English: Cases of PTSD and Severe Depression Among U.S. Veterans Deployed to Iraq and Afghanistan Between Oct 2001 and Oct 2007 (Photo credit: Wikipedia)
Monday, May 28th, is Memorial Day. Have you thought about how you might spend the day? Some of us will visit our loