"If they have served than they deserve service."

Happy Holidays Veterans!!!

If you're in the Boulder area, here is a generous offer from Dr. Ian Hollaman, at Red Tail Wellness Centers. He wants to give back to those who are giving to us. Dr. Ian is a board-certified chiropractor and licensed as a primary healthcare physician in the state of Colorado. And here is his what he is offering FOR FREE, to veterans and service people...

"My offer is a brief consultation, adjustment and 15 minute massage. I hope this can make their holidays a bit brighter."

Who needs body work by a competent chiropractor? Almost everybody. If you have: just returned from a tour or haven't been, PTSD or not, brain trauma or not, maybe only finished bootcamp, then you're a good candidate. Here's Dr. Ian's web site for more information on his practice... redtailwellness

Take advantage of this wonderful present, like Christmas cookies, it may not last long! And thank you to Dr. Ian for this generous gift.

TAT for healing combat trauma and PTSD

I was just browsing thru some favorite energy techniques tonight and came across this you tube video of a Vietnam Vet, who survived a helicopter crash. He is talking about how well TAT, (developed by Tapas Fleming) worked for him in dissolving that trauma. Like Gary Craig, Tapas has made her work available to the public free of charge. You can download the manual for free, then find a practitioner in your area to work with. This is another technique that works well over the phone, if you're in a remote area or prefer working at home.

Here's the video...

And here is the web site....
www.tatlife.com

I'd love to hear your comments if you have any success with this.

The Treatment of Combat Trauma in Veterans Using EFT

by Dawson Church

The Treatment of Combat Trauma in Veterans using EFT (Emotional Freedom Techniques): A Pilot Protocol. Traumatology, March

With a large number of US military service personnel coming back from Iraq with post traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), and a variety of associated psychological problems, a need exists to find protocols and treatments that are effective for these conditions in brief treatment time frames. In this study, a sample of 11 veterans and family members were assessed for PTSD and other conditions. Evaluations were made using standard psychological evaluations, the SA-45 (Symptom Assessment 45) and the PCL-M (Posttraumatic Stress Disorder Checklist – Military). The study used a time-series, within-subjects, repeated measures design. A baseline measurement was obtained thirty days prior to treatment, and immediately before treatment began. Subjects were then treated with a brief and novel exposure therapy, EFT (Emotional Freedom Techniques), for five days with 2 to 3 hours of treatment per day. Statistically significant improvements in the SA-45 and PCL-M scores were found at post-test. These gains were maintained at both the 30- and 90-day follow-ups on the general symptom index, positive symptom total and the anxiety, somatization, phobic anxiety, and interpersonal sensitivity subscales of the SA-45, and on PTSD. The remaining SA-45 scales improved post test but were not consistently maintained at the 30- and 90-day follow-ups. In summary, after EFT treatment, the group no longer scored positive for PTSD, the severity and breadth of their psychological distress decreased significantly, and most of their gains held over time. This suggests that EFT can be an effective post-deployment intervention.

Eternal love, Eternal Life

Eternal love, Eternal Life
Originally uploaded by moemoechi

Most of us learned as barely more than infants that it is evil to kill. "Thou Shalt Not Kill." Not only is it traumatizing to constantly witness horror upon horror, but in combat soldiers are forced to do that which we are taught as children is evil.

Somehow that conflict has to be resolved. People cannot possibly live in any comfort until they have relieved the awful conflict and guilt. It is absurd to expect men and women to come home from combat and simply return to their former lives. It doesn't happen without a lot of help and a lot of work.

yet another VET getting relief from PTSD related symptoms!

Here's another successful treatment of combat PTSD of a veteran who had been at the V.A. seeking help. Thanks to Jan Luckenbach for sharing this story. If you don't know how to do the tapping she is talking about and would like to learn more here's a link...

http://www.emofree.com/get started for FREE

By Jan Luckenbach

I was asked to a cookout at a friend’s house and met Ron, one of her neighbors, at the party. At first glance, he had the look of a hollow eyed man that you see hanging around the corners downtown. His face was careworn and he had a depressed, miserable look to him. He managed a wan, toothless smile when I was introduced to him, and then he returned to picking at his plate of uneaten food.

