Journalist and military advocate, Lily Casura, went to bat for a young soldier who had lost all hope for help towards a livable life. She showed her dedication to the healing of our military suffering from the invisible and very visible wounds of the Iraq and Afghanistan wars. We will see more and more of “our” veterans who, like the young veteran Lily assisted, are far removed from DoD and VA service centers.
I know I have seen military members who have had their trusted clinicians changed without their knowledge, their benefits altered without warning and no immediate provisions made for a warm handoff to another qualified clinician. It takes time to build trust and a therapeutic alliance. When a military service member feels like that trust is not honored, they do like many of us; they simply stop in their tracks. It is individuals like Lily who say, “No, this is not right. This will not do.” And they make sure that others outside the VA and DoD who can help, do just that.
There are so many who need help, the VA simply cannot be everywhere. That means each and every one of us must take up the slack and make sure our troops and veterans get the care they need. Sometimes that means listening and asking questions, doing some research and asking more questions. Just don’t give up – on the process or on the service member.
If you need to get more resources, the American Legion is a terrific source. Lily’s website, http://www.healingcombattrauma.com, has a plethora of blogs, books and resources. Go there and be informed. It takes all of us to heal this village of America. If you want to know how to form a suicide prevention peer support for anyone you are worried about, go to https://www.jsp3.org. Or you can read more about it in “Just Because You’re Suicidal Doesn’t Mean You’re Crazy”.
If you need help, do what Lily did, step in and do it. This is going to take all of us getting involved. And thanks to all who do what they can.