VA SECRETARY ADDRESSES TRAUMATIC BRAIN INJURY CONFERENCE
WASHINGTON – Recognizing the longstanding, integrated collaboration shared by the Department of Veterans Affairs and Department of Defense, VA Secretary Eric K. Shinseki gave the keynote address Monday at the fourth annual Traumatic Brain Injury (TBI) Military Training Conference here.
“We–DoD and VA–simply cannot afford to be less than aggressive in our effort to identify, treat and rehabilitate TBI READ MORE »
THOUSANDS STRAIN FORT HOOD’S MENTAL HEALTH SYSTEM
FORT HOOD, Texas — Nine months after an Army psychiatrist was charged with fatally shooting 13 soldiers and wounding 30, the nation’s largest Army post can measure the toll of war in the more than 10,000 mental health evaluations, referrals or therapy sessions held every month.
About every fourth soldier here, where 48,000 troops and their families are based, has been in counseling during the past year, according to the service’s medical statistics. And the number of soldiers seeking help for combat stress, substance abuse, broken marriages or other emotional problems keeps increasing. READ MORE »
OBAMA EASES BENEFITS PROCESS FOR VETS WITH PTSD
President Obama said Saturday that veterans with Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder will now have easier access to benefits.
Previously, veterans “have been required to produce evidence proving that a specific event caused their PTSD,” Obama said during his Saturday radio address. “And that practice has kept the vast majority of those with PTSD who served in non-combat roles, but who still waged war, from getting the care they need.”
The Department of Veterans Affairs will begin streamlining the benefits process next week, Obama said. READ MORE »
CHECK OUT OUR LATEST BLOG FOR PBS’ THIS EMOTIONAL LIFE SERIES ON THE HUFFINGTON POST!
CIAV has had the opportunity to partner with PBS for their campaign “This Emotional Life” to highlight the emotional challenges facing military families and veterans. Take a look at our latest blog on the military/veteran community and the tremendous work of our CIAV organizations: Supporting Our Veterans And Military Families.
You can learn more about their campaign to help military families here.
WOMEN’S SCARS OF WAR
By Jessica Yadegaran
Contra Costa Times
When retired Army Staff Sgt. June Moss returned from Iraq, she had to explain to her children why she couldn’t hug them. Any embrace longer than two seconds made her skin feel like it was on fire. “When I got back, my kids were really clingy,” Moss says. “They wanted affection. But, what do you say to a child?”
