On January 7, 2020 Iran launched a retaliatory attack on a US facility at Al Asad airbase in Iraq. The Iranian missile strike was in retaliation for the US drone strike which killed General Qasem Soleimani, the top military commander for Iran. After the missile attack directed at US military troops in Iraq the White House stated there were no injuries in the attack. After the dust had cleared it was discovered that up to 11 troops were flown out of the country to be treated for possible Traumatic Brain Injury (TBI). After the attacks on US troops by Iran there were multiple service members who displayed signs of having a TBI. TBI injuries can take weeks to be discovered, and it was not abnormal for the severity of the injuries to not be known until later. I will give a pass on the first statement by the White House because it is feasible that no major injuries were noted at the time. But later, after the incident had been sorted out, the White House was told of the injuries and the President discounted the injures service members TBI symptoms, he described the injuries as a headache. When asked about the injuries during a press conference the president said.
"I heard that they had headaches, and a couple of other things, but I would say,and I can report, it's not very serious," Trump replied
The reporter pressed, "So you don't consider potential traumatic brain injury serious?"
"They told me about it numerous days later, you'd have to ask Department of Defense," Trump replied.
The commander in chief continued, "I don't consider them very serious injuries relative to other injuries that I've seen."
"I've seen what Iran has done with their roadside bombs to our troops. I've seen people with no legs and with no arms. I've seen people that were horribly, horribly injured in that area, that war," Trump said.
"No, I do not consider that to be bad injuries, no," he added.
As a mental health professional, I was appalled that something so serious could be blown off by the president. I see the consequences of TBI and mTBI every day in my office. I have had to modify my office for my clients who have TBI. I presently have a client who the VA refuses to diagnose his TBI. He possesses every long-term symptom. It is well known that service members usually hide their symptoms or don’t even know they have TBI until years later. When asked most with TBI have trouble with short term memory, trouble with concentration, thinking clearly, headaches, sleep patterns, dizziness,sensitivity to light, balance issues or blurry vision. These are some of the long term affects of TBI and can be discounted and overlooked as something less serious. Concussion, also known as mild traumatic brain injury, mTBI, has been the most common serious injury to U.S. military personnel since 2000, with more than 408,000 cases diagnosed. Most who have been diagnoses with mTBI have had multiple concussions over their life and the accumulation can equal out to the same symptoms of TBI over time.
Most people who suffer from concussions can recover within seven to ten days with proper care. But we all know military service members don’t get the care they need, just like the president they look at it as a headache and don’t want to be labeled a whiner or a slacker. It is known that severe or multiple concussions can cause a host of other issues over time. According to the Department of Veterans affairs Boston Healthcare system the degeneration caused by the concussions can increase the chances for dementia, Alzheimer’s, Parkinson’s disease, and other neurological conditions causing a host of issues down the road. It is important these conditions get proper care when they happen. Because it is blown off by the president there is no wonder that TBI is not being taken seriously by the VA, DOD, or medical community. TBI and mTBI is the signature injury for the most recent wars. The blast and explosions faced from Improvised Explosive Devices (IED) are a key reason for large TBI and mTBI numbers in our service members.
It is important that the healthcare system take TBI and mTBI seriously. As usual itappears that the VA is behind in addressing this issue. Even though there are studies and research being conducted as I type, it is not helpful that the President of the United States discounts this serious injury as a headache because you can’t see it. The one thing I know for sure, TBI and mTBI is more serious than bone spurs.
Signs of TBI
Difficulty remembering new information (short term memory)
Difficulty concentration
Seizures
Throwing up after incident
Depression
Irritability
Changes in smell
Difficulty thinking clearly
Headaches
Abnormal sleep patterns
Dizziness
Sensitivity to light
Balance issues
Blurry vision