Truth Bomb by OVD : Veterans suicides, depression and my own medical situation

 Hey Everyone,

  This entry will cover Veteran suicides and depression and what you can do about it but I'm going to start by explaining my medical situation so you all know where I'm coming from and have to deal with to gain a better Understanding.

  I have Gulf War Syndrome(GWS). It's called a syndrome because there are different factors and levels of exposure. So every case is different. The three major factors are 1) Exposure to Depleted Uranium which is a fancy way of saying Nuclear waste turned into bombs. 2) Exposure to anti-nerve agent inoculations and pills that were untested. 3) Exposure to the oil fires(this one the US Government still argues against in an attempt to defend oil). 

  The effects are massive nerve damage and a host of other medical issues. Eventually the pain makes your body think it's dead and starts shutting down. Most that didn't kill themselves will die of massive organ failure. I've taken nerve conduction tests that give the doctors an idea of how much pain you are in. They are very painful for us suffering from GWS. The last time I took one(10 years ago) I was 25 times higher than their chart goes. So when the doctor askes on a 1-10 what you pain is....I'm a 250. My spines has collapsed(I have no disks), my right leg no longer works so walking and getting around is difficult, my shoulders can barley reach up. It effects my sleep and eating an of course my mental health. 

  The VA has tried everything in the book on me. Nothing has helped. The only thing they have left is opiates to try and manage my pain. But getting those are difficult as the issues of addiction are commonly known now. The also destroy your liver. So I use cannabis to manage my pain. I smoke weed during the day to take the edge off and to get some things done. I use edibles at night so I can concentrate on shows or movies and get some sleep. I wake up everyday screaming in pain. Obviously I can't afford to by my own Cannabis products. 

  I've also been in 3 helo crashes and a host of other incidents that make it worse in certain area's of my body. All my aliments are service connected and are covered medically by the VA but as I said above there isn't much the can or will do. Like the Veterans exposed to Agent Orange in Vietnam their policy seems to be let us die out to save money. 

  PTSD is another issue. it's not so bad for me. Mine is mostly wanting to chase the adrenaline dragon and depression. But other Veterans have disabling reactions, even violence and self harm. Again Cannabis helps a lot with that.

  I live off of $1840 a month...my rent is $1510(in the ghetto and that's cheap...most places...even shitty are $2k+ a month)...so I have little quality of life and getting food and keeping the lights on is difficult. This is why I try to raise funds with GoFundMe. 

  I am also isolated as getting around is very difficult and I've been banned from both Facebook and Twitter for speaking out against Fascism. Apparently both corporations defend Fascism.

 So as you can see...just as me as an example, why 22 Veterans a day kill themselves on average. 

What doesn't work :

1) Suicide hotlines. If a veterans is isolated, depressed and in pain...calling some stranger isn't going to happen or help. Reach out to the Veterans you know personally, show them you actually care. That helps.

2) Wellness checks...NEVER call for a "Wellness check" for a veteran. Go your self or send a friend. The police are most liking going to murder that Veteran. It's what they do. Or the Veteran defends themselves and both cops and the Veterans are killed. 

3) Patriotic bullshit... waving flags does NOTHING for us. Policies are needed not platitudes.

4) Relying on Non-Profits. Non-Profits do help some Veterans but most are overwhelmed and not available to most veterans. The federal Government should be running these programs and make them accessible to all and easier to access.    

What does work

1) Getting actively involved. whether it's with a Veteran life you know personally or volunteering. Pressuring congress to take action.

2) Cannabis. cannabis helps with both pain management and mental issues like PTSD. It's time to take Cannabis off the schedule one list and make it available for Veterans. 

3) Mental Healthcare. Mental healthcare in America is a joke unless you happen to be wealthy. Group therapies do help a bit but most Veteran group therapies are full of substance abusers which make non abusers not want to go. When your dealing with combat nightmares...dealing with a room full of junkies, crack heads and tweekers isn't helpful to you. These should be separate issues and dealt with separately(yes there is overlap but those Veterans could do both groups. 

4) Probably the biggest...stop sending our people to needless wars. 

A last note. One thing you have to understand is most Military people joined to escape poverty. Whether it's the Ghetto or the Trailer park. The don't make policy or start wars. The war criminals are the people that send them and make the economy so bad that military service is the only option for most to attempt to get out of poverty. So blaming Veterans for US policy or calling them baby killers or the like just makes it harder for those Veterans and the real culprits (The politicians and War profiteers) get away with it while you focus your anger at the Military members that have no control or choice.

I hope this entry help you understand the situation better.

-Otto Von Danger

SGT/USMC 

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