Women Are In Combat

At a veteran’s event I was talking to a Lara a female employee of the Veterans Administration (VA). We spent a lot of time talking about issues within the system. She had served 10 years in the Army before she was medically retired due to her Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD). Like most people I assumed her PTSD was from a sexual assault. I was wrong, she had combat PTSD. She explained that my assumption was a major reason many female veterans will not reach out for mental health services or file a claim for PTSD because of the shame associated with sexual assault. I assumed that any female who has PTSD must have gotten it from sexual assault not combat, I assumed incorrectly.

I have said in past columns that I have yet to meet a female veteran who had not at a minimum been sexually harassed. Lara continued to educate me and said I was the third person that she had heard the sexual assault assumption from.  Lara informed me she had not been sexually harassed or assaulted during her time in the Army. We continued to talk and she told me that most people still struggle to believe that female veterans served in combat, let alone getting PTSD from a combat experience. Lara explained how a struggling a female veteran she knew could have gotten a 100% disability rating if she included her combat PTSD. She refused to include PTSD in her claim for fear people would assume her PTSD was from a sexual assault not combat, she did not want to deal with the shame associated with people assuming she was sexually assaulted. She did not want to be seen by society or other veterans as a victim.  

Lara continued educating me on her experiences and discussed how she had been struggling for quite a while because there are no groups for female veterans with combat PTSD. She tried to go to a combat PTSD group and an older veteran asked what was she doing there, women can’t have combat PTSD, women don’t serve in combat! That is a huge misnomer. There has been over 800 women wounded and 130 who gave the ultimate sacrifice since the wars started in 2001.

Recently women have been ok’d for combat, even some who have made it through Ranger school. Female veterans see combat whether society likes to admit it or not. In the past women were not trained for combat but they continued to take on rolls that place them in the line of fire during support missions. Women have been in convoys since day one of our recent wars. On today’s battlefield women receive and return fire. One of the most effective ways for our enemy to do damage to our psyche is road side bombs or Improvised Explosive Devices (IED). These tactics focus on convoys, and females are a part of them, leaving them susceptible to combat just like their male counterparts.

Female veterans need and deserve the same treatment males get for their psychological issues. According to Lara female veterans do not like to attend combat groups because most of them are full of older veterans who have not seen or believe women should be in combat. These females have earned and deserve their own groups for PTSD. The numbers of female veterans speak for themselves. They were 1.9% of casualties and 2.4% of all deaths. More than 280,000 women have served in OIF/OEF and they now make up to 20% of new recruits. Females are 14.5% of the 1.4 million in the military and 18% of the 850,000 reservist. Many of these women have been directly exposed to combat and have earned the benefits.

The center for women veterans was established by congress in November 1994. There has been little done for women veterans until recently when they started to fight for their rights. I have had several conversations with the Women Veterans Program Coordinator at the Loma Linda VA about women’s issues. She is working hard to make the Loma Linda VA a safe place for female veterans to go. I have sent several of my female clients to the Loma Linda VA women’s clinic and they have been happy with the care and services they have received.

Our women veterans deserve to be treated just like male veterans and have the same benefits from the VA. If you are a female veteran or know one, please visit or support the women’s clinics at the VA. The VA Loma Linda Healthcare System offers a variety of health services to address the unique needs of female veterans. Look to see if your local VA has a female veteran’s clinic. Female veterans have earned the right to the same benefits male counterparts receive, take advantage of them. The more female veterans utilize their clinic the more the funding will increase. Don’t be scared to get what you have earned. Don’t let others assumptions stop you from getting what you deserve.

For questions or comments, I can be reached at afterdutyvets@gmail.com or visit our website at marriedtoptsdpro.com and like us on Facebook at Married to PTSD Pro.

