Battling the Storm Within Blog

As the Author of the #1 Amazon National-International Best Seller War Memoir “Battling the Storm Within” about living 20 years undiagnosed with PTSD, MST and the GWI. My mission is to empower others to address their own personal traumas, be healed, restored and live again. I believe in telling the truth, living the truth and being the truth. I will share the truth for it sets you free. I have battled my storm that was within me and won, so can you! Peace and blessings Sgt. Stephanie J. Shannon

Wednesday, December 31, 2014

Female veterans who suffered sexual trauma fighting ‘second battle’

Army veteran Katie Weber, a survivor of military sexual trauma who now spends most of her time doing MST advocacy, prepares dinner at home in Santa Rosa, California on Dec. 4.

Thousands seek treatment and compensation on the grounds that they suffer from PTSD caused by assaults.

WASHINGTON — Thousands of female veterans are struggling to get health-care treatment and compensation from the Department of Veterans Affairs on the grounds they suffer from post-traumatic stress disorder caused by sexual trauma in the military. The veterans and their advocates call it “the second battle” – with a bureaucracy they say is stuck in the past.

Judy Atwood-Bell was a 19-year-old Army private when she says she was locked inside a barracks room at Fort Devens in Massachusetts, forced to the cold floor and raped by a fellow solider.

Friday, December 26, 2014

Brownley Focuses on Link Between Veteran’s Homelessness and Military Sexual Trauma

Congresswoman Julia Brownley (D-Westlake Village) participated in a House Veterans’ Affairs Committee hearing: “Evaluating Federal and Community Efforts to Eliminate Veteran Homelessness.” During the hearing, Brownley focused on the links between female veterans’ homelessness and military sexual trauma (MST).

During testimony before the committee, John Downing, CEO of Soldier On, noted that in his experience 100 percent of the female veterans who are homeless have experienced MST. He also noted that of all homeless veterans, approximately 25 percent are considered chronically homeless, and may never become self-sufficient, requiring a lifetime of intensive care. Brownley used her time during the hearing to hone in on these statistics

Read more...
http://tricountysentry.com/blog/brownley-focuses-on-link-between-veterans-homelessness-and-military-sexual-trauma/

Learn more...
www.battlingthestormwithin.com

Female veterans fighting for redress -Victims battle PTSD from sexual trauma

PRESTON GANNAWAY/The Washington Post

Army veteran Katie Weber, who lives in Santa Rosa, Calif., is a survivor of military sexual trauma who now spends most of her time doing MST advocacy.

WASHINGTON – Thousands of female veterans are struggling to get health-care treatment and compensation from the Department of Veterans Affairs on the grounds they suffer from post-traumatic stress disorder caused by sexual trauma in the military. The veterans and their advocates call it “the second battle” – with a bureaucracy they say is stuck in the past.

Judy Atwood-Bell was just a 19-year-old Army private when she said she was locked inside a barracks room at Fort Devens in Massachusetts, forced to the cold floor and raped by a fellow solider.

Sunday, December 21, 2014

Breaking the Cycle of Violence

Violence is taking a toll on the health of our country. Major events, like school shootings, bomb attacks and allegations of unnecessary police brutality, captivate our attention. But violence occurs every day — sometimes in public, but more often in private between people who know each other.

Violence comes in many forms — physical, sexual, emotional and psychological — and among families, gangs, elders, youth and spouses or domestic partners. Of course, the effects are devastating. Victims of violence may experience not only physical injury but also post-traumatic stress disorder, depression and anxiety, difficulties in school, and problems with substance abuse and delinquency.

Read more...

http://www.hhnmag.com/display/HHN-news-article.dhtml?dcrPath=/templatedata/HF_Common/NewsArticle/data/HHN/Daily/2014/Dec/behavioralhealth-violence-resnick

Learn more....

www.battlingthestormwithin.com

Holidays a time for suicide awareness

The holidays are supposed to be a season of joy, a time when loved ones come together to celebrate the traditions they hold dear. But for some people, loss, loneliness, depression and other mental health issues can make getting through the holiday season a life-or-death struggle.

