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

Thursday, June 15, 2017

VA's Choice program running out of money ahead of schedule

Image result for Senate Veterans’ Affairs Committee, VA Secretary David Shulkin picture

WASHINGTON — The Veterans Affairs Choice program, hailed by President Trump as a key lifeline to veterans, is on pace to run out of money later this summer, potentially causing major disruptions in thousands of veterans’ medical care.

Congress believed they had solved this problem earlier this year, by passing an extension of the program’s rules to keep it operating until late 2018.

Read more....
http://www.militarytimes.com/articles/va-choice-program-funds-gone-early?utm_source=Sailthru&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=EBB+6.15.17&utm_term=Editorial+-+Military+-+Early+Bird+Brief

DoD Launches Online Learning Program to Help Military Survivors of Sexual Assault

Today, the Department of Defense launched an online and mobile educational program to help individuals begin to recover, heal, and build resiliency after a sexual assault.

The self-guided program, called “Building Hope & Resiliency: Addressing the Effects of Sexual Assault,” can be completed at the user’s pace and features information about coping mechanisms, practical relaxation exercises, definitions, links to resources and referrals for on-going support.

Read more...
https://www.defense.gov/News/News-Releases/News-Release-View/Article/1211427/dod-launches-online-learning-program-to-help-military-survivors-of-sexual-assau/source/GovDelivery/

4 Truths Church Leaders Should Know About PTSD

Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder. There is often a stigma associated with the term “PTSD.” It can raise feelings of uncertainty and perhaps even fear. It is closely tied to instability, rage, depression, and suicide. It is widely seen as an issue that is best for the so-called “experts” to deal with. After all, no one wants to risk saying the wrong thing and pushing someone over the edge, so you might figure it’s best to leave it to medical professionals.

If you’re in a position of leadership at your church, you will (and should) encounter men and women struggling with PTSD. Even if you don’t work directly with combat veterans, you will undoubtedly find yourselves sitting across from someone who has experienced a traumatic event and is suffering from what the medical community calls Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder. This disorder can lead a person to present symptoms including agitation, isolation, sleeplessness, anxiety, depression, and in some cases, flashbacks to their trauma.

Read more...
https://rebootrecovery.com/academy/4-truths-church-leaders-ptsd/

This Combat Vet Wants to Inspire a New Generation of Farmers

Morgan Boyd works at his 15-acre, family-owned farm, Pepper Creek Family Farms, in Arroyo Grande, California. (Photo by Susanna Frohman)

Growing up on a 15-acre family farm in central California, Morgan Boyd never dreamed of a career in agriculture. He recalled harvesting corn by hand in the sweltering heat in the Huasna Valley and hawking produce at farmer's markets around San Luis Obispo County.

"I didn't see the farm as something I ever wanted to pursue at all," he said.
But after serving a dozen years in the Army, during which he deployed to Iraq and Afghanistan, he was medically retired and struggling with post-traumatic stress disorder and traumatic brain injury. He found peace back on the farm.

Read more...
http://www.military.com/daily-news/2017/06/09/this-combat-vet-wants-inspire-new-generation-farmers.html#.WT1mt8l_6Xo.facebook

Vet groups Endorse VA's call to replace Choice with Care plan

The nation’s largest veteran groups joined key senators Wednesday to endorse conditionally a plan from Department of Veterans Affairs Secretary David J. Shulkin to replace the unpopular 2014 Choice program, which critics contend often has failed to provide timely access to private-sector care when VA health care isn’t readily available.

However, veteran groups adamantly oppose VA’s plan to fund the Choice replacement plan by cutting disability compensation paid through the Individual Unemployability (IU) program to 208,000 severely disabled veterans, those ages 62 and older who also are eligible for at least minimum Social Security benefits.

US Army invests $2million in research to test 'game changer' one-shot injection to beat PTSD

A 'stellate ganglion block' is an injection of anesthetic into a nerve cluster called the stellate ganglion, which connects the brain to the body

This nerve cluster is key for controlling our response to perceived danger

Scientists claim one shot to numb this cluster can 'reset' our nervous system

The injection has been used successfully since it was invented in Illinois in 2006

Now the US Army has invested $2m in US studies to confirm its effectiveness before endorsing it as a standard treatment method

5 Things You Didn’t Know About 100% Disability Ratings

A veteran speaks to staff at the Washington, D.C. VA Medical Center.

100% disability rating can mean different things in at least five different types of service-connection claims.

Editor’s Note: This article was originally published on Veterans Law Blog, the largest and longest running blog on veterans benefits, written by VA-accredited attorney Chris Attig.

The phrases “100% disabled” or “total VA disability ratings” get thrown around a lot in veterans disability benefits claims.