The VA Sends Veterans but Not Funding to Local Nonprofits

I was working with Angie Sheer, founder of Equus Medendi (Latin for Horse Healing) Equine Therapy and Martin, an Iraqi war veteran. Martin, was the squad leader of patrol in Iraq with his unit when they hit an Improvised Explosive Device (IED) and simultaneously attacked with small arms fire. Martin had lost 3 of his troops and was injured himself during the attack. He was in the Nevada Army National Guard and had a good job before his tour to Iraq. He has 5 children and is 100% disabled due to his back, & leg injury, Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD), and Traumatic Brain Injury (TBI). He has lost his civilian job due to his injuries and struggles allot with his family. His temper has become a problem for everyone in his family because of his PTSD and TBI. His circle of friends has gotten smaller and he feels his world is closing in on him. Every time Martin and his family needed to go somewhere he struggled with the traffic and overpasses because of his triggers. When he hears loud noises he panics and struggles to come back to the present. While driving down the interstate he heard a loud noise in a construction zone and almost wrecked his car with his family in it, his story is not uncommon. There are thousands of veterans that suffer just like Martin.

There are allot of different treatments that help our veterans and their families, equine therapy is one of them. Anxiety is a huge issue among veterans who have seen combat. Because a horse is a flight animal and humans are carnivore’s horses have the ability to sense any anxiety in a person. The horse by nature picks up on the anxiety or nerviness in the clients and senses it as danger. The horse will not allow the clients to hide their anxiety, causing the veteran to learn how to control their anxiety. The horse is a 1200 pound lie detector, when someone says their anxiety is under control the horse will know if your lying and act accordingly. Once the clients have control of their anxiety the horses can begin to trust the veteran. One of the main goals is to build trust in the relationship between the horse and the clients to work together to reach more extensive goals. This is impossible if the anxiety is not under control.  

Because PTSD is an anxiety disorder horses are instrumental in the recovery of some clients. Many veterans lose their social and communication skills due to their PTSD and the horse helps the veteran re-build those lost skills. If the horse senses any anxiety or stress they will not come near the client, they must control their stress level and anxiety for the horse to “partner up” with them, or follow your lead to complete other tasks.   

It is imperative that each horse be a good match for the client’s. Like people every horse has their own personality. During the orientation process the clinician and the equine specialist discuss the client’s story with them and what they are looking for in the equine therapeutic process. After the initial meeting, the equine specialist and the clinician choose which horse is the best for that client.   

Equus Medendi has multiple horse owners that allow Angie to use their horses to work with veterans. Angie has eight horses to choose from. Two of the horses were abused retired race horses and have built in trust issues. Two are stubborn and the client must work to convince the horse to do what the client wants them to do. One horse struggles with boundaries and likes to be with the client and in their face, one is just a brat, one is a mustang born wild and broken as a colt, and one is an alpha female with attitude. Angie was trained by Monty Roberts AKA “the Horse whisperer” She was also trained in Eagala therapy making her good at what she does.

Since the founding of Equus Medendi they have seen several hundred veterans and family members. Of those 75 to 100 veterans have been sent by the VA. In many instances they are some of the toughest cases. Martin was one of those cases. He had been through several different programs the VA has offered.  At times, many clinicians have tough cases that show little if no improvement. When Martin was sent to the equine program he was struggling. When he had finished the equine program he had improved enough to give clinicians a starting point to complete his traditional therapy sessions. The problem is the VA sends Veterans to the equine program, but sends no resources or funds to support the program.

The funding for the services come from many sources, people donate to the program and apply for grants. Equus Medendi pride themselves in never having to charge a veteran for their services. The VA has been reluctant to fund the program even though research has proven equine therapy has proven effective. There are some VA’s that fund programs like equine, but each VA is different and some place their funds elsewhere. Many non-profits struggle to financially make ends meet with little to no monetary funds from the Government. Often the VA wants to utilize non-profits and not fund them, which is the case with Equus Medendi. Since the VA can’t see everyone it would make sense to fund outside sources who treat veterans, but why should they, folks like Angie do it for free. Please support your local veteran non-profits to help fill the cracks in the VA mental health system.

For questions or comments, I can be reached at afterdutyvets@gmail.com or visit our website at marriedtoptsdpro.com and like us on Facebook at Married to PTSD Pro. 

Women Are In Combat

At a veteran’s event I was talking to a Lara a female employee of the Veterans Administration (VA). We spent a lot of time talking about issues within the system. She had served 10 years in the Army before she was medically retired due to her Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD). Like most people I assumed her PTSD was from a sexual assault. I was wrong, she had combat PTSD. She explained that my assumption was a major reason many female veterans will not reach out for mental health services or file a claim for PTSD because of the shame associated with sexual assault. I assumed that any female who has PTSD must have gotten it from sexual assault not combat, I assumed incorrectly.

I have said in past columns that I have yet to meet a female veteran who had not at a minimum been sexually harassed. Lara continued to educate me and said I was the third person that she had heard the sexual assault assumption from.  Lara informed me she had not been sexually harassed or assaulted during her time in the Army. We continued to talk and she told me that most people still struggle to believe that female veterans served in combat, let alone getting PTSD from a combat experience. Lara explained how a struggling a female veteran she knew could have gotten a 100% disability rating if she included her combat PTSD. She refused to include PTSD in her claim for fear people would assume her PTSD was from a sexual assault not combat, she did not want to deal with the shame associated with people assuming she was sexually assaulted. She did not want to be seen by society or other veterans as a victim.  

Lara continued educating me on her experiences and discussed how she had been struggling for quite a while because there are no groups for female veterans with combat PTSD. She tried to go to a combat PTSD group and an older veteran asked what was she doing there, women can’t have combat PTSD, women don’t serve in combat! That is a huge misnomer. There has been over 800 women wounded and 130 who gave the ultimate sacrifice since the wars started in 2001.

Recently women have been ok’d for combat, even some who have made it through Ranger school. Female veterans see combat whether society likes to admit it or not. In the past women were not trained for combat but they continued to take on rolls that place them in the line of fire during support missions. Women have been in convoys since day one of our recent wars. On today’s battlefield women receive and return fire. One of the most effective ways for our enemy to do damage to our psyche is road side bombs or Improvised Explosive Devices (IED). These tactics focus on convoys, and females are a part of them, leaving them susceptible to combat just like their male counterparts.

Female veterans need and deserve the same treatment males get for their psychological issues. According to Lara female veterans do not like to attend combat groups because most of them are full of older veterans who have not seen or believe women should be in combat. These females have earned and deserve their own groups for PTSD. The numbers of female veterans speak for themselves. They were 1.9% of casualties and 2.4% of all deaths. More than 280,000 women have served in OIF/OEF and they now make up to 20% of new recruits. Females are 14.5% of the 1.4 million in the military and 18% of the 850,000 reservist. Many of these women have been directly exposed to combat and have earned the benefits.

The center for women veterans was established by congress in November 1994. There has been little done for women veterans until recently when they started to fight for their rights. I have had several conversations with the Women Veterans Program Coordinator at the Loma Linda VA about women’s issues. She is working hard to make the Loma Linda VA a safe place for female veterans to go. I have sent several of my female clients to the Loma Linda VA women’s clinic and they have been happy with the care and services they have received.

Our women veterans deserve to be treated just like male veterans and have the same benefits from the VA. If you are a female veteran or know one, please visit or support the women’s clinics at the VA. The VA Loma Linda Healthcare System offers a variety of health services to address the unique needs of female veterans. Look to see if your local VA has a female veteran’s clinic. Female veterans have earned the right to the same benefits male counterparts receive, take advantage of them. The more female veterans utilize their clinic the more the funding will increase. Don’t be scared to get what you have earned. Don’t let others assumptions stop you from getting what you deserve.

For questions or comments, I can be reached at afterdutyvets@gmail.com or visit our website at marriedtoptsdpro.com and like us on Facebook at Married to PTSD Pro.