I don’t know how the subject came up but he began telling me he went to the V.A. because he was having difficulty swallowing. They told him he had an ear infection and gave him antibiotics. That was 2 weeks ago and he hasn’t been able to eat or drink much since. He was in terrible agony every time he swallowed. He even went to the emergency room at one point because the pain was so intense that he couldn’t even drink water. I told him I could show him something that MIGHT be able to help him. At this point, I think he would have stood on his head if he thought it would help.

We adjourned to his apartment next door and I carefully explained the EFT process. We went through all the points and I tapped along with him. After telling me some of his history, of alcoholism, his wife’s suicide, some terrible war memories, PTSD, insomnia and other assorted ailments, I realized he was in need of professional help. He said he was being seen at the V.A. for his problems. (I am a former Psych Nurse, so I really understood him.)

So, as he brought up some of these issues, we tapped generally using the set-up “Even though I have this memory…” I felt it would give him some practice in the tapping procedure and it might free up some of his energy. As we tapped and he became more comfortable with the process, I decided to tap on his inability to swallow.

His eyes nearly bugged out of his head when for the first time in 2 weeks he could swallow without pain after one round of tapping. After tapping on forgiving the doctors for not being able to help him, he smiled at me and said he didn’t believe it.

His whole countenance had changed. Gone were his furrowed brow and painful expression. He said even the trembling in his hands was better, holding out a barely moving hand. He said he couldn’t write because of the “shakes” and now that had improved as well.

He was hesitant to try eating because he was afraid that the pain would come back. I explained if it did, there might be something else that he had to tap on, as I had explained earlier. He seemed to understand and went to test the healing.

He very gingerly took a sip of water and looked at me with gratitude. No pain! He smiled and decided to eat a piece of cheesecake. I could see that the pain had not returned. Even though he was essentially fasting for 2 weeks, I will never forget the look of sheer pleasure he had on his face when he took that first delicious bite of blueberry cheesecake and swallowed without pain.

Jan Luckenbach

EFT for Iraq veterans suffering from PTSD for FREE!!!!!

More good news from Gary Craig and the EFT team. This help is free and in the California area. With so many bases, this is a great place to have this project available to veterans wanting to heal the post traumatic stress symptoms that they may be suffering. If you or someone you know or love is having a hard time getting life back to normal after Iraq or Afghanistan, get to LA or San Francisco and get some help! The e-mail to Eric Huurre is below and good luck!!

EFT for our Iraq vets--no charge: As you may know, we have been filming some spectacular results with our PTSD burdened war veterans. Nightmares have faded, sleep has improved, intrusive thoughts and flashbacks have been minimized, etc. We are looking to complete this project with Iraq vets located in the Los Angeles or San Francisco areas. To be eligible, you must have recent Iraq/Afghanistan combat experience and be diagnosed with PTSD. Gary Craig and/or an EFT expert will work with you personally on camera without any cost to you whatsoever. If interested please write to our film's producer, Eric Huurre, at eric@skywriter.ca. Please write with some details about yourself or the person you are recommending for consideration. We are particularly interested in veterans with spouses or partners who would be prepared to appear on camera and also undergo EFT treatments on camera. Your story could help the lives of multitudes of your combat brothers and sisters.

PTSD treatment successful for retired soldier

This just in from healing innovator Tapas Fleming. Tapas Acupressure Technique^® or TAT^® is is a leading-edge healing technique to end stress, create vibrant good health and live a happy life. Tapas has developed this technique that is AMAZINGLY easy to do and has excellent results with traumatic stress sufferers. The link at the bottom of the article will take you to her site where you can download a free manual that will walk you through how to use TAT for traumas. So from her latest newsletter...


Dear Friends,

Brian Davis came to the workshop for combat veterans just to prove that we were wrong – he planned to call us down for offering something that wouldn’t help soldiers. The first night of the workshop, he decided to work on the very worst trauma that ever happened to him in combat. Right after he returned for the second night, he told us that he had dreamed of his children for the first time ever and that he’d slept well for the first time in years. He explained that previously, he’d typically wake up 15 times a night in one combat situation or another, pace through his home, sleep restlessly again and finally greet the day in a torn up bed. Now, the bedding next to him was smooth and unruffled from his peaceful sleep. Our team was in tears hearing that he’d dreamt of his children. Click here to read his story in more detail as reported in the local Columbus, Georgia newspaper.

