The New Veterans Administration

 
I want to talk about the Veterans Administration, our newVA. Obama has increase spending in to VA about 20%, or about 60 billion dollars since 2009. Just this year they have completed digitizing all of thier medical records. I now have a personal dashboard for all of my medical. MyVET dashboard holds all of my vitals, blood test, medications, entire medical history including my military record. It has a history of all of my medications, where these medicines are ordered online and then mail to me. I have assigned to me a Doctor, RN, and a LPN. I can email them anytime, day or night, through MyVet dashboard. I have check ups every 4 months. I am tested on every visit, for among other things, prostate cancer and kidney cancer, as this is what Mom and Dad died of. I am not going to wake up one day and find out I am in stage 4 cancer. I am diebetic, which requires you to really take care of yourself. I wish I would have quit smoking sooner, my lungs are scarred from the smoking, but the lungs are still working ok. I am well taken care of at VA, and I am very thankful for this.

Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) Is something that is most talked about these days within VA, and military families. It is about those returning from war, with mental disorders. Suicide among our active duty and veterans are at and all time high. VA now have a PTSD phone app for PTSD patients, I find this very high tech for VA to have such a wonderful app to help these veterans. Families are now trained and prepared for their family members coming home from war.

PTSD is not new. When Vietnam Veterans returned home, they were alienated. This was a unpopular war. Most families were not trained in PTSD. People thought those vets were crazy. Long hair, smoke pot, I am sure that was to sedate themselves......hahaha!!...When I came home from the Marines, or made my way back to Springfield, MO, what family that was left there, left within a week. I still had a few friends left in Springfield, and I did what I was trained to do. Get a job, try to stay out of trouble, and live my life day by day, try to fit in.

Here is what happens. Once you are touched by the complexities of war, things seem to intensify in your life. You walk around like a short fuse on a firecracker. This intensity is something that most veterans have to live with all their lives. Your not going to like this monster I have become, I am not nice anymore, I find it hard to love another, I am selfish, and at times I don't care about you, or me anymore. There are some grey areas here, that you may have to fill in. I used to say, like a dog that kills another animal, he becomes rabid.

If you know a Veteran or have a family member in the military. Reach out to them. When they come home, hug them, engage with them, care for them, let them know you love them, help them fit back in and live a productive life after the war.

"Breathless".....Better Than Ezra