According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, the suicide rate in the United States was 12.5 deaths per 100,000 people as of 2012. Information is not yet available for 2013 or 2014. The highest suicide rate was among people between the ages of 45 and 59 years old. Adults aged 75 or older had the second-highest suicide rate. In general, men are four times more likely to commit suicide than women and firearms are the most common method of death by suicide.

Although white males accounted for 65 percent of all suicides in 2012, suicide can affect people from all walks of life.

Read more...

http://azdailysun.com/news/local/holidays-a-time-for-suicide-awareness/article_9879b066-ce18-525d-a64e-623363116ed7.html

Learn more...

www.battlingthestormwithin.com

Just How Little Is a Veteran’s Life Worth to a Senator?

Can you put a price on the life of a soldier? That’s what Oklahoma Republican Senator Tom Coburn has essentially done. Coburn singlehandedly blocked a popular bill designed to fund a veteran suicide prevention program from being presented on the Senate floor out of concerns that it cost too much.

The $22 million program is by no means cheap, but it addresses a serious problem. The number 22 actually has a lot of significance to this particular issue. A Veterans Affair study found that, in 2010, 22 veterans commit suicide every day. Incidentally, these veterans accounted for 22% of all suicides in the United States. Given the prevalence of the problem, is $22 million really too lofty?

Read more ....
http://www.care2.com/causes/just-how-little-is-a-veterans-life-worth-to-a-senator.html

Learn more..
www.battlingthestormwithin.com

Saturday, December 20, 2014

Not every GI is a Joe! VA works to help growing number of female veterans

“Not every GI is a Joe.” “Please, don’t call me Mister”

These are the titles of a series of posters that the Department of Veterans Affairs has put up across its vast hospital system.

It’s all part of an effort to help the fastest growing veteran population — women — feel more comfortable in a system designed to serve and dominated by male veterans.
Today’s veterans are more likely to be women than at any other time in U.S. history: There are currently 2.2 million of them.

Read more...
http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/federal-eye/wp/2014/12/20/not-every-gi-is-a-joe-va-works-to-help-growing-number-of-female-veterans/

Learn more...

www.battlingthestormwithin.com

Friday, December 19, 2014

New webpage allows vets with PTSD to apply for discharge upgrade

WASHINGTON (Army News Service, Dec. 16, 2014) -- Veterans with post-traumatic stress disorder who were discharged under "other than honorable" conditions can apply on a new webpage to have their discharge upgraded if it was due to PTSD.

The Army launched a webpage for the veterans to get information and ultimately enable them to apply for the change in status, said Col. Matthew B. Coleman, the military assistant to the deputy assistant secretary of the Army at the Army Review Boards Agency.
Read more....

http://www.army.mil/article/140067/New_webpage_allows_vets_with_PTSD_to_apply_for_discharge_upgrade/

Learn more...

www.battlingthestormwithin.com

Thursday, December 18, 2014

Surviving Rape in the Military

Jennifer Norris said she was drugged and raped by her recruiter after joining the Air Force when she was 21. She sat with her service dog, Onyx, at a fellow military rape survivor's home in Biloxi, Miss.

The issue of sexual assault in the military makes the news periodically, usually in articles with mouth-dropping statistics and official outrage.

Mary F. Calvert read such an article. It estimated that while 26,000 rapes and sexual assaults took place in the armed forces in 2012, only one in seven victims reported the attack and only one in 10 of those cases went to trial.

Clay Hunt Veteran Suicide Bill Blocked in Senate by Coburn

Sen. Tom Coburn, R-Oklahoma, has successfully blocked a vote on a veterans' suicide bill, leaving it to backers to re-introduce the legislation next year.

Coburn, who is leaving the Senate, said he opposed the $22 million Clay Hunt Suicide Prevention for American Veterans Act because it duplicated existing Department of Veterans Affairs programs and was not paid for by offsets elsewhere in the budget.

Read more...

http://www.military.com/daily-news/2014/12/16/clay-hunt-veteran-suicide-bill-blocked-in-senate-by-coburn.html#.VJHzAetTVqM.facebook

Learn more...

www.battlingthestormwithin.com

Monday, December 15, 2014

The Military’s Problem With Sexual Assault Is Not A Data Problem

Every day, 55 service members endure a sexual assault, according to a new comprehensive survey from RAND.