We’re grateful to the local community for supporting this workshop. It was a privilege to join the soldiers, their spouses and children in this life-changing journey.

Love,
Tapas

If that sounds interesting to you I encourage you to try out this technique for yourself. It can help everything from PTSD to the stress of living with someone who has Post Traumatic Stress Disorder. click here for FREE BOOKLET then let me know how you do with it!

Troops' brain injuries inspire a new mission

USA TODAY

LANDSTUHL, Germany — It took nearly three years for the Army to understand the damage to Army Sgt. Chad Joiner's brain after a roadside explosion left him unconscious in a Humvee on June 28, 2005.

He finished his tour and returned home, struggled with headaches and memory loss, went back to Iraq and survived another bombing in February that aggravated his symptoms.

Only after arriving here at the Army's Landstuhl Regional Medical Center with an ankle injury in February did a new and aggressive screening program finally identify Joiner's brain injury and lead to treatment. "I'm just in shock that somebody is figuring out what's wrong with me," says Joiner, 26, who says his gratitude for the treatment outweighs any bitterness over the delay in diagnosing his injury.

The Pentagon debated for years whether to systematically screen troops for brain injuries such as Joiner's. A recent study by RAND Corp., a research group, says such injuries could have affected 320,000 Iraq and Afghanistan war veterans. Uncertain how aggressively to identify a wound that is still largely a mystery, the Pentagon initially resisted calls to screen all service members coming out of the battlefield. Under pressure from Congress, the Pentagon in March ordered all military branches to screen for traumatic brain injury (TBI).

By then, doctors at this key Army hospital — through which all war casualties pass on their way home — already had begun to check each of the wounded for a brain injury in an effort that could set new standards for whether such troops ever return to duty.

This is wonderful news for current troops coming out of combat. Perhaps veterans will be able to avail themselves of this technology also in the future. It certainly will help reduce the stigma of PTSD and brain trauma related injuries. Which in turn will lead to better awareness, which in turn will lead to broader search for effective solutions.

One of which is Emotional Freedom Technique. Some of the things I like about EFT are: you or your soldier can start using it TODAY! it's really inexpensive, it brings quick relief, it is drug free, it is so easy to do. And it can reverse these unseen injuries.

Side effects? Well more energy, more joy, more freedom to live a normal life, more engagement in the present, less depression, less fear, less anger, better sleep-I could go on and on but you get the idea!

thanks for the photo by foreignobsessed

PTSD vets? They will need help!

One thing many returning vets feel is an isolation from everything familiar, everything they left behind, and everyone they left behind. Being with other vets can help ease the pain but it doesn't start the healing process.

Teach your vet the basics of tapping and work with them as they do it. Even if you are both beginners you can help them experience some relief after only 1 session. Here is a link to download the FREE 'get started' package.

I recommend buying the DVD set-it's fairly inexpensive and you can legally make up to 10 copies, if you've got friends who can use some help too. Then watch them WITHOUT your vet first. Spend some time learning how to do the tapping and what to say. That will get you started. Click here to order the DVD's.

If you don't want to tackle this alone there are many competent EFT practitioners that you can find on the EFT web site. Click here for some tips on how to find a good practitioner.

thanks to Kristofer Martinelli for the photo from flikr!

We're hard-wired to survive-that's what causes PTSD.

There are those who deny that in spite of being in combat they do not suffer from PTSD. I do not believe this is possible.

As humans, we are hard-wired to survive. When our survival is threatened it messes with that hard wiring. As humans, we have no choice but to shut down. That's what PTSD is—shutting down and putting a block in our energy system so we don't have to deal with a traumatic event.

While avoidance is a helpful reaction in the short run, it is extremely harmful in the long run. Until the blockage is cleared and the trauma released unwanted symptoms will continue to plague.

As trauma is piled upon trauma the situation is compounded. Something must be done to relieve the pressure or like a boiler, the person will explode.

Smells are key links to healing PTSD

The olfactory system (the sense of smell) is the only sensory system that is connected directly to the brain. Other senses must pass through the thalamus and be routed to the brain. Because of this the sense of smell has a powerful emotional impact on us.

