Military Sexual Trauma Survivors Take Backseat

Survivor stories and legislative reforms focusing on military sexual trauma have taken a backseat over the past year in major media outlets, but that does not mean the problems related to treatment and VA benefits have improved. I wanted to take today to highlight a recent conversation I came across the highlights some of the current issues and to help bring the subject back to the forefront for my readers.

For a little backstory, male and female veterans write frequently on the Facebook group Disabled Veterans – Chapter 31 Voc Rehab about struggles in getting service connection for military sexual trauma (MST). Problems range from getting service-connection to getting access to effective mental health care.

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http://www.disabledveterans.org/2015/02/27/military-sexual-trauma-survivors-take-backseat/

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Military Sexual Trauma

 

 

One of my top priorities is making sure that we are doing everything we can to help and support our men and women in uniform who were sexually assaulted during their service. Please check this page periodically for updates on Resources, Legislation, and Policy Updates.

Best,

Chellie Pingree
 

http://pingree.house.gov/legislation/military-sexual-trauma

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Baylor Research Finds First Direct Evidence of Gene-Exposure Link in Gulf War Illness

                           

 

           Thousands of service men and women are affected by the condition 24 years later

 

WACO, Texas (Feb. 27, 2015) — February 28 marks the 24th anniversary of the cease fire that ended the 1991 Gulf War, also known as Operation Desert Storm. But the end of the war signaled the beginning of a new struggle for thousands of service men and women—their personal battle with Gulf War illness (GWI).

This debilitating condition is estimated to affect more than 200,000 Desert Storm veterans, with studies indicating that few have recovered, or even substantially improved, in the 24 years since the war. The long-term effects have brought difficult challenges for veterans and their families, who continue to seek answers about the causes of GWI and treatments that can improve their health.

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http://www.baylor.edu/mediacommunications/news.php?action=story&story=152600

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Women Veterans and Housing Instability

Introduction:
My name is Lily Casura and I am conducting an independent research project (this survey) into the housing difficulties U.S. women veterans may experience after their military service is complete. The goal of my research is to attempt to fill a gap in knowledge about how and why women veterans may experience periods of housing instability, and what accommodations they make during these periods of precarious housing. This survey was designed with the cooperation and input of women veterans who have been or are currently experiencing homelessness and are advocates for the women veterans community. Its goal is to attempt to bring more attention to the issues some but not all women veterans experience with housing instability after military service.
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http://www.surveyrock.com/ts/1689/womenvets

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Air Force Reserve captain whose family believe she was assaulted in Afghanistan ‘killed herself with her handgun’

An Air Force Reserve captain whose family believe she was sexually assaulted in Afghanistan killed herself using her handgun. Jamie Brunette, from Tampa, Florida, was found dead on February 9 by Tampa police in the back of her locked sedan near her apartment.

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http://www.farrahgray.com/air-force-reserve-captain-whose-family-believe-assaulted-afghanistan-killed-handgun/

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Women an increasing share of homeless veterans

 

BULLHEAD CITY — For all veterans, reintegrating into their communities after active duty can be a challenge. Returning servicewomen face a battle of a different kind: They are one of the fastest growing segments of the homeless population.

According to the National Coalition for Homeless Veterans, the number of female veterans who have become homeless more than doubled in the U.S., from 1,380 in 2006 to 3,328 in 2010.
 “Women veterans don’t wear a sign, you can’t tell a veteran by looking at them,” said Charlee Long, a retired Air Force veteran and Women’s Committee chairwoman for the Jerry Ambrose Veterans Council. “Worse, they’re less likely to be believed when they say they are veterans.”

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http://www.mohavedailynews.com/news/women-an-increasing-share-of-homeless-veterans/article_3d0f675c-b801-11e4-a5c7-bf12f6120788.html

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VA reaches out to sexual trauma survivors via Facebook

The female veterans on the Women Veterans for Equality in our VA System Facebook page couldn’t believe what they saw. But there it was. A  Department of Veterans Affairs military sexual trauma (MST) coordinator personally assigned to helping them, answering questions directly and guiding them through what many say is a emotionally harrowing and complicated financial benefits process.


