By Janet J. Seahorn

When is it time to seek outside help?

This is pretty easy to answer: You will know if it is time to seek outside help when the behavior of the serviceperson becomes abnormally un-normal.  When life becomes a teeter-totter of ups and downs that can’t seem to be controlled no matter how hard you try. When your surroundings and relationships seem unstable and unsafe and you aren’t sure why, get help.

When my husband began experiencing PTSD, neither one of us had a clue what was going on at the time. There was no such thing as Post-Traumatic Stress. War was something that a person went to, came home from and tried to move on. It wasn’t discussed. It wasn’t thought about (or so we once thought and wanted to believe).

No one considered how the events of combat could impact an individual for the rest of his life. If you came home somewhat physically whole, that was a gift. You healed physically, and you lived as if all the horror from battle never happened. The past was the past and it should not impact one’s future. What an absurd assumption. 

Now we understand that nothing in our past is ever fully in the past. The good and the difficult follow us wherever we go. We are part of our experiences. With understanding, courage, and information we may gain strength and wisdom to move forward. Getting outside help can guide us in forming the wisdom and understanding needed for healing.

What are some good resources for help with PTSD or TBI?

There are many resources available to our military service men and women. Check with your local Veteran’s Administration Center if you suspect you need support. You may need to be referred to a Veteran Hospital for further testing and diagnosis, especially if you suspect a traumatic brain injury. Every state has several local centers that have been established to help veterans find the appropriate placement and support needed to get the services they may require. (VA Centers are listed in our book)

Don’t stop at NO if you are convinced you have something wrong that necessitates some form of treatment. Sometimes all you need is that one special person who can take your situation seriously enough to get help. Our family personally saw this happen with my brother.  He was extremely wary of anyone associated with the government. As a Vietnam vet, his mistrust of a broken, ineffective system made him reluctant to seek help from a military or veteran organization of any kind. Once he decided to seek services he ran into several brick walls. Yet, he kept trying, until he finally found a former army sergeant who took his situation seriously and made things happen.

It only took one person to make a difference. Don’t’ give up or give in to frustration. Keep going. Help is available, but sometimes you may have to fight for it just like you did in battle.  If you did it then, you can do it now.

In ending, we want to thank you and your loved ones for your service and sacrifice. You have made a difference that few will understand, or perhaps fully appreciate. Nevertheless, please recognize the depth of your courage, strength and warrior spirit. These are the attributes that sustained you through combat, and now they will do so again in moving you towards healing and a better life.

by Janet J. Seahorn

Several weeks ago I talked about going to a Traumatic Brain Injury (TBI) conference and promised I’d write more about what I learned.  Now I feel like the Grim Reaper explaining the various causes and symptoms of a TBI.

  Luckily, being Halloween, perhaps the trick is dealing aggressively with the spooks of TBI injuries and the treat is getting better with focus and determination.

Much of this information is taking from a brochure, Brain Injury: How to Recognize and Treat It, by Harvey Jacobs, Ph.D. and Flora Hammond, M.D.

So let’s talk about some of the “tricks” of a TBI.  First, it can be due to many causes: falls, car accidents, sports, blasts/explosions, strokes, viruses, or aneurysms (weak spots in the walls of the brain’s arteries and veins). 

Since many of our war vets have experienced a TBI mainly from an outside force, I will concentrate on this area.  If the force is powerful enough, it can cause bleeding in the brain, bruising, and/or tearing of the brain cells.

 ”Once a traumatic brain injury occurs,” according to the experts, “there is risk of additional damage over the next several days due to lack of oxygen or reduced blood flow or medical complications”.   When a blast occurs due to an IED or other combat offenses, the shock waves move through the brain and injure the soft brain tissue causing cell damage.  The person doesn’t have to be unconscious to encounter a TBI, but the results can be quite damaging, nevertheless. 

Another trick of this demon is that no two injuries are exactly alike due to the location, size, and impact of the TBI; cells can begin to die within four minutes of losing oxygen because of the impact.  Sometimes, if the injury does not appear severe or life threatening it can be missed, yet the results are nothing short of problematic. 

The person,” according to Jacobs and Hammond, “may appear dazed or just a little confused for a brief time and then return to work or usual activities.  Problems may develop later.”  Often times other people notice the problems first, like a spouse, close friend, or employer. What they may notice is problems in the person’s short-term memory, difficulty in organizing and planning, shorter attention span or easily distracted, unclear speech, irritation, anxiety, depression, and other cognitive or emotional behaviors that weren’t present before the injury. Therefore, getting proper diagnosis and treatment is essential to restoring an individual to health and normal activity.

 This Grim Reaper can’t leave you with such a dismal TBI spook, so take heart and recognize that help is available. There are more effective and innovative treatments than ever before if treatment begins immediately.  Time is crucial. Don’t wait.  The major part of the brain’s mending normally takes place within the first two years of the injury, but the brain can continue to mend far beyond that time. 

 Trust me, having experienced a mild TBI many years ago, I kept engaged with as many cognitive and physical activities as possible and this made all the difference with being able to return to a normal life - the best treat ever.

by Janet J. Seahorn

OK, here is something to ponder; can Brain Trauma cause Soul Trauma? 

By “brain trauma”, I mean a traumatic brain injury, a verifiable medical condition caused by some insult to the brain, i.e., car accident, falling, hitting one’s head, being in or close to an IED explosion, shaken baby syndrome, stroke… and the list goes on. 

Every year over 1.5 million Americans experience some type of traumatic brain injury (TBI). 

Personally, I believe the number is higher, as many incidents never get reported because no one knows or realizes that such a trauma has occurred.  Which is why all of the information on TBI makes me muse over what actually goes on in the brain/mind, body, and soul when it has been injured?

I think about the mind and wonder how such a magnificent organ can be in command of so much in a person: body, emotions, perceptions…

I think about the soul and wonder how such an invisible concept can make such a difference in one’s life; a difference that gives one strength, courage, and hope to make it through some truly desperate times.

I think about how anyone who experiences a restructuring of the brain after some internal or external trauma can move forward in ways that are nothing short of miraculous.  A healing that leaves the brain changed, but the person still functioning.

I think about how the soul and spirit must somehow be part of the healing that takes place in the organ called the brain.  How the soul/spirit may give some kind of divine direction to the mind that allows it to mend.  In many cases it may not mend itself back to its original state but reorganizes in such a manner that perhaps enhances the individual with greater compassion, humility, and fearlessness.

I’d like to believe that angels watch over us and it is this entity that connects the mind, soul, and heart.  Noah benShea thoughtfully noted, “Faith sees around corners”.  Maybe these celestial beings are also within the corners of our battered minds, soothing, comforting, and mending.

Most days, though, I am just immensely appreciative that something more powerful than I can ever imagine is taking some charge over all of our well-being, perhaps from that place we call Heaven.