Legal Help for Veterans blog.
PTSD
For servicemen and women who have returned from the wars in Afghanistan and Iraq, certain experiences during deployment have been found to have lasting, and somewhat unique, health consequences. These veterans experience post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), depression, substance abuse and other emotional issues at a high rate, and their physical health suffers as a result. […]
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News and Press
Department of Veterans Affairs Secretary Robert Wilkie changed the rules regarding the display of religious symbols and materials at VA facilities. The new policies will allow religious content to be displayed publicly within VA hospitals and other facilities, where and when appropriate, effective July 3. These areas may include lobbies, entrances, exits, security stations, nurses’ […]
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News and Press
Under the newly proposed, fiscal year 2020, defense policy bill is a program that would let active duty military personnel freeze their eggs or sperm prior to being deployed and give new mothers a standard one-year deployment deferment after having a baby. The program would provide gamete preservation and storage services for service members who […]
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News and Press
A new study has found that experiencing a traumatic brain injury (TBI) more than doubles the risk for developing dementia later in life for veterans. The federally funded research sought to better understand how TBI affects veterans in the long term. A connection between even mild TBIs and increased dementia risk was apparent. There was […]
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News and Press
As unfortunate as it is, many service members will experience some form of sexual assault, harassment or other trauma during their time in the military. These experiences have a profound effect on the survivor and could potentially qualify them for compensation and other benefits from the Department of Veterans’ Affairs. Military sexual trauma (MST) can […]
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Uncategorized
The Michigan Veterans Affairs Agency announced on July 1st that Michigan veterans and their families will have access to free financial counseling. This pilot program is being provided by GreenPath Financial Wellness Inc., which is a nonprofit financial counseling organization. This program has an initial agreement that runs through the end of September 2020. At […]
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News and Press
A disabled Army vet from New Jersey will soon be paid $40,000 in back benefits from the Veterans Administration. Ronald Choplinski, 71, was awarded the money after the VA Board of Veterans’ Appeals decided in January 2018 to upgrade the severity of his disability and that he should have been compensated for it earlier than […]
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PTSD
A new study recently published by the Journal of Head Trauma Rehabilitation found that veterans and active–duty military personnel with combat-related post-traumatic stress disorder and mild traumatic brain injuries have larger amygdalae than others who only have brain injuries. The amygdala is the area of the brain associated with emotions, especially fear, anxiety, anger and […]
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Mental Health
Early April, Secretary of Veterans Affairs Robert Wilkie said that the entire government was focused on reducing the rate of suicide among veterans. This statement comes in the wake of several suicides committed outside VA clinics and much turmoil within the agency. Instead of seeing suicide as a stand-alone issue, Wilkie said that the government […]
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Medical Issues / Disability
Traumatic brain injury (TBI) is one of the most common injuries sustained by veterans and it can have a profound effect on their daily lives. Around 384,000 service members and veterans have suffered a TBI and a third of them are left with a disability. Some require regular care from a loved one. A new […]
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