The VA Sends Veterans But Not Funding to Local Nonprofits

I was working with Angie Sheer, founder of Equus Medendi (Latin for Horse Healing) Equine Therapy and Martin, an Iraqi war veteran. Martin, was the squad leader of patrol in Iraq with his unit when they hit an Improvised Explosive Device (IED) and simultaneously attacked with small arms fire. Martin had lost 3 of his troops and was injured himself during the attack. He was in the Nevada Army National Guard and had a good job before his tour to Iraq. He has 5 children and is 100% disabled due to his back, & leg injury, Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD), and Traumatic Brain Injury (TBI). He has lost his civilian job due to his injuries and struggles allot with his family. His temper has become a problem for everyone in his family because of his PTSD and TBI. His circle of friends has gotten smaller and he feels his world is closing in on him. Every time Martin and his family needed to go somewhere he struggled with the traffic and overpasses because of his triggers. When he hears loud noises he panics and struggles to come back to the present. While driving down the interstate he heard a loud noise in a construction zone and almost wrecked his car with his family in it, his story is not uncommon. There are thousands of veterans that suffer just like Martin.

There are allot of different treatments that help our veterans and their families, equine therapy is one of them. Anxiety is a huge issue among veterans who have seen combat. Because a horse is a flight animal and humans are carnivore’s horses have the ability to sense any anxiety in a person. The horse by nature picks up on the anxiety or nerviness in the clients and senses it as danger. The horse will not allow the clients to hide their anxiety, causing the veteran to learn how to control their anxiety. The horse is a 1200 pound lie detector, when someone says their anxiety is under control the horse will know if your lying and act accordingly. Once the clients have control of their anxiety the horses can begin to trust the veteran. One of the main goals is to build trust in the relationship between the horse and the clients to work together to reach more extensive goals. This is impossible if the anxiety is not under control.  

Because PTSD is an anxiety disorder horses are instrumental in the recovery of some clients. Many veterans lose their social and communication skills due to their PTSD and the horse helps the veteran re-build those lost skills. If the horse senses any anxiety or stress they will not come near the client, they must control their stress level and anxiety for the horse to “partner up” with them, or follow your lead to complete other tasks.   

It is imperative that each horse be a good match for the client’s. Like people every horse has their own personality. During the orientation process the clinician and the equine specialist discuss the client’s story with them and what they are looking for in the equine therapeutic process. After the initial meeting, the equine specialist and the clinician choose which horse is the best for that client.   

Equus Medendi has multiple horse owners that allow Angie to use their horses to work with veterans. Angie has eight horses to choose from. Two of the horses were abused retired race horses and have built in trust issues. Two are stubborn and the client must work to convince the horse to do what the client wants them to do. One horse struggles with boundaries and likes to be with the client and in their face, one is just a brat, one is a mustang born wild and broken as a colt, and one is an alpha female with attitude. Angie was trained by Monty Roberts AKA “the Horse whisperer” She was also trained in Eagala therapy making her good at what she does.

Since the founding of Equus Medendi they have seen several hundred veterans and family members. Of those 75 to 100 veterans have been sent by the VA. In many instances they are some of the toughest cases. Martin was one of those cases. He had been through several different programs the VA has offered.  At times, many clinicians have tough cases that show little if no improvement. When Martin was sent to the equine program he was struggling. When he had finished the equine program he had improved enough to give clinicians a starting point to complete his traditional therapy sessions. The problem is the VA sends Veterans to the equine program, but sends no resources or funds to support the program.

The funding for the services come from many sources, people donate to the program and apply for grants. Equus Medendi pride themselves in never having to charge a veteran for their services. The VA has been reluctant to fund the program even though research has proven equine therapy has proven effective. There are some VA’s that fund programs like equine, but each VA is different and some place their funds elsewhere. Many non-profits struggle to financially make ends meet with little to no monetary funds from the Government. Often the VA wants to utilize non-profits and not fund them, which is the case with Equus Medendi. Since the VA can’t see everyone it would make sense to fund outside sources who treat veterans, but why should they, folks like Angie do it for free. Please support your local veteran non-profits to help fill the cracks in the VA mental health system.

For questions or comments, I can be reached at afterdutyvets@gmail.com or visit our website at marriedtoptsdpro.com and like us on Facebook at Married to PTSD Pro. 

