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AW2 at AUSA 2009

Filed under General by on October 9, 2009 at 2:56 pm {no comments}

By Sarah Greer, Stratcom and AW2 Community Support Network Coordinator

AW2 Veteran Kourtney Clemons at AUSA 2009. Photo Credit: Lee McMahon, AW2 Stratcom.

Photo: AW2 Veteran Kourtney Clemons at AUSA 2009. Photo Credit: Lee McMahon, AW2 Stratcom.

This week, many AW2 staff attended the Association of the United States Army (AUSA) Annual Meeting and Exposition at the Washington Convention Center.  What an amazing experience!

I spent most of my time in the exhibit hall, where the Warrior Transition Command (WTC) and AW2 were part of the MEDCOM pavilion.  Imagine a vast, cavernous room covering three city blocks filled with tanks, Humvees, body armor, weapons, live music, and 30,000 people.  I visited every booth throughout the week to raise awareness of the AW2 Community Support Network, and I got lost every time I left the AW2 booth!

Soldiers at all levels roamed the floor to learn about the latest, most advanced technology, and Veterans from several generations came to reminisce and pay tribute to those currently serving.  There were military personnel from other countries, like Israel, Denmark, and so many others.  And somehow, a few servicemembers from the Navy, Marines, and Air Force slipped in to spend time with all the Soldiers.

AW2 drew a big crowd throughout the week.  People were grateful for the Army’s commitment to warrior care, and they were especially excited about the AW2 Community Support Network and the Career and Education Section.  They recognized that both initiatives will help AW2 Soldiers, Veterans, and Families transition to life post-injury and reintegrate into their communities through employment and local support.

Several AW2 Soldiers and Veterans joined us in the WTC and AW2 booths and had fantastic experiences themselves.

“Working in the booth gave me an opportunity to talk to senior Army leaders,” said SFC Will Corp, an AW2 Soldier serving at Fort Belvoir.  “I believe it is important to make sure AW2 stays at the top of the minds of leadership.”

For AW2 Veteran and U.S. Paralympic athlete Kortney Clemons, the AUSA Exposition was a big deal.  “This is a great chance to meet with organizations and bring people together to make things better for our Soldiers,” he said.  “Having the WTC and AW2 share a booth focuses on integration and the priority for Soldiers and spouses to find careers and move on with their lives.”

AUSA was a wonderful opportunity for AW2 Soldiers and Veterans to be seen and heard by the rest of the Army.

Scams Target Soldiers, Veterans, and Families

Filed under General by on October 9, 2009 at 2:00 pm {no comments}

AW2 has recently been alerted to several scams that have specifically targeted Soldiers, Veterans, and their Families. The latest scam involved an email from an individual who represented himself as a representative of a major government contracting firm that was seeking to hire Veterans.  In the email, the individual directed the Soldier to reply to the email with a scanned copy of his or her passport to enable the company to proceed with an offer of employment.

Unfortunately, the representative was not really with the contracting company and instead was likely attempting to obtain this Soldier’s passport to commit identity theft.  Once a cyber-criminal has enough personally identifiable information about a person, they can open credit card accounts, take out loans, and conduct all sorts of nefarious dealings using the victim’s identity.

Here are some hints that an email solicitation is a scam include:

  • The offer sounds too good to be true
  • The offer is from a previously unknown and unidentified individual
  • The email originates from a recognizable corporate or government name but the email domain name (the portion following @) is not a corresponding corporate or government domain, i.e., AW2@yahoo.com (fake) vs. AW2@conus.army.mil (legitimate).
  • The phone number (if any) is apparently phony, i.e., too many/too few digits and/or an  unknown/unidentifiable area code
  • Poor use of the English language
  • Links in the email (i.e. www.examplebank.com) take you to Web sites that appear to be a legitimate government or corporate Web site, but have strange looking urls in your browser’s address bar (i.e. http://192.166.255.01/examplebank.html)

Your bank will also never ask you for your account information via email. If you receive an email from your bank asking you to confirm some sort of activity, it is always a good idea to visit your bank’s Web site directly by opening your browser and typing the main page of your bank’s Web site into your browser rather than use any links from an email that you receive. If everything appears to be normal, call your bank by telephone and forward them a copy of the email.

Another way you can protect yourself from phishing attacks is to make sure that you use unique and complex username/email address and password for each web service that you use.  If a phishing attack is successful at gaining your login information for one Web site, they will likely try to use that same username/email address and password across a wide number of Web sites.