Sexual assault in the military is among the most contentious problems facing the American armed forces today. New data resulting from a comprehensive Pentagon-sponsored report reveals the problem is as serious as ever.

The RAND Corporation, a prominent global policy think tank, recently released the initial results of a massive survey titled the “2014 RAND Military Workplace Study,” which explores the prevalence of sex crimes in the military.

Powerful story of healing from a fellow male veteran MST survivor - Watch Video

Graduating from high school midterm 1973 I joined the United States Air Force, eager and proud to make a career in the military. I had given this a lot of thought and desired to be in the Air Force since the cartoon "Roger Ram Jet" came out. This was my chance to honor my country and become a proud citizen. Several months into the Air Force I was assaulted sexually by enlisted ranks higher than mine.

It was sort of a secret fraternity, something recently I learned has been going on for decades in all branches and is covered up. Well today, along with 100's of 1000's of other sexual assault victims over 40 decades I break the silence of the horrible Black Box these atrocities forced me to live in. However, recently with help from friends and others, I am learning life as it should be, and not a black box of fear, shame and guilt. This is my "Ode to Joy", meaning a "pathway to joy.

Learn More...
www.battlingthestormwithin.com

Why Rape and Trauma Survivors Have Fragmented and Incomplete Memories

James Hopper, Ph.D., trains investigators, prosecutors, judges and military commanders on the neurobiology of sexual assault. David Lisak, Ph.D., is a forensic consultant, researcher, national trainer and the board president of 1in6.

In the midst of assault, the brain's fear circuitry takes over while other key parts are impaired or even effectively shut down. This is the brain reacting to a life-threatening situation just the way it is supposed to...

Tuesday, December 9, 2014

Happy Holidays! Download your FREE Kindle E-Book "Battling the Storm Within" Bringing Awareness to Veteran's Issues

Bringing Awareness to Veteran's Issues

Please share...

Click here to download your copy of

#1 Amazon Best Seller Book "Battling the Storm Within"

Dec. 10th thru Dec. 14th 2014

http://www.amazon.com/Battling-Storm-Within-Stephanie-Shannon-ebook/dp/B00ON6EFNA/ref=tmm_kin_title_0?_encoding=UTF8&sr=&qid=

Learn more....

www.battlingthestormwithin.com

Sunday, December 7, 2014

Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand: ‘No improvement’ in military sexual assault guidelines - Watch Video

http://www.msnbc.com/morning-joe/watch/-no-improvement--in-military-sexual-assault-367579203614

More of the same on military sexual assault: Our view

The Editorial Board, 12:18 p.m. EST December 5, 2014

The Pentagon certainly put an optimistic spin on its latest statistics on sexual assaults, crowing that the number reported to authorities – 5,983 assaults, up 8% from last year – shows growing trust in the military justice system.

That's one way to look at the numbers. Another is that in an average day in the U.S. military, at least 16 sexual assaults were reported. And that, according to a separate Defense Department survey, another 13,000 incidents of "unwanted sexual contact," from touching to rape, went unreported during the 12 months ending Sept. 30.

Read more...

http://www.usatoday.com/story/opinion/editorials/2014/12/05/military-sexual-assault-editorials-debates/19917145/

Learn more....

www.battlingthestormwithin.com

Sexual assaults ‘alarmingly high’ in the US military: Veteran - Watch Video

Structural problems in the US military have contributed to an “alarmingly high” number of sexual assaults against both women and men, in spite of enormous efforts to stem the crisis, an Iraq War veteran says.

“The rate of sexual assaults in the military against both men and women is alarmingly high” despite “massive amounts of money being claimed to programs to prevent rape and sexual assaults,” said Seth Manzel, an Army sergeant and infantryman who was deployed to Iraq from 2004 to 2005.

Watch Video....

http://www.presstv.ir/detail/2014/12/05/388912/rapes-alarmingly-high-in-us-military/

Learn More...

www.battlingthestormwithin.com

Friday, December 5, 2014

New data shows Marine Corps has highest rate of sexual assault against women

Comedic Play Teaches Sexual Assault Prevention

Nearly 8 percent of women in the Marine Corps were sexually assaulted in the past year, according to new data released by the Defense Department and the Rand Corp. on Thursday.

