VA Secretary Peake directed the VA regional offices to no longer require such evidence but instead to immediately schedule examinations for such veterans in order to determine the severity of their PTSD for VA compensation purposes.

This is very interesting because it should lessen the time to receive care and benefits upon returning from overseas service. Our government is making strides to get things right. It will take time and mistakes are made, but as long as they listen to feedback and incorporate the feedback into new solutions as quickly as possible will the situation improve.

The full article is here: link

Here is the important point within the article:

DeQuardo said that while that may seem counterintuitive - to send people back into a situation that caused them to become afraid - it’s been shown that denying those fears doesn’t help cure the PTSD that can re-surface later with serious problems on the job, with families or society.

Goodwin explained that often people can be re-exposed to those fear triggers without putting them in danger, if it’s something simple like just getting into a vehicle or the soldier who avoided the chow hall. He said that some Veterans Administration hospitals are even using virtual reality to accomplish that exposure in a safe environment.

This should be interesting. I can say from my own experience that one of my triggers are fireworks… Especially the low booming ones. It took me two Fourth of July’s to even be in the same general vicinity of fireworks. I am “okay” when it comes to fireworks today and it isn’t because I had the guidance of a psychiatrist, it was because I was preoccupied when I heard fireworks going off. I was so busy with whatever I was doing that when I finally tuned into the fireworks, it didn’t phase me.

I find this research interesting, but very early when it comes to understanding it.

It is painful for me to read these stories because so much of it hits home with me. I can truly relate to what Eugene has gone through and there are many thousands who feel the same.

Among those who experienced loss of consciousness, 44% met criteria for PTSD, compared with 27% of those experiencing altered mental status, 16% with other injuries, and 9% with no injuries. Those who experienced mild traumatic brain injury, particularly if it was associated with loss of consciousness, reported poorer physical health, with more missed work days, medical visits, and somatic and postconcussive symptoms.

Since I am one of those people who briefly lost consciousness and then developed PTSD, I would be within the 44%. However, I think a better study would be comparing the rate for PTSD among servicemen and women who were injured versus those going uninjured physically. For those being injured, I would think there would be a strong correlation. Then again, I am not a scientist.

Feel free to forward me other studies or article you think merit the attention of the public.

My inclination is that a lack of time spent with the people you experienced war with, or released to families too soon, or a myriad of other things are where many problems could be solved.

The adjustment back to life in the United States is so significant and not enough is done. Unfortunately, in my experience, the people that craft policy and set up new guidelines (even within the military) have never experienced combat or lived the life of a deployed serviceman or woman in a combat zone. Until this changes, more of the same can be expected, unfortunately.

If you are a veteran and would like to share your story, send me an email (editor at bloodlesswound dot com). I have no problem keeping your anonymity. I will reveal my own identity at a later date. Publishers interested in my book can also contact me at the address provided.