For more information about how to protect you and your Family against online crime, please visit the FBI’s Internet Crime Complaint Center at http://www.ic3.gov/default.aspx. You can report suspicious emails and online scams to the FBI at http://www.ic3.gov/complaint/default.aspx.

Suicide Reaches Beyond One Person’s Death

Filed under Advocate Story, Behavioral Health by on September 28, 2009 at 11:00 pm {3 comments}

By Sue Maloney, AW2 Advocate in Seattle

Speak Up, Reach Out

Speak Up, Reach Out

As a child, a close Family member used suicide as the way to escape intense and unending pain. For him, it was an avenue to spare additional pain to his Family because he saw no other options. Even though there had been failed attempts in the past, on-going medical treatment did not resolve the recurring or underlying pain that permeated his life. The suicide of my Family member greatly impacted my life as a child, woman, Soldier, Veteran, friend, and as an AW2 Advocate.

In my experience, most people don’t really want to talk about any combination of mental health, suicide, and/or death. They are taboo subjects built on pain and shame and are often ignored. When people discuss these subjects they are generally whispered behind closed doors with elements of pity, blame, and shame.

There are changes in society, but they are slow in coming. Today, the Army, the Department of Defense, and the Department of Veterans Affairs, have all increased efforts to reach out to Soldiers and Veterans and offer them a different path from suicide. Instead of unending pain and hopelessness, there are resources in place to help individuals find a different way to live. I encourage you to identify local programs and national resources before you or someone close to you needs them.

As a friend, Family member, or Advocate, it’s important to watch, look, and listen for the warning signs of severe depression and suicide, which might include: threats of hurting oneself, increased drinking or drug use, a sense of hopelessness, increased agitation, feelings of being trapped, withdrawal, or risky behavior that could lead to death-accidental or purposeful.

It’s important to offer hope by getting help for the person who might be feeling lost, lonely, or desperate. Here are some tips that I’ve learned over the years: listen without judgment or advice; share your concern for their welfare; and ask them if they have suicidal thoughts or a suicide plan. If they are having suicidal thoughts, do not leave them alone, immediately call the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline at 1-800-273-TALK and push #1 for assistance with Veterans. The National Suicide Prevention Lifeline has trained counselors available 24 hours a day, seven days a week. For additional tips and resources that are helpful to counselors, families, friends or persons at-risk, please visit their Web site at www.suicidepreventionlifeline.org.

I encourage anyone who is hurting enough to contemplate death as an end to the pain to reach out to someone, personal or professional, and don’t give up too soon. If you are a friend or Family member, listen to your loved one, and help them to get to a professional who can help them work through their pain. You may need additional support as well. Getting help is hard work, but so is ignoring the symptoms and hoping they’ll go away on their own.

Suicide reaches beyond one person’s death; it leaves a legacy that touches so many lives for generations.

Pray for a Mile

Filed under Staff Story by on September 28, 2009 at 9:25 am {6 comments}

By Emily Oehler, AW2 Stratcom

I am not a runner. I have never been a runner. I will never be a runner. Runners cut through air and across distance gracefully. Runners are gazelles in fancy techno shoes. Me, I pound the pavement – literally, all my pounds hit the road slowly, painfully, slowly, gasping, slowly, drenched, slowly. I am more of a religious jogger … I constantly pray for a flatter road, less humidity, time to go faster, the torture to stop, an easier way to get into shape, and occasionally, that one day, I could be a gazelle rather than a Clydesdale.

Somehow, I got roped into “running” the Army 10 Miler. It seemed like a good motivator for holding me to some kind of training schedule. But just to be safe, I got a coach – someone to ensure this Clydesdale stayed on course.

First I got up to 30 minutes. Then 45 minutes. Then hill repeats. Then, the dreaded “long runs.” Six miles? I gave my coach the scrunchie face. Six miles? He offered helpful hints like gel packs, jelly beans, water, stretching, what to download to listen to, nutrition, and rest. Although nice to know, none of it made 6 miles sound any better. I knew I just had to suck it up and do it. One step and then another. Over and over and over and over again.