Knowing this there is no mystery about why odors such as cordite or blood trigger delayed reactions in returning veterans.

It is also the reason that certain odors are just as powerful in calming emotions. Aromatherapy is another inexpensive, effective, and seldomly used aid that can help heal soldiers who suffer from the effects of combat. When it is correctly used-there are no side effects, it can be used anywhere, it's easy to use, and the price of a good quality essential oil (and that's all you should be using) is far less than an ongoing prescription of Xanax or Zoloft. Contact a local massage therapist or aromatherapist for more guidance on how essential oils can help.

Getting help for PTSD related to the "combat environment" will no longer be a reason to deny security clearances

Secretary of Defense Robert Gates, right, walked out of the Restoration & Resilience Center at Fort Bliss after touring it Thursday. (Rudy Gutierrez / El Paso Times)

Bracing against a blasting wind that reminded him of his native Kansas, U.S. Secretary of Defense Robert Gates spent a day at Fort Bliss touring a mental health center, watching a demonstration of the Army's newest technology, and meeting with soldiers and community leaders.

Gates had high praise for a Fort Bliss center designed to treat soldiers suffering from post-traumatic stress disorder and return them to their units -- a center he said would serve as a prototype for the Army.

"They are doing some amazing things here in terms of helping soldiers who want to remain soldiers but who have been wounded with post-traumatic stress disorder," Gates said of the Restoration and Resilience Center. "I think it's an extraordinary program. ..... And one of the things that I will carry back to Washington with me is the question of whether we can replicate this at other posts around the country."

During a morning press conference in front of the center, Gates also formally announced a change in government policy he said would allow soldiers to seek help for PTSD without hurting their careers.

Getting help for PTSD related to the "combat environment" will no longer be a reason to deny security clearances, he said.

The Fort Bliss center is also looking at finding ways to help soldiers in combat zones deal with stress, Gates said, adding that those techniques "are clearly worth additional attention as well."

Changing the way the military and public in general feel about the stigma of PTSD is a HUGE step forward in admitting that this is a normal affliction of war. For the Secretary of Defense to announce this policy change says alot about the new climate of acceptance and healing. It's interesting that they are looking at therapies just as EFT is starting to become a mainstream solution to this type of disorder.

Well done Montana National Guard!

Montana Guard confronts post-combat stress head-on in wake of suicide
By ERIC NEWHOUSE
Tribune Projects Editor

HELENA — Montana's National Guard is becoming a model of how to help service members adjust to post-combat stress.

"Montana has gone beyond the level of other states in the country, and I applaud that," said Capt. Joan Hunter, a U.S. Public Service officer who was recently designated the director of psychological health for the National Guard Bureau in Washington, D.C. "They saw an emergency need, studied the problems and make some significant improvements," Hunter said Friday.

State Adjutant General Randy Mosley said that the effort stems from a former Montana soldier who didn't get the help he needed and who killed himself a year ago."We want to make sure we're doing everything we can to help our people and their families pick up the pieces for the problems that may have begun during their deployment in Iraq," Mosley said last week.

"The Guard has done an unbelievable job in changing," said Matt Kuntz, a Helena attorney and stepbrother of the late Spc. Chris Dana, who killed himself March 4, 2007. At the time, Dana was having trouble handling weekend drills after returning from combat in Iraq. He was given a less-than-honorable discharge and then shot himself a few days later."It takes a lot for a big organization that does a lot of things right to look for what they did wrong and address those flaws," Kuntz said. "I'm really impressed with what they've done."

The first thing Montana put in place was crisis response teams, then they backed that up with assessing service members' mental health every six months for two years after deployment. This goes beyond the recommended guidelines laid out by the Department of Defense. While Montana is the only state doing this for the moment, their success may pave the way for other states to launch similar programs.

As always, many service men and woman are still concerned about the stigma of Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (for a further career in the military or out) and understandably don't seek help. With this courageous, caring change- we may be seeing the beginning of a new understanding about PTSD within the military.