For the first time, a woman assumes command of a Special Forces battalion

Image result for Lt. Col. Megan Brogden picture

A career Quartermaster officer has assumed command of the 3rd Special Forces Group support battalion. And in a first for that role, the commander is a woman.

Lt. Col. Megan Brodgen took over at the Special Forces unit Friday morning in a ceremony at Fort Bragg, North Carolina, officials confirmed to Army Times.

The position is one of about two dozen within U.S. Army Special Operations Command that can be held by a non-Green Beret officer, but until now, a woman had never been chosen.

Read more...
https://www.armytimes.com/articles/for-the-first-time-a-woman-assumes-command-of-a-special-forces-battalion

Eating Disorders as a Result of Military Sexual Trauma in Veterans

Veterans who screen positive for MST are at differentially greater risk for PTSD, depression, substance misuse, and homelessness.

Veterans who experienced military sexual trauma (MST) are at higher risk for post-deployment eating disorders (EDs), according to a new study¹ conducted by Rebecca Blais, PhD, assistant professor of psychology, Utah State University in Logan, and colleagues.

According to the United States Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) MST affects 25% of female and 1% of male veterans and includes “any sexual activity where a service member is involved against his or her will.”²

Read more...
http://www.psychiatryadvisor.com/ptsd-trauma-and-stressor-related/eating-disorders-military-sexual-trauma-veterans/article/666572/

VA Presumptive List

Topics:

Chronic Diseases Diagnosed After Discharge
Tropical Diseases
Prisoners of War
Veterans Exposed to Herbicides (Agent Orange)
Veterans Exposed to Radiation
Gulf War Veterans
Mustard Gas and Lewisite Exposure
Veterans Exposed to Contaminated Camp Lejeune Water

In order to qualify for VA Disability, a condition must be service-connected. But what if a serious condition develops that doesn’t fulfil the normal requirements for service-connection? Enter the VA Presumptive List.

In most cases, conditions that cannot be proved service-connected are denied benefits. Over time, however, the VA began noticing patterns in the types of conditions to develop in veterans who had served in similar circumstances. In other words, a significant number of vets who served in the same place at the same time developed similar conditions in a similar time frame.

Read more....
http://www.militarydisabilitymadeeasy.com/vapresumptivelist.html

Why So Many Rape Victims Don’t Simply ‘Fight Back’

Last winter, a judge in Turin, Italy, acquitted a 46-year-old man who had been accused of sexually assaulting a female colleague. His rationale for tossing the case, The Washington Post reported, was that the woman did not react strongly enough. She said “stop it!” and “enough” while being attacked, but did not scream.

Saying that a woman cannot have been raped because her response was too muted is a deeply flawed argument, but the Italy case is not an anomaly. Women are expected to fight back, and when they don’t, their stories are questioned and even discredited ― sometimes by the very people and systems meant to protect them.

Women Veterans and Military Sexual Trauma: the Aftermath

It’s important to acknowledge that all branches of the armed services are working to eliminate military sexual trauma (MST), to bring perpetrators to justice and to provide treatment for victims. That said, this comes after years of ignoring or dismissing complaints. Years.

The National Veterans Foundation’s concerted outreach to female veterans finds that MST is often a factor in their lives when we reach them. You won’t hear that from them right away. They call our Lifeline for Vets about housing, education, employment and VA claims just like their male counterparts. But when we engage them in conversation on the phone or on the street, it starts to leak out that their symptoms of PTSD aren’t necessarily related to combat. The biggest clue is the nature of a woman’s discharge from the service. If her discharge is not “Honorable” we know to listen even more closely.

What happens when you call White House's new hotline for veterans

Secretary of Veterans Affairs David Shulkin speaks during the White House press briefing in Washingt

Thank you for calling the White House VA Veteran Complaint Hotline, I am happy to assist you.”
On Day 2 of Donald Trump’s new veteran hotline, calls were being answered by live operators after a 20-minute hold — at least when the San Diego Union-Tribune tried it at 9:30 this morning.

Learn More...

http://www.sandiegouniontribune.com/military/the-intel/

Michigan Women Veterans Empowerment Planted the 1st women veterans Garden in Genesee County

www.empowermiwomenvets.com

MIWVE planted 72 organic plants/trees in our 1st women veterans empowerment peace, healing and love garden in Genesee County that's dedicated to women veterans and in memory of the 22 service men and women we lose to suicide everyday.

❤️

🙏🏾

Learn more www.empowermiwomenvets.com

Homeless Female Veterans: Undercounted and Underserved

Army veteran LouAnn Hazelwood was fleeing her second abusive marriage when she found one of the nation's few transitional programs for homless female veterans.

