Feel Good Friday!

Looking for an inspiring story or two to perk up your Friday?

Then THIS is the post for you!

We can start our quest for the inspiring story in the DC-area. 

This morning, a handful of wounded warriors at WRAMC graduated from BNCOC (Basic Non-Commissioned Officers' Course--"B-Knock").  The class of six contained 4 wounded soldiers in its ranks.  This monumental achievement is especially huge given where these soldiers currently reside.  This course, one in a series required for promotion from E-5 to E-6 is no walk in the park.  Hubs did it while he was firing on all cylinders...I don't imagine he'd want to try it when taking on intense physical therapy or, like one of these soldiers did--in a wheelchair.  These men and women are to be commended for ALL they do and especially admired for putting their shoulders to the grindstone and gutting this out.

You can see additional photos and read a first-hand account of this amazing day at Sniper's site.  HOOAH!

Then, the story of Seth Dupont touched me this morning.  This 17-year-old received some welcome words of praise and encouragment from his father when he took his oath of enlistment for the National Guard.  The neat part?  Dad's a LTC currently serving in Iraq and was able to complete the oath ceremony with his son via a videoconference.  The elder Dupont, a 29-year member of the Guard, told his son that he was proud of him, loved him and that his son had made a "good, strong decision."  I second that thought and encourage you to go read the entire story.  It will make your Friday!

Comments

[Dr.Michael F. Sunich]

Warmest Greetings to all of you. I am not a military spouse. I am a licensed psychologist and full time faculty in counseling psychology at Troy University in Tampa. At the present time, I am conducting a study, "The Psychological Effects of Combat on Families and Loved Ones". I pray that you will not be offended by my posting on your blog, but I am looking for family members of our troops to complete a brief, anonymous survey dealing the effects of combat.

The genesis of this study came from a spouse who sought therapy with me in Tampa. She found me through the Tricare network and, when she came in, she was extremely distraught. Her spouse had been home from Iraq for 6 months following a 16 month deployment. She stated that, after he was home for about three months, she began experiiencing increasing anxiety, sleep disturbance, tension and an intense fear that her husband would die that day- that once he left the house in the morning, that she would not see him alive again. During his deployment, she stated that she was worried about his safety, yet felt a great deal of support from other spouses in the same situation. She was excited to see him come home relatively unscathed by the experience and looked forward to a "normal" life together. What she began experiencing at three months cought her completely off guard. Her family members told her that she should not be feeling this- that her husband was home safely. For the next three months, she did not discuss this with her friends or family and her symptoms greatly intensified. She believed that she was losing her mind and was greatly relived when, after evaluation, informed her that, while this might seem unexpected, she was exhibiting the symptoms of someone who has been traumatized, i.e. ptsd. We worked together for about the next nine months and she has since completed therapy- at least this phase. We are still unsure of the relapse rates; however, she has been symptom-free for about the past five months.

Another spouse with similar anxiety-related issues, while not as severe or debilitating, also presented for therapy and this provoked my question of "How common is ptsd in spouses and families of our soldiers serving in harms way. The survey that I designed is an initial attempt to identify the scope of the issue. To date, spouses are the only family members responding to the survey. A second stage of this study will focus specifically on children.

This is a legitimate, academic study, authorized and approved by the Institutional Review Board of Troy University (formerly Troy State) and any assistance is greatly appreciated. You can copy and paste this web address directly into your browser and you will arrive at the first page of the survey. I am happy to respond to any questions via email. Thank you so much for your time and support.

http://www.surveymonkey.com/s.aspx?sm=RwZvHVsjXiJQmOIIjPPWoA_3d_3d