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October 6, 2008 7:31:31 PM CDT

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Stories related to: Iraq veterans

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  • August 2008

    • Troop Brain Injuries Often Overlooked

      New York Times  |  Aug 26, 08 2:29 AM CDT

      Troop Brain Injuries Often Overlooked

      (Newser) - An alarming number of US veterans are returning home from the Iraq and Afghanistan wars suffering long-term effects from concussions, the New York Time s reports. Half of those who have suffered concussions quickly recover, but others have symptoms—including memory loss and mood swings—that can resurface months after the injury. More »

      Tags

      US military  • veterans  • PTSD  • Iraq veterans  • Afghanistan veterans  • brain injuries  • concussions

  • July 2008

    • Vets Slipping Into the Bottle

      New York Times  |  Jul 8, 08 5:36 AM CDT

      Vets Slipping Into the Bottle

      (Newser) - A rise in alcohol abuse among Iraq and Afghanistan veterans is worrying military officials, the New York Times reports. Counseling services for vets suffering post-traumatic stress disorder are stretched to the limit and many tormented former soldiers are turning instead to the bottle. The increase in binge drinking, and a smaller rise in illegal drug use, is blamed for a rise in crimes and other misconduct involving veterans. More »

      Tags

      US military  • PTSD  • Iraq veterans  • alcoholism  • substance abuse  • Afghanistan veterans

  • May 2008

    • 'Virtual Iraq' Helps Vets Face Stress

      New Yorker  |  May 18, 08 5:14 AM CDT

      'Virtual Iraq' Helps Vets Face Stress

      (Newser) - Therapists are plunging US war veterans back into the horrors of battle—as therapy. A virtual reality treatment is helping them cope with post-traumatic stress disorder by returning them to scarring events until their shock value wanes. "When the ground starts vibrating and you smell smoke and hear the AK-47 firing, it becomes very real," said one veteran. "When it was over, I’d go home and cry.” More »

      Tags

      veterans  • PTSD  • Iraq veterans  • Vietnam veteran  • therapy  • virtual reality  • Afghanistan veterans  • cognitive behavioral therapy

    • VA Doctor Discouraged Post-Traumatic Diagnoses

      Washington Post  |  May 16, 08 9:55 AM CDT

      VA Doctor Discouraged Post-Traumatic Diagnoses

      (Newser) - A team leader at a veterans' medical center in Texas sent staffers an email urging them to avoid diagnosing post-traumatic stress disorder, the Washington Post reports. "Given that we are having more and more compensation-seeking veterans, I'd like to suggest that you refrain from giving a diagnosis of PTSD straight out," wrote the psychologist, suggesting a milder condition be diagnosed instead. More »

    • 'Sorry' Gates: We Let Down Our Soldiers

      Reuters  |  May 2, 08 7:04 AM CDT

      'Sorry' Gates: We Let Down Our Soldiers

      (Newser) - Defense Secretary Robert Gates admitted yesterday that the US military made mistakes in taking care of soldiers back from Afghanistan and Iraq, reports Reuters. He said he regretted that veterans had received inadequate care for physical and mental problems, particularly those suffering from post-traumatic stress disorder. Gates also acknowledged that not all returning soldiers have obtained suitable housing. More »

      Tags

      US military  • Robert Gates  • veterans  • PTSD  • Iraq veterans  • veterans' health care  • Afghanistan veterans

  • April 2008

    • Soldier Laid to Rest After 4 Years

      Cincinnati Enquirer  |  Apr 28, 08 10:27 AM CDT

      Soldier Laid to Rest After 4 Years

      (Newser) - Thousands attended emotional memorial services over the weekend for an Ohio Army reservist whose remains made the journey home 4 years after he was captured in Iraq. Ten thousand filed past Staff Sgt. Matt Maupin's casket, and 3,000 attended a ceremony at Great American Ball Park in Cincinnati yesterday, before a private ceremony in which he was buried next to five others killed in Iraq. More »

      Tags

      Iraq  • obituary  • veterans  • Iraq death toll  • funeral  • Iraq veterans  • military funeral  • Matt Maupin

    • Mental Disorders Huge Issue for US Troops

      Associated Press  |  Apr 17, 08 3:40 PM CDT

      Mental Disorders Huge Issue for US Troops

      (Newser) - 300,000 veterans of the Iraq and Afghanistan wars have either post-traumatic stress disorder or major depression, and another 320,000 suffered brain injuries, the AP reports. RAND Corporation, in the first private evaluation of mental injury from the conflicts, found 18.5% of combat troops suffered from major depression or PTSD. "There is a major health crisis facing those who have served," said a researcher. More »

      Tags

      Iraq war  • health care  • Afghanistan war  • PTSD  • Iraq veterans  • traumatic brain injury  • brain injuries

  • March 2008

    • Nonprofit Builds Free Houses for Wounded Vets

      Christian Science Monitor  |  Mar 20, 08 3:53 PM CDT

      Nonprofit Builds Free Houses for Wounded Vets

      (Newser) - A nonprofit group is putting up customized homes for badly injured vets returning from Iraq and Afghanistan, the Christian Science Monitor reports. Massachusetts-based Homes for Our Troops is building in 20 states, fueled by donated supplies, land, and labor. “When a vet is in need, people come out of everywhere to help,” the contractor-turned-founder says. More »

      Tags

      Iraq war  • military  • soldier  • Iraq veterans  • volunteer  • Afghanistan veterans  • wounded  • injured

  • February 2008
  • January 2008

    • Homeless Vets Spark Outcry: Haven't We Learned?

      Associated Press  |  Jan 20, 08 4:22 PM CST

      Homeless Vets Spark Outcry: Haven't We Learned?

      (Newser) - Iraq war veterans are suffering from stress, turning to alcohol, and falling into poverty—a fate that prompts some to ask whether the US has learned from tragedies of veterans past. Washington has identified 1,500 Iraq vets as homeless and helped about a third, but echoes of Vietnam persist among activists. "I'm like, wait, wait, hold it, we did this before," one said. "I don't know how our society can allow this to happen again." More »

      Tags

      Iraq war  • Afghanistan  • US military  • mental illness  • PTSD  • Iraq veterans  • homeless

    • PTSD: Vets Wage Internal Wars

      New York Times  |  Jan 13, 08 10:04 PM CST

      PTSD: Vets Wage Internal Wars

      (Newser) - Records of post-traumatic stress disorder go as far back as The Odyssey, and Iraq veterans are adding to the list. Combat trauma has been repeatedly linked with rates of unemployment, substance abuse, domestic violence and criminality above the national average. Yet  PTSD victims aren't getting the treatment they need, and often end up behind bars, the New York Times reports. More »

      Tags

      Iraq  • veterans  • mental health  • PTSD  • Iraq veterans