The Washington Post last month chronicled efforts, sometimes for decades, by this group to receive  financial benefits for post-traumatic stress disorder caused by sexual trauma — ranging from harassment to rape — in the military.

Read more...

http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/federal-eye/wp/2015/02/12/a-va-claims-officer-on-facebook-department-of-veterans-affairs-reaches-out-to-survivors-of-military-sexual-trauma-in-21st-century-ways/


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President Obama Signs Into Law Clay Hunt Suicide Prevention for American Veterans Act

 

WASHINGTON--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Wounded Warrior Project^® (WWP) joined President Obama, veterans, and mental health advocates today at the White House for the signing of the Clay Hunt Suicide Prevention for American Veterans Act (SAV Act), which will help provide better support to injured veterans suffering from the invisible wounds of war, such as post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) (http://www.woundedwarriorproject.org/programs/combat-stress-recovery-program.aspx).   

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http://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20150212006301/en/President-Obama-Signs-Law-Clay-Hunt-Suicide#.VN07npU5D4g

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The Fight To Stop Veteran Suicides

   

                   

 

According to one government study, 22 veterans commit suicide in the United States every single day. It's a problem of epidemic proportions — and particularly sad because vets from recent wars are often return home from their service to face unemployment and difficulty finding medical care.

As a result, those recent war vets are 50% more likely to take their own lives than non-vets. And, for women vets — who actually represent the military’s fastest-growing population right now — it's even worse: In a 2010 study, researchers found that female veterans between the ages of 18 and 34 are three times as likely as their civilian peers to die by their own hand.                     

 

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http://www.refinery29.com/2015/02/82104/veteran-suicide-bill-clay-hunt

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VA nurses are learning to better care for U.S. female veterans, who suffer from PTSD

Jill B. LaMantia, MSN, RN, NP, considers herself a “touchy-feely” person, always ready with a hug — something her patients and their families always appreciated when she worked as a pediatric nurse practitioner. But soon after she started working at the Veteran’s Administration West New York Healthcare System in Buffalo six years ago, LaMantia embraced a woman who had post-traumatic stress disorder. The hug, meant to be comforting, triggered a panic attack in the patient. “You could see it in her eyes,” LaMantia, director of the women’s program there, said. “It was almost like she wasn’t here anymore. She was reliving the trauma she’d had in the military. Just in one second.”

 

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http://news.nurse.com/article/20150209/NATIONAL05/150208001#.VNmJF5U5D4g

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Chronic Multisymptom Illness Affecting Gulf War Vets is Still an Enigma

 

Almost 25 years after the end of the Gulf War, veterans who fought in the war are still experiencing symptoms of what has been called “chronic multisymptom illness” (CMI).

It is also known by its more common name, “Gulf War Syndrome”.
Researchers have yet to discover the cause or even agree on the symptoms.
The National Center for Biotechnology Information (NCBI) have assembled a committee, under the direction of the Department of Veteran Affairs (VA), to develop a case definition of CMI. (1)

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http://www.topsecretwriters.com/2015/02/chronic-multisymptom-illness-affecting-gulf-war-vets-still-enigma/

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ACLU, military women's group sue Defense Department for Naval Academy records on female midshipmen

Advocates for military women are suing the Department of Defense for information about how the Naval Academy and the other military service academies recruit female students — part of a campaign, they say, to expose ongoing gender bias at the elite training grounds for the nation's officer corps.

"The military's academies largely remain boys' clubs," said Greg Jacob, the policy director at the Service Women's Action Network.

The legal dispute comes as the military approaches a January 2016 target date for integrating women into direct ground combat jobs. That was one of the last major roles that had been closed to female service members.

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http://www.baltimoresun.com/business/federal-workplace/bs-md-naval-academy-foia-20150203-story.html

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