VA Employees Don’t Feel Safe in Their Jobs

Most veterans that have walked into the Veterans Administration (VA) have felt there are people who work there don’t care. The reality is, most VA employees do care but are limited in what they can legally do.  Henry was a student of mine that works at the VA. He is retired from the Navy after serving over 24 years and wanted to continue serving by helping his brothers and sisters after retirement. Over time we had several discussions about the VA and how they operated. There were times he felt the need to discuss an issue with his superiors but was scared to for fear of losing his job. Whether his fear was real or perceived he did not feel safe. Henry felt trapped and limited to what he could do for hid patients. He worried that if he tried to change things or spoke up he might lose his job, if he didn’t do anything his fellow veteran might suffer. This is tough position to be in. Before we start blaming the individuals who work at the VA hospitals or the hospitals themselves, we need to look at the system they are forced to work in.     

We have all been appalled at the recent events at the VA. I have had the pleasure to know several employees at the Loma Linda VA. They are good people with a good heart. The problem is they don’t feel safe in their jobs and struggle to tell the truth about problems that exist. There are a lot of layers an employee must go through to reach someone that can make any changes, if changes can be changed at all. Many employees hesitate to “run something up the flag pole” for fear of being labeled a non-team player or trouble maker. This can make a VA employee’s life difficult at work if not cost them their job, so they do what their told and don’t make waves.

From an employee standpoint, they need to feel they can raise concern when warranted. The head of the VA hospital needs to let everyone know it’s safe and give credit to those who does what’s right and speaks up. Giving VA executives bonuses for doing their job seems inappropriate. It would be difficult for anyone to “not fudge the numbers” for the bonus, its human nature.  Why doesn’t the VA pay executives a set wage and incorporate the bonuses into their pay? Why tempt someone to cheat? These are questions only congress can answer. Issues between veterans and congress go back to the 1780’s. What we are hearing now about the VA is nothing new, every decade has had its problems. Congress makes the rules the employees must adhere to. Congresses inability to delegate power to VA management is a major part of the problem.   

Ex-secretary of defense Robert Gates discussed in his book “Duty” how entrenched the personnel employed by the VA are to their norm. He feels the people at the VA are generally good people but the system is broken. As Secretary Gates pointed out, congress hold allot of the blame when it comes to the VA system, it literally takes an act of congress to make any changes within the system, which basically means good luck. Since secretary Gate’s book has been released congress has attempted to make some changes.

The feeling of safety starts at the top. The President, Congress, The Secretary of Veterans affairs, and individual hospital administrators need to provide a feeling of safety for the employees when they raise an issue with the system. One of the major complaints from veterans is many employees at the VA are not veterans themselves. Veteran members of congress has dropped drastically from a peak of 80% in 1977 to 19% in 2013. The VA also employees a large quantity of civilians, fueling the debate. Money is not the problem, employees not feeling safe in their work environment is a huge part of the problem. Its time congress removes politics from the VA and put the right people in place to make the VA a safe place to receive care and work. Congress is the only ones that can make the drastic changes that the VA needs. Congress needs to give the power to make changes to the people who operate the VA and hold them accountable. It’s time to get the politics out of the VA.  

For questions or comments, I can be reached at afterdutyvets@gmail.com or visit our website at marriedtoptsdpro.com and like us on Facebook at Married to PTSD Pro.

Brown Water Veterans Can Get Benefits

I was contacted by a Vietnam Navy veteran and encouraged me to write about brown water veterans and the Veterans Administration (VA). Brown water veterans are Vietnam War veterans that served on vessels and never officially set foot on Vietnamese soil. They served on ships that operated on the coast or inland deltas of Vietnam. To most of society brown water veterans service in Vietnam is a no brainer and deserve their benefits. It took until 1991 for congress to passed a law requiring the VA to cover all illnesses directly related to Agent orange exposure in Vietnam, this included brown water veterans. This allowed brown water veterans to finally file for compensation for disabilities connected to Agent Orange.

