Are we failing our veterans? Veterans lawyers and top officials agree; the answer is yes. In fact, recent scandals at VA hospitals are just the tip of the iceberg — and veterans are suffering and hurting in ways that most do not realize. What is one of the most troubling areas? Veterans’ mental health is extremely poor, and very few have access to treatment and recovery programs for common conditions, such as post traumatic stress disorder.
U.S. Veterans Depressed; More Vets Committing Suicide Than Ever Before
Every day, 22 U.S. veterans commit suicide. Experts suspect that number is actually low — or an underestimate — as many likely go unreported. What can the government do about it? According to new research, post traumatic stress disorder help is falling troublesomely short. Current programs promise help for only five years. Symptoms of post traumatic stress disorder and military trauma, however, can take seven to 12 years to truly develop, according to researchers. Something as simple as extending these programs could easily save lives.
What More Can We — Should We — Do?
Veterans lawyers, veterans advocates, and scientists are teaming up to give vets struggling and/or recovering from mental health conditions more options. In addition to standard medications and talk therapy, researchers are exploring an array of possibilities, such as distraction therapy, therapy animals, and even small, non-invasive brain implants. Small brain implants, for example, would send tiny and harmless electrical signals into the brain’s nerves to ease depression and/or prevent flashbacks. Distraction therapy, on the other hand, draws the mind away from damaging memories. “Focusing on a highly engaging visual-spatial task, such as playing video games [especially Tetris], may significantly reduce the occurrence of flashbacks, the mental images concerning the trauma that intrude on the sufferer afterward,” LiveScience explains.
Veterans lawyers and veterans attorneys agree; VA mental health programs and related VA disability benefits are severely lacking. Find out more at this site: www.hillandponton.com