drop me an e-mail; I WILL welcome it.
***
some here have said something like 'I did it, he should have been able too.' trouble with stress, that sometimes your mind is like a puzzle, and what hits your mind and you survive intact, hits another's mind, and knocks out a particular, unpredictable, puzzle piece. PTSD is still very poorly understood, in fact, human stress reaction is not well understood.
the self-mutilation which Brandon did (in the article) is common, like using physical pain to control or symbolize the mental pain. or, to use the physical wound to somehow reexperience what started the mental anguish.
***
Badger:
great posts!
he's honorably discharged…end of story. thanks.
20 February 2006
at 11:21 p.m.

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bearded_gnome (Anonymous) says…

HKP:
try reading Stephen Crane's “the red badge of courage,” nicely puts PTSD/war stress reaction in the civil war context, indeed.

remember Patton slapped a man in Italy for “shell shock” but shortly afterwards, he himself broke down in tears doing that. that second part of the true story wasn't in the big movie.
20 February 2006
at 11:31 p.m.

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bearded_gnome (Anonymous) says…

one more post [you think I CARE about this topic or what?].

for the sake of being complete in discussing this: people who *aren't* in combat get PTSD too. here are some common groups who have experienced PTSD well documented:
domestic violence victims, including children;
survivors of concentration camps/the “killing fields” or other major civil disorder;
survivors of major earthquakes, hurricanes [i.e. Katrina/Rita], pestilance, flood, or fire [any disaster with huge dimensions will cause rates of PTSD to rise];
extreme physical trauma, i.e. traffic accident, etc.
extreme personal loss can sometimes trigger it;
this list is certainly not exclusive.

many people today do self-medicate and feel fear or shame about reporting PTSD symptoms. I hope the LJWorld might take the opportunity to print an article to make it easier for folks in our community to ID their symptoms and get help if they too have PTSD.
okay, I'm done.
21 February 2006
at 12:11 a.m.

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Multidisciplinary (Anonymous) says…

Good job bg. LJW have done some stories, but as usual, so many don't read them unless it's accompanied by something like Brandon's brave story.
21 February 2006
at 12:21 a.m.

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bearded_gnome (Anonymous) says…

thanx

21 February 2006
at 6:39 p.m.

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ilona (Anonymous) says…

THANK you for reporting on this issue; I tip my hat to you. I'm a freelance writer and researcher who's been covering PTSD exclusively since September. I've collected a large number or resources for those who are currently coping with PTSD, as well as resources for researchers and journalists who are interested in reporting further on this issue. Please see links below…

And please know that many, many of us out here care about you, dear troops returning to us. We're doing all we can to raise awareness and to ensure our elected officials do better in providing for your health during your post-deployment transition back into civilian life.

=================
PTSD Resources

http://ptsdcombat.blogspot.com/
PTSD Combat: Winning the War Within - daily updated blog for the returning veteran dealing with PTSD.

http://timelines.epluribusmedia.org/t…
PTSD Timeline at ePluribus Media - for researchers and reporters, lists reported cases of severe PTSD incidents.

http://www.dailykos.com/user/ilona
Daily Kos articles going back to September covering combat-related PTSD.

================

Thank you, troops for your service. And welcome home.
15 March 2006
at 11:55 p.m.

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allan_pederson (Anonymous) says…

I was in Vietnam only two months. I made it about twice as long as my platoon mates on average. I was scared to death, and I am sure this man was also the same way.

They just said tonight how great the VA Hosp is now. I said, “yes, if you can get in”.

As a 100% disabled due to the loss of both legs I can get right in, but most cannot.

Brandon Price needs help, I hope he gets it. I, and my other Vietnam survivors did not.

I have suffered from PTSD since the war, but didn't know what it was. Maybe this generation won't have to go through all that?

Allan Pederson
Vietnam, 1st Marine Div