In 2002 the George W. Bush administration changed the rules for military veterans concerning Agent Orange and their brown water service. It required veterans who filed for Agent Orange compensation to meet the “boots on the ground” rule established by the administration and passed by congress. With the change in the rule a veteran had to step foot in Vietnam in order to meet the Agent Orange requirement. This was problematic for some veterans because the never “officially” set foot on Vietnamese soil. Because of this ruling the George W. Bush administration stripped Navy personnel who had been receiving compensation unless they could prove they met the boots on the ground requirement.

In August 2006 The U.S. Court of Appeals for Veteran Claims decided the Veterans Affairs requirement for “boots on the ground” as the definition of “service in the Republic of Vietnam” is unreasonable, and does not align with Congress's intent. This meant that any “brown water veteran” who served in Vietnam may be eligible for benefits. Many brown water veterans have given up on applying for benefits. Its time they rethink their strategies and reapply if they are eligible.  

There are ways to prove you served in a brown water area. One of those is the deck logs of the vessels you served on. Once Senator Akaka from Hawaii found out about the brown water veteran’s situation and summoned his staff to investigate the denial of their claims. Senator Akaka’s staff’s research found from 150 to 170 Navy vessels that were presumed to be exposed to Agent Orange because they operated off the coast or in Vietnamese waters. This list was sent to the veteran’s affairs office for review. Senator Akaka’s staff also found many cases in which the VA regional offices did not request the deck logs from the National Archives of those filing an Agent Orange claim. These deck logs would have produced the needed information to accept the claim of these veterans.

Senator Akaka who was serving as the chairman of the Senate Affairs Committee asked the VA to take another look at the Navy Veterans claims who served in Vietnams rivers, inland waterways, or docked in Vietnam. According to the information Senator Akaka’s staff found these veterans should be presumed to have Agent Orange exposure entitling them to compensation if they met the medical criteria set by the VA.  The US Navy confirmed Navy veterans who submitted deck logs with their claims should see faster results. With proof of service in Vietnam’s inland waters or time on shore, “the only issue is, ‘What disability do you have?’ and ‘What’s the current level of (that) disability?”

With the VA backlog it will speed up the process if the veterans advocate or the veteran themselves comb the deck logs of the ships to find the needed information. The easiest way to support your Agent Orange claim is to show you were on a ship that meets the criteria. It is crucial that there is proof in your VA Claims File (C-File) that you were on that vessel during the time in question. Make sure you get a copy of your C-File for your records (the VA has been known to lose paperwork in their bureaucracy). If your ship is not on the DOD list, you can request the deck logs of your ship from the Naval or National Archives. These logs should be able to confirm the dates and times of the missions of that ship. From those deck logs brown water veterans should be able to find information that will validate your claim.     

Some veterans feel it is not worth the time to dig through the paperwork needed to support their claim. My question is, can you use an extra $133.00 at 10% disability up to $3000.00 at 100% disability per month. One major reason for you to research your own deck log information is according to my sources, the personnel at the claims department have little or no medical experience and don’t spend the time needed to help you with your claim. They are just overwhelmed.   

If the military caused your disability you have earned the right to receive disability compensation. Brown water veterans have been left out of the Agent Orange conversation for years. It took a US Army veteran congressman to work toward getting Naval brown water veterans Agent Orange compensation approved. If you are a veteran and having medical issues centered around Agent Orange I challenge you to file a claim for what your government did to you without your knowledge.

The Following is a list of medical issues caused by Agent Orange exposure 

AL Amyloidosis

Chronic B-cell Leukemias

Chloracne (or similar acneform disease)

Diabetes Mellitus Type 2

Hodgkin's Disease

Ischemic Heart Disease
Multiple Myeloma

Non-Hodgkin's Lymphoma
Parkinson's Disease

Peripheral Neuropathy, Early-Onset
Porphyria Cutanea Tarda

Prostate Cancer

Respiratory Cancers (includes lung cancer)

Soft Tissue Sarcomas

For questions or comments, I can be reached at afterdutyvets@gmail.com or visit our website at marriedtoptsdpro.com and like us on Facebook at Married to PTSD Pro.