Helping a Loved One when they return from military duty

U.S. soldiers are deployed for 15 month combat tours (although this is supposed to change to 12 months in August), and marines for seven months. Readjusting to life in the states can be a huge challenge. About 12 percent of soldiers suffer from anxiety, depression, post-combat stress and other problems during their first tour, according to an Army survey, and that rises to 27 percent of those on their third or fourth combat tours. The long and repeated separations also take a toll on marriages, as more soldiers are reporting related marriage problems.

One of the best things for someone who has just gone through a traumatic event like combat, to do is to learn how to let go of the negative images and experiences in their head, and the feelings associated with them. Easy to say I know, but many energy treatments can help with this, reiki, quantum touch, energetic balancing of all kinds have the potential to bring immediate relief, by treating the cause, not the symptom.

It's also very important for the family and friends of the soldier to take care of their own needs. The job of welcoming home someone who may have become a stranger and running a household, while working and or raising a family is extremely stressful. Learning to do EFT can help you to stay in good shape (emotionally and physically) while you are helping others.

We like EFT because once you learn how to do it, you can work with a practitioner or on your own. It's easy to do, you can do it without expensive equipment or lengthy training, you can take it with you and you can do for someone else.

Sometimes those who need it most, are the least capable of helping themselves.

But there is hope. Combat soldiers or veterans suffering from PTSD are often unable to get out of their confusion or depression long enough to seek help for themselves. It often takes time, research, focus and patience. These things are exactly what many sufferers DON'T have.

Here's where family, spouses and friends can help. Surrogate EFT can be amazingly effective. That is to say, doing Emotional Freedom Technique exercises for another person works! It may not be the "end-all" but it may be just the incentive needed to get the PTSD sufferer to the point where they can start working to heal him or herself.

It's similar to tuning into a radio station on your car radio. You don't have to drive to the station and sit in the studio to enjoy the program. It works on frequencies and wave lengths to transfer the music right to your car (without even being plugged into anything!) 

Once you learn how to do the tapping on yourself, try surrogate tapping on a simple issue with a friend or child and you'll see for yourself how effective it can be. You can download this free booklet by clicking on this link...

free booklet on EFT tapping

Was the side effect of this medication Death?

The Cost of War by Julie Robinson

Stan and Shirley White of Cross Lanes remember they were at a restaurant that day - Sept. 26, 2005. They were talking about their youngest son, Andrew, and about how happy they were to have him home safe from Iraq.

Staff writer Charleston Gazette

Stan and Shirley White of Cross Lanes remember they were at a restaurant that day - Sept. 26, 2005. They were talking about their youngest son, Andrew, and about how happy they were to have him home safe from Iraq.

Then, Shirley's cell phone rang.

It was their daughter-in-law on the other end - the wife of their middle son, Bob, who was stationed in Afghanistan with the Army. Bob's Humvee had been hit by a rocket-propelled grenade. He was gone.

Now, 2 1/2 years later - on Feb. 12 - the Whites lost 23-year-old Andrew. He died mysteriously in his sleep, just as he was beginning an achingly slow climb out of the debilitating post-traumatic stress disorder.

"You really can't compare the two deaths, but directly and indirectly, both of their deaths are a result of the war," Stan said. "As a parent, you fear for them when they go to war. You fear for their lives over there. Andrew was home. We thought he was safe."

They are waiting for autopsy results, but the circumstances of Andrew's death mirror those of two other local servicemen, also treated for PTSD and taking the same medications.

"Is there a connection? We don't know," Stan said. "When you're 23, you're not supposed to go to sleep and not wake up.

"It seems like a cruel joke for him to die just when he was getting better," Shirley said.

Searching for answers

Since then, the Whites learned that the mysterious circumstances of Andrew's death are markedly similar to those of two other local servicemen who were being treated for PSTD with the same medications - Paxil, Klonopin and Seroquel.

you can read the rest of this story at...http://wvgazette.com/News/200803150602

The encouraging thing about energy medicine is that there are no negative side effects. Many different energy techniques have very positive side effects however-more energy, deeper sleep, less tension, better digestion, improved memory and especially increased happiness.

Alpha Company hit hard by post-traumatic stress resulting from combat

By Tom Infield-Philadelphia Inquirer-staff writer
Of all the things that Alpha Company has had to struggle with since it came home from Iraq, the most pervasive may be post-traumatic stress disorder, or PTSD.

