My mom always told me that it’s not right to bring up religion and politics at the dinner table; but this is the blogosphere, and I feel that on this Veterans Day it is my simple duty to pass this story along.
The LATimes ran a story about a young, Iraq veteran, James Blake Miller, who fought in the bitter battlegrounds of Falloujah in 2004.
If the name rings a bell, it’s because his photograph (taken by Luis Sinco, Times staff photographer), ‘Marlboro Marine,’ was used across the country to illustrate the frontlines of Iraq.
Miller has since returned home safely, but the images of Iraq still haunt him today.
I think about Iraq everyday, he said…
…What have we gained as a country? What have we actually accomplished, other than the loss of some damn, fine people?
Conventional journalism urges journalists not to get involved with the peoples’ lives they cover; but as an embedded journalist in Iraq, Luis Sinco feels responsible for Miller’s life and is helping him cope with adjusting to life at home. (Be sure to check out the full story and listen to the podcast.)
Miller is not alone.
Miller, like many veterans, returned home and cannot forget the nightmare of Iraq War.
- It is reported that more than 30 percent of Iraq veterans are suffering from Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder.
- Twenty-five percent of our nation’s homeless are Iraq war veterans.
So what is being done?
Resources are available for these veterans, but the reality is–there is no quick fix when it comes to mental health. Government funds do help lower therapy costs, but doesn’t always cover everything.
The next time I fret over a busy schedule I hope I will take a 
moment and remember how lucky I am to have the opportunities that I do.
To our veterans, thank you.
I am the friend of a 19-year-old female veteran of the war and a
receptionist at a mental health
office. Reading your post and Luis Sinco’s LATimes feature made my
heart ache for the veterans of our country who suffer from post
traumatic stress disorder and other mental health illnesses.
It’s funny how we Americans focus solely on bringing the troops home.
Their return to U.S. soil may bring a flood of relief, but we quickly
forget about the men and women upon his or her arrival. These people
have experienced moments that we will never understand, yet we do not
give them the resources needed to overcome their mental health problems.
According to the Nat
ional Institute of Mental Health, nearly 26.2 percent of Americans
over the age of 18 suffer from diagnosable mental disorders in a year.
This figure calculates to nearly 57.7 million U.S. residents.
I cannot count the number of PTSD sufferers that walk into my mental
health office each day. The stories of their experiences and pain make
me shudder. I am always encouraged to see the patients progress as
they work through their illnesses with the psychologists, psychiatrists
and licensed social workers on the Psycare staff. One of my favorite
patients has suffered from PTSD ever since she was held at gunpoint,
taken hostage and tortured during a large hospital raid. I have
watched her progress from being unable to sit in the waiting room
without shaking profusely to walking in with a smile and a batch of
cookies for her psychologist and the receptionists to share.
Although I would love to see more success stories, mental health
coverage is hard to come by. Some large insurance companies won’t pay
for mental health care, and many set large deductibles that force
patients to pay for the sessions individually. The insurance for
government workers, Tricare, is not widely accepted at many mental
health facilities, including PsyCare. Disabled people are eligible for
Medicaid benefits, but there is also an income maximum
of approximately $600 that the patients cannot exceed. This leaves
patients with the choice to pay for the sessions out-of-pocket. This
can get costly, as 45-minute sessions at PsyCare cost $80. Patients
often quit treatment after a few sessions for financial reasons. This
short period of time makes it difficult for clinicians to make a
breakthrough with the patient.
I can’t wait for the day when our veterans will be given the mental
health treatment they desperately need and deserve. Until then, I’ll
watch as potential success stories walk out of the PsyCare building
feeling as hopeless as they did when they first walked in.