I hit the road and tried a new approach. Whenever I got whiney, I thought about an AW2 Soldier, Veteran or Family member that I’ve met over the past 2 years. I would think about their story – a few have shared with me the details of the day they were injured…

One soldier was pulled from a vehicle and laid on the ground so others could be rescued – she became surrounded by locals (who turned about to be friendly) but at the time she feared she’d be kidnapped by them and beheaded

One soldier saved another’s life and in doing so became soaked in diesel fuel and eventually caught on fire and now has third degree burns on 30% of his body

One soldier was thrown from his turret, impaled when he landed and then shot multiple times – he has hundreds of tiny shrapnel pieces still inside him

When my legs got tired, I would think about the injuries they have worked through – and continue to. They couldn’t choose to stop or they would not walk or talk again. One mile I looked at my manicured hands and thought of several burned Soldiers who have lost fingers or the use of them.

When the boredom set in, I thought about the Families. The wife who took care of the other burn patients who were single while her husband spent a year in the hospital. The mom, who after 4 years of providing constant care to her paraplegic son, was able to take her first trip as he can finally stay at home alone. The daughter who doesn’t know another kid like her-whose dad doesn’t act the same because of TBI.

When I think of what these folks have survived, worked through and live with, I stopped praying for a flatter road, less humidity, time to go faster, the torture to stop, an easier way to get into shape and started praying for them. I have realized that when you support someone else, your own woes seem to disappear. I was shocked at the ease of my 6 miles. For a split second, I felt like a gazelle – at least on the inside.

So, I ask that you support me as I run my first Army 10 Miler this Sunday… support me by picking one Soldier, Veteran or Family member to pray for during each mile of the race. Pray that they will have less pain. Pray that they will take their first step and their second. Pray that their marriage stays strong. Pray that they have laughter. Pray that they will accomplish their goal. Pray that they find peace. Pray that they feel the support of a grateful nation.

See you at the finish line.

This Isn’t the Way it was Supposed to Be

Filed under Soldier and Family Story by on September 25, 2009 at 9:00 am {one comment}

By an AW2 Spouse

I am a wife of a wounded warrior. My husband just hit his 6 year anniversary date from his medical retirement from the Army. Where are we now? After 17 years of marriage and two beautiful girls, we are teetering on divorce.

What happened? Well, the image of what I thought was supposed to happen in marriage didn’t happen. Gone was the man I married, replaced by a near stranger that was more needy and injured I was really equipped for. It wasn’t like our marriage was perfect before the injuries, but I knew who he was and where we both were going. Something I can not lay claim to now. I’ve stuck it out this long because of the obligation I felt to stick by him and the kids, to support him, to honor him and all that he scarified. He was a hero for this country after all, right?!

For several years now, I’d find the house a mess, projects half completed, too many empty beer cans in the trash, and countless hours spent on the couch. Instead of facing this head on, I just avoided it. Focused on work, focused on my kids, focused on what I could control and tried to escape what I couldn’t. I ended up resentful and seeking the arms of other men to make me feel accepted and desired. I became emotional despondent and unavailable and he became preoccupied. It’s not the way it was supposed to be.

I decided several weeks ago that I needed to make a change. It took every ounce of strength to seek out that help. I called TRICARE and got a referral for mental health counseling, specifically marriage counseling. It was not an easy feat to convince my husband that we needed to go, but he saw I was serious.

The therapy session have turned both our lives inside out. Peeling the layers back is hard work. We’ve discussed terms of divorce if that should happen, child custody, financial issues, infidelity, goals, disappointments, and expectations of one another. It hurts really bad at times, but the weight has been getting lighter. We are going through this together and I am feeling better. I think he is too.

What I’ve realized thus far is I don’t need to feel guilty for seeing him for as something other than a hero. He is a man. A man who needs to come to grips with his own injuries and own abilities. It’s okay that I feel resentful with the situation, but I understand now, a bit more clearly, that I don’t need to hold on to the resentment because it’s no ones fault. Neither of us chose to be in this situation. It is what it is and it’s okay to forgive and to make new plans.

Being married is hard, but let me be real: Being married to a wounded warrior is even more difficult. It’s going to take a lot more work on both our parts to get the marriage fixed and who knows, maybe we will need to part paths. But I’m committed to give it my all because I deserve it, my kids deserve it, and he deserves it – not because of his thankless service to his country, or because of his injuries; he deserves my best effort because I want him in my future.

To all you spouses out there, who feel alone an isolated…go out and seek the help you need. Don’t let your marriage or partnership fall to the wayside of all the other issues you will encounter. You deserve happiness just as much as your wounded warrior does and so does your family. You are not alone.

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AW2 Soldiers, Veterans, and Families can submit a blog for AW2 by emailing WarriorCareCommunications [at] conus.army.mil.