Of the 126 veterans interviewed or surveyed by The Inquirer, almost half - 46 percent - said they had been treated for PTSD, most at VA hospitals and clinics in the region.

Alpha's rate of PTSD is higher than that of most U.S. troops who served in Iraq or Afghanistan - partly, no doubt, as a result of its being a frontline combat unit that lost six men.

Shelley M. MacDermid, a Purdue University professor who served on a Defense Department mental-health task force last year, said typical PTSD rates among returning veterans were about 14 percent.

"Those are big numbers," she said of The Inquirer's Alpha findings.

National Guard and Reserve units, in general, have shown slightly higher PTSD rates than have regular Army units, she said.

The Defense Department task force said this might be in part because civilian-soldiers were separated after they returned home, rather than staying together as units in which the members could support one another.

Ira Katz, director of mental-health services for the Department of Veterans Affairs, said that among the 300,000 or so veterans who have been seen by the VA, about 20 percent have been diagnosed with PTSD.

But he said that twice that number - about 40 percent - have had some "mental condition."

"That's not all that different from your [46] percent," he said.

Both MacDermid and Katz said that PTSD had become a popular shorthand for all sorts of emotional symptoms that veterans experience. These may include depression and anxiety disorders, but not rise to the level of PTSD.

Steven Silver, who recently retired as director of the inpatient PTSD unit at the Coatesville VA hospital, predicted that as time went on, more and more combat veterans would be shown to have the high PTSD rate Alpha now shows.

PTSD, as a term, has been used only since 1980. World War II soldiers talked of battle fatigue. In World War I, it was shell shock.

Silver said that both the military and the VA had become more aggressive in warning troops about PTSD and getting them treatment.

He said that although Alpha's rate was high, "in some ways, it's good news. It means that people are coming in for help." (I agree this is very good news, it may be we are approaching a time of new understanding of this trauma. Which means we HAVE learned something from the Vietnam vets who suffered alone so terribly.)

(unfortunately however...) PTSD typically is treated with psychotherapy and antidepressant drugs, including Zoloft and Paxil. (which treats the symptoms but not the causes)

About two-thirds of Alpha veterans have received care at VA hospitals and clinics - for PTSD, physical ailments, or both.

100% PTSD if you've been through the horrors of war.

We hear differing estimates of the number of soldiers and veterans who develop PTSD, or symptoms of PTSD, as a result of their combat experience. Depending on the source I have heard estimates from 30% to 70%. I disagree. I don't think it is possible to go through the horrors of war without developing PTSD. I don't think humans are equipped to handle the grizzly situations one experiences in war. I truly believe the percentage is closer to 100%.

Certainly some are able to cope to a better degree than others. That doesn't mean they are not affected. "Coping" can be deceiving. "Coping" may mean you don't have the nightmares, the flashbacks, etc. that are considered to be symptoms of PTSD. Though you may "cope" very well with the trauma, you may develop unexplained pain, hearing or vision loss, relationship problems, money problems, or maybe, heart disease. These may develop years after the trauma.

Severity of symptoms may vary from person to person, but I believe every soldier, every veteran can benefit by treatment. I believe your lives, your personal relationships, and your general health will be improved with treatment. Your ability to cope with the normal demands and various crises that we all face every day will be enhanced.

I know this has been the case with my own PTSD! I "coped" very well with my trauma. In fact, I pretty much forgot about it.

I had years of pain, sometimes extreme, sometimes not so bad. I was quick to anger. I had migraines. And there were many other problems which I did not relate to my trauma. Certainly it was never called PTSD. In fact, though doctors rarely used the label, it was implied: PSYCHOSOMATIC. And they gave me names of psychiatrists. But once I put everything together, I got rid of these uncomfortable symptoms by myself.

More good news!

Things are starting to move!

PHILADELPHIA, Feb. 27 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- Secretary of Veterans Affairs Dr. James B. Peake today said an expansion by the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) of its Vet Centers, which provide readjustment counseling and outreach services to returning combat veterans, is well ahead of schedule.

In February 2007, VA announced it would open 23 new centers during the next two years. Fifteen of those centers are already operational, and five others are seeing patients in temporary facilities while finalizing their leases. The other three facilities will begin operations later this year.