The federal government estimates that on any given night, 3,000 to 4,000 female veterans are homeless.

But that estimate is probably on the low side, according to Sara Scoco, who directs the Women's Program of the nonprofit group Soldier On.

"When people are doing homeless counts, they're going to shelters, they're seeing people on the street," Scoco said. "A female veteran is not the person you see on the street holding a sign."

VFW- Financial Grants

We understand the challenges veterans, service members and military families can face and believe that experiencing financial difficulties should not be one of them. That's the premise behind the VFW's Unmet Needs program.

Unmet Needs is there to help America's military families who have run into unexpected financial difficulties as a result of deployment or other military-related activity or injury. The program provides financial aid of up to $5,000 to assist with basic life needs in the form of a grant -not a loan- so no repayment is required. To further ease the burden, we pay the creditor directly.

Read more...
https://www.vfw.org/assistance/financial-grants

VA drops goal of zero homeless veterans

WASHINGTON — The new Veterans Affairs administration is backing off the department’s 7-year-old target of reaching zero homeless veterans across America, but insists they aren’t giving up on the cause.

In an interview with Military Times this week, VA Secretary David Shulkin said he no longer sees zero as “the right goal” for his department’s efforts, and instead is focused on cutting the current number of homeless veterans down from about 40,000 to somewhere below 15,000.

Read more...

http://www.militarytimes.com/articles/va-zero-homeless-veterans-goal-changes

Gulf War Syndrome – Washington's Dirty Little Secret

In November of 2008, the Committee on Gulf Conflict Veterans' Sicknesses offered a 450 web page report back to Secretary of Veterans Affairs James Peake. The report said that the Gulf Conflict Syndrome (GWS), beforehand dismissed as a psychosomatic dysfunction, is a really actual sickness affecting between 25-50% of the 700,000 US Veterans who participated within the 1991 Gulf Conflict.

Read more...
http://erbilcompanies.com/gulf-war-syndrome-washingtons-dirty-little-secret.html

Women Vets Take Aim at a New Target: Public Office

Mikie Sherrill has never run for office. But after piloting Navy rescue missions to places like the Persian Gulf, Italy and Bahrain, where the heat and humidity rattle the helicopter engine and the only thing you can count on is your calculation that you've brought along enough fuel to save lives — she feels up to the challenge.

"You're always on the edge of your seat," Sherrill said of her nearly 10 years serving as one of the military's few female pilots. "I think my experience gives voters a certain sense of comfort that I can do the job."

Read more....
http://www.nbcnews.com/politics/politics-news/women-vets-take-aim-new-target-public-office-n765151

VA has a woman problem. It starts with its motto.

The Department of Veterans Affairs has a woman problem. Need evidence? Look no further than its motto: “To care for him who shall have borne the battle and for his widow, and his orphan.”

That motto — engraved on plaques outside VA buildings across the country, featured proudly in VA presentations and on the agency’s website — comes from President Abraham Lincoln’s Second Inaugural Address. It was an eloquent and well-meaning statement in its time. But the face of U.S. troops, and veterans, has drastically changed since then.

Read more...
https://www.washingtonpost.com/posteverything/wp/2017/05/29/va-motto/?utm_term=.8cc23517de1b

Allegiant Air offers free services to veterans, active military

ROANOKE, VA (WFXR) – The Roanoke-Blacksburg Regional Airport has announced a new partnership with Allegiant Air.

The “Allegiant Honors” program will support members and veterans of the United States military with free services when they fly with Allegiant.

The services include being allowed three pieces of checked baggage, one carry-on bag, one pet in cabin, courtesy boarding pass printing at the airport and free seat assignments, pending availability.

Read more...
http://wjhl.com/2017/05/25/allegiant-air-offers-free-services-to-veterans-active-military/

MILITARY JUSTICE FOR ALL

Army Pfc LaVena Johnson Died of Non Combat Related Injuries in Iraq, Death Ruled Suicide But Independent Autopsy Revealed Rape & Murder (2005)

Posted on July 19, 2005 by Jennifer Norris

Honoring Pfc LaVena Johnson @USArmy (2005)

To many Americans, Memorial Day has lost its meaning

ANNVILLE, Pa. — Allison Jaslow heard it more than once as the long holiday weekend approached — a cheerful "Happy Memorial Day!" from oblivious well-wishers.

The former Army captain and Iraq War veteran had a ready reply, telling them, matter-of-factly, that she considered it a work weekend. Jaslow will be at Arlington National Cemetery on Monday to take part in the annual wreath-laying ceremony at the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier. She'll then visit Section 60, the final resting place of many service members who died in Iraq and Afghanistan.