The figure puts the Marine Corps' rate of past-year sexual assaults for female troops at more than 20 percent higher than the Navy's total, which has the next-highest rate. According to the data, 1.1 percent of male Marines also experienced a sexual assault in the last year, the second-highest rate following the Navy at 1.5 percent.

read more...

http://www.marinecorpstimes.com/story/military/pentagon/2014/12/04/marine-corps-highest-sex-assault/19910575/

learn more...

www.battlingthestormwithin.com

Retaliation still a major issue for troops who report sexual assault, study finds

Despite significant efforts to make military victims of sexual assault feel safe in reporting attacks, a new survey indicates that retaliation remains a major issue.

“When someone reports a sexual assault, they need to be embraced and helped, not ostracized or punished with retribution,” Defense Secretary Chuck Hagel said Thursday while discussing a Rand Corp. report based on a massive anonymous survey of servicemembers, a review of the military justice system and a survey of about 150 sexual assault victims.

He announced several reforms, including new training and an additional study designed in part to prevent retaliation.

Official reports of sexual assault climb, even as estimated number of attacks declines - VIDEO

Watch Video....

http://www.stripes.com/news/us/official-reports-of-sexual-assault-climb-even-as-estimated-number-of-attacks-declines-1.317133#.VIFInlYCmIt.facebook

Learn more....

www.battlingthestormwithin.com

Thursday, December 4, 2014

Over 80% of Veterans with PTSD Believe Current VA Treatment is Ineffective

A new bill gaining speed on the Hill aims to make changes within the VA’s mental health care system that proponents hope will reduce the veteran suicide epidemic.

It is no secret that the veteran suicide rate is extremely high, with 22 veterans per day taking their own lives. It’s also no secret that health care in general, and mental health care in particular, is lacking in the VA health care system. Unfortunately, the VA is the only option that many veterans have for their care.

A new bill, called the “Clay Hunt Suicide Prevention for American Veterans (SAV) Act,” is currently being considered in the U.S. Senate with a version also in the House. The bill is named after Clay Hunt, a Marine Cpl. who committed suicide in 2011 after battling PTSD and depression following multiple combat tours. Hunt’s mother, Susan Selke, addressed the Senate Veterans Affairs Committee in November, urging lawmakers to pass the bill named for her son.

Read more...
http://ivn.us/2014/12/04/80-veterans-ptsd-believe-current-va-treatment-ineffective/

Learn more...

www.battlingthestormwithin.com

FBI warns U.S. military about ISIS threat at home, Alabama officials issue safety advice

In its strongest warning to date, the FBI is telling the U.S. military members they could be targets of terrorist attacks within the homeland.

ABC News was the first to report a joint intelligence bulletin from the FBI and Department of Homeland Security was issued overnight urging those who are in the military to remove anything from their social media accounts that might bring attention from what it described as "violent extremists."

ISIS flag.JPG

Tuesday, December 2, 2014

Study looks at psychological effects suffered by combat medics

Combat medics serve double duty, both professionally and psychologically.
In addition to bearing all the responsibilities of soldiering, medics must calmly treat the devastating wounds of modern warfare: legs and arms mangled by roadside bombs, bodies peppered with shrapnel, arteries severed by high-velocity bullets.

They are more exposed than other soldiers to seriously wounded or dead fellow servicemembers. Unlike hospital doctors or nurses, who rarely know their patients, medics have the added pressure of being close to the soldiers they are trying to keep alive.

VA Expands Eligibility for VA Health Care Related to Military Sexual Trauma

WASHINGTON, DC - The Department of Veterans Affairs (VA), under authority from the Veterans Access, Choice, and Accountability Act of 2014 (“VACAA”), today announced expanded eligibility for Veterans in need of mental health care due to sexual assault or sexual harassment that occurred during their military service. This trauma is commonly known as military sexual trauma (MST).

This expansion, which primarily pertains to Reservists and National Guard members participating in weekend drill, gives the authority to offer Veterans the appropriate care and services needed to treat conditions resulting from MST that occurred during a period of inactive duty training

Read more...

http://www.kgwn.tv/home/headlines/VA-Expands-Eligibility-for-VA-Health-Care-Related-to-Military-Sexual-Trauma--284340171.html

Learn more...

www.battlingthestormwithin.com