"Building on our past successes, 2008 will see a permanent increase in the number of Vet Centers, as we bring the remaining facilities on line to reach a record 232 Vet Centers by the end of the year," Peake said.

"To support this expansion and augment the staff at 61 existing Vet Centers, this year we are channeling a 44 percent increase in funding to the Readjustment Counseling Service, which operates the Vet Centers -- nearly $50 million more than last year's budget," he added.

The community-based Vet Centers are a key component of VA's mental health program, providing veterans with mental health screening and post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) counseling, along with help for family members dealing with bereavement and loved ones with PTSD.

The 15 new Vet Centers that are open in permanent locations are in Binghamton, N.Y.; Middletown, N.Y.; Watertown, N.Y.; Hyannis, Conn.; DuBois, Pa.; Gainesville, Fla.; Melbourne, Fla.; Macon, Ga.; Manhattan, Kansas; Escanaba, Mich.; Saginaw, Mich.; Grand Junction, Colo.; Baton Rouge, La.; Killeen, Texas; and Las Cruces, N.M.

Five additional Vet Centers are providing services in temporary space while they finalize their leases: They are in Toledo, Ohio; Ft. Myers, Fla.; Montgomery, Ala.; Everett, Wash.; and Modesto, Calif.

The final three locations where Vet Centers will open for clients later this year are in Berlin, N.H., Nassau County, N.Y., and Fayetteville, Ark.

Vet Centers provide counseling on employment, plus services on family issues, education and outreach, to combat veterans and their families. Vet Centers are staffed by small teams of professional counselors, outreach specialists and other specialists, many of whom are combat veterans themselves.

VA's Vet Centers have hired 100 combat veterans back from Iraq and Afghanistan as outreach specialists, often placing them near military processing stations, to brief servicemen and women leaving the military about VA benefits.

These outreach specialists meet with returning veterans, work through family assistance centers and visit military installations to carry the message that VA will be there for the troops and family members after discharge.

U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs

VA simplifies PTSD claims for some veterans

EXCELLENT NEWS!!!!!

this is a really solid example of the growing awareness for the need to change and help these veterans-FASTER. From the Army Times...

By Kelly Kennedy - Staff writer
Posted : Wednesday Feb 20, 2008 9:43:24 EST

The Department of Veterans Affairs has scrapped a policy requiring combat veterans to verify in writing that they have witnessed or experienced a traumatic event before they can file a claim for post-traumatic stress disorder — but only if the military has already diagnosed them with PTSD.

“This change provides a fairer process for veterans with service-connected PTSD,” Sen. Daniel Akaka, D-Hawaii, said in a written statement. “[It] leaves claim adjudicators more time to devote to reducing the staggering backlog of veterans’ claims.”

In the past, a veteran has needed written verification — a statement from a commander or doctor, or testimony from co-workers — that he or she was involved in a traumatic situation to receive disability compensation from VA if they had not already been diagnosed by the military during a disability retirement process. But PTSD is the only condition that a veteran must “reprove” to receive disability benefits from VA.

“They don’t have to reprove their diabetes,” said Mary Ellen McCarthy, special projects counsel for the Senate Veterans’ Affairs Committee. “They don’t have to reprove a leg injury. I have never seen any other condition diagnosed in service [for which] people had to reprove their injury.”

The VA regulation was written at a time when the military was not diagnosing PTSD among troops, McCarthy said.

She travels to VA regional offices to check the progress of veterans going through the disability claims system. Even though many of the former troops had already proven they had witnessed a traumatic event in writing as they went through the military disability retirement system, often that paperwork had been lost by the time they reached VA, McCarthy said.

“It could take months to get that paperwork,” she said.

That slows up the paperwork process. And the veteran has to go through the stressful process of reproving that they lived through a roadside bomb explosion or that they witnessed a friend’s death or that they killed an insurgent.

“Revisiting those stressors in a non-therapeutic environment can make the diagnosis worse,” McCarthy said.

Akaka said he asked VA Secretary Dr. James Peake if the rule was necessary and requested that it be removed, and Peake agreed.

“I am pleased that the secretary took quick action to reverse this requirement after it was brought to his attention,” Akaka said.

Peake has already informed VA regional offices of the decision, Akaka said. VA officials could not be reached for comment by press time.