HONORING VETERAN’S DAY
Marine Corps Capt. Waylon White came home from Iraq with a frac- tured skull, collapsed lung, dislocated shoulder, and second- and third-de- gree burns on 10 percent of his body. His injuries were the result of a truck bomb in Ramadi in May 2006. His recovery was excruciating. The eff ects of traumatic brain
injury, the headaches and forgetful- ness, didn’t really catch up with Waylon until one day when he got lost driving home from Camp Pendleton, Calif. He found himself near downtown San Diego — the opposite direction from his home — and could not remember how or why he had driven there. A medical review board discharged him in 2008. Devastated, Waylon climbed out of an emotional low point, trying to rebuild his life. Fast forward to 2016: Waylon is
now a software engineer at Garmin International in Lawrence, Kan. Last year, he and Victoria became the proud owners of a painting and wine party franchise called Pinot’s Palette. To the outside world, they’re a regular midwestern couple living a comfortable Norman Rockwell existence. But this has been a hard-fought,
hard-won life. For many military members and their families torn apart by war wounds, the story is similar. Accord- ing to a 2011 study by the Pew Research Center, one in 10 veterans alive today has been seriously injured at some point while serving. They “are more than twice as likely as their more fortunate comrades to say they had diffi culties readjusting to civilian life,” the study says. But the Whites — and a team of
experts interviewed by Military Offi cer — say there are resources available for caregivers that can help veterans’ recoveries and shore
58 MILITARY OFFICER NOVEMBER 2016
We Can Help MOAA supports military care- givers through our work with the Elizabeth Dole Foundation, USAA, the PsychArmor Insti- tute, and the Public Counsel Law Center. Our caregiver sup-
port resources include: Q an online guide for the legal and fi nancial aspects of military caregiving at
www.moaa.org/
caregiver; Q no-cost legal assistance to mid- and lower-income military caregivers at
www.lawyersforhe
roes.org, provided by MOAA and the Public Counsel Law Center via the Lawyers for Heroes col-
laboration; and Q fi nancial education for mili- tary caregivers from MOAA and the PsychArmor Institute, in cooperation with USAA — learn more at
www.moaa.org/care giverfi nancialed.
up support for their families. The key is not trying to go it alone. “You can’t be the only one. You
have to open up other channels of support. You need the surrounding of multiple people to lift you up,” Waylon says. “I’m walking proof that with the right support group and those around you, it’s never really over.” Here are some common challeng- es military caregivers encounter, as well as ways to reach out for help.
Emotional support THE CHALLENGE: Offi cers are a
“diff erent breed” from other service- members when it comes to recovering from injuries, says Dr. Barbara Van Dahlen, a psychologist and president of Give an Hour, a national nonprofi t providing free mental health services to the military community. Many
offi cers, fearing it would convey weakness to troops, are reluctant to ask for emotional support. Waylon agrees, noting, “I never
would have sought out help myself. It’s stubbornness, pride. I will sleep under a bridge on cardboard before I ask for help.”
THE SOLUTION: Your offi cer understands the importance of leading by example, Van Dahlen says. So ask him or her, “How can you possibly expect those who serve under you to be strong enough to ask for help if we don’t do that ourselves?” “There are great examples of
offi cers being very public about their own needs and having a huge impact on the folks in their command and their families,” she says. Also, don’t order someone to seek
therapy. Off er to go along with them for support.
SOME RESOURCES: Give an Hour (
www.giveanhour.org), National Center for PTSD (
www.ptsd.va.gov/ public/
where-to-get-help.asp), Purple Heart Service Foundation (https://purpleheartfoundation .org). The Whites highly recom- mend Semper Fi Fund (https:// semperfi
fund.org).
A new career THE CHALLENGE: Among all veter-
ans, those who were seriously injured while serving are less likely than other veterans to be employed full- time and are more likely not to have a job, according to the Pew Research Center study. Only three in 10 veter- ans who have been seriously injured currently are employed full-time. Giving up the dream of long-time military service was the toughest issue for Waylon White. “I didn’t know what the hell I was going to do. I had a degree in
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