Women Are In Combat

At a veteran’s event I was talking to a Lara a female employee of the Veterans Administration (VA). We spent a lot of time talking about issues within the system. She had served 10 years in the Army before she was medically retired due to her Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD). Like most people I assumed her PTSD was from a sexual assault. I was wrong, she had combat PTSD. She explained that my assumption was a major reason many female veterans will not reach out for mental health services or file a claim for PTSD because of the shame associated with sexual assault. I assumed that any female who has PTSD must have gotten it from sexual assault not combat, I assumed incorrectly.

I have said in past columns that I have yet to meet a female veteran who had not at a minimum been sexually harassed. Lara continued to educate me and said I was the third person that she had heard the sexual assault assumption from.  Lara informed me she had not been sexually harassed or assaulted during her time in the Army. We continued to talk and she told me that most people still struggle to believe that female veterans served in combat, let alone getting PTSD from a combat experience. Lara explained how a struggling a female veteran she knew could have gotten a 100% disability rating if she included her combat PTSD. She refused to include PTSD in her claim for fear people would assume her PTSD was from a sexual assault not combat, she did not want to deal with the shame associated with people assuming she was sexually assaulted. She did not want to be seen by society or other veterans as a victim.  

Lara continued educating me on her experiences and discussed how she had been struggling for quite a while because there are no groups for female veterans with combat PTSD. She tried to go to a combat PTSD group and an older veteran asked what was she doing there, women can’t have combat PTSD, women don’t serve in combat! That is a huge misnomer. There has been over 800 women wounded and 130 who gave the ultimate sacrifice since the wars started in 2001.

Recently women have been ok’d for combat, even some who have made it through Ranger school. Female veterans see combat whether society likes to admit it or not. In the past women were not trained for combat but they continued to take on rolls that place them in the line of fire during support missions. Women have been in convoys since day one of our recent wars. On today’s battlefield women receive and return fire. One of the most effective ways for our enemy to do damage to our psyche is road side bombs or Improvised Explosive Devices (IED). These tactics focus on convoys, and females are a part of them, leaving them susceptible to combat just like their male counterparts.

Female veterans need and deserve the same treatment males get for their psychological issues. According to Lara female veterans do not like to attend combat groups because most of them are full of older veterans who have not seen or believe women should be in combat. These females have earned and deserve their own groups for PTSD. The numbers of female veterans speak for themselves. They were 1.9% of casualties and 2.4% of all deaths. More than 280,000 women have served in OIF/OEF and they now make up to 20% of new recruits. Females are 14.5% of the 1.4 million in the military and 18% of the 850,000 reservist. Many of these women have been directly exposed to combat and have earned the benefits.

The center for women veterans was established by congress in November 1994. There has been little done for women veterans until recently when they started to fight for their rights. I have had several conversations with the Women Veterans Program Coordinator at the Loma Linda VA about women’s issues. She is working hard to make the Loma Linda VA a safe place for female veterans to go. I have sent several of my female clients to the Loma Linda VA women’s clinic and they have been happy with the care and services they have received.

Our women veterans deserve to be treated just like male veterans and have the same benefits from the VA. If you are a female veteran or know one, please visit or support the women’s clinics at the VA. The VA Loma Linda Healthcare System offers a variety of health services to address the unique needs of female veterans. Look to see if your local VA has a female veteran’s clinic. Female veterans have earned the right to the same benefits male counterparts receive, take advantage of them. The more female veterans utilize their clinic the more the funding will increase. Don’t be scared to get what you have earned. Don’t let others assumptions stop you from getting what you deserve.

For questions or comments, I can be reached at afterdutyvets@gmail.com or visit our website at marriedtoptsdpro.com and like us on Facebook at Married to PTSD Pro.

The VA Sends Veterans But Not Funding to Local Nonprofits

I was working with Angie Sheer, founder of Equus Medendi (Latin for Horse Healing) Equine Therapy and Martin, an Iraqi war veteran. Martin, was the squad leader of patrol in Iraq with his unit when they hit an Improvised Explosive Device (IED) and simultaneously attacked with small arms fire. Martin had lost 3 of his troops and was injured himself during the attack. He was in the Nevada Army National Guard and had a good job before his tour to Iraq. He has 5 children and is 100% disabled due to his back, & leg injury, Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD), and Traumatic Brain Injury (TBI). He has lost his civilian job due to his injuries and struggles allot with his family. His temper has become a problem for everyone in his family because of his PTSD and TBI. His circle of friends has gotten smaller and he feels his world is closing in on him. Every time Martin and his family needed to go somewhere he struggled with the traffic and overpasses because of his triggers. When he hears loud noises he panics and struggles to come back to the present. While driving down the interstate he heard a loud noise in a construction zone and almost wrecked his car with his family in it, his story is not uncommon. There are thousands of veterans that suffer just like Martin.

There are allot of different treatments that help our veterans and their families, equine therapy is one of them. Anxiety is a huge issue among veterans who have seen combat. Because a horse is a flight animal and humans are carnivore’s horses have the ability to sense any anxiety in a person. The horse by nature picks up on the anxiety or nerviness in the clients and senses it as danger. The horse will not allow the clients to hide their anxiety, causing the veteran to learn how to control their anxiety. The horse is a 1200 pound lie detector, when someone says their anxiety is under control the horse will know if your lying and act accordingly. Once the clients have control of their anxiety the horses can begin to trust the veteran. One of the main goals is to build trust in the relationship between the horse and the clients to work together to reach more extensive goals. This is impossible if the anxiety is not under control.  

Because PTSD is an anxiety disorder horses are instrumental in the recovery of some clients. Many veterans lose their social and communication skills due to their PTSD and the horse helps the veteran re-build those lost skills. If the horse senses any anxiety or stress they will not come near the client, they must control their stress level and anxiety for the horse to “partner up” with them, or follow your lead to complete other tasks.   

It is imperative that each horse be a good match for the client’s. Like people every horse has their own personality. During the orientation process the clinician and the equine specialist discuss the client’s story with them and what they are looking for in the equine therapeutic process. After the initial meeting, the equine specialist and the clinician choose which horse is the best for that client.   

Equus Medendi has multiple horse owners that allow Angie to use their horses to work with veterans. Angie has eight horses to choose from. Two of the horses were abused retired race horses and have built in trust issues. Two are stubborn and the client must work to convince the horse to do what the client wants them to do. One horse struggles with boundaries and likes to be with the client and in their face, one is just a brat, one is a mustang born wild and broken as a colt, and one is an alpha female with attitude. Angie was trained by Monty Roberts AKA “the Horse whisperer” She was also trained in Eagala therapy making her good at what she does.

Since the founding of Equus Medendi they have seen several hundred veterans and family members. Of those 75 to 100 veterans have been sent by the VA. In many instances they are some of the toughest cases. Martin was one of those cases. He had been through several different programs the VA has offered.  At times, many clinicians have tough cases that show little if no improvement. When Martin was sent to the equine program he was struggling. When he had finished the equine program he had improved enough to give clinicians a starting point to complete his traditional therapy sessions. The problem is the VA sends Veterans to the equine program, but sends no resources or funds to support the program.

The funding for the services come from many sources, people donate to the program and apply for grants. Equus Medendi pride themselves in never having to charge a veteran for their services. The VA has been reluctant to fund the program even though research has proven equine therapy has proven effective. There are some VA’s that fund programs like equine, but each VA is different and some place their funds elsewhere. Many non-profits struggle to financially make ends meet with little to no monetary funds from the Government. Often the VA wants to utilize non-profits and not fund them, which is the case with Equus Medendi. Since the VA can’t see everyone it would make since to fund outside sources who treat veterans, but why should they, folks like Angie do it for free. Please support your local veteran non-profits to help fill the cracks in the VA mental health system.

For questions or comments, I can be reached at afterdutyvets@gmail.com or visit our website at marriedtoptsdpro.com and like us on Facebook at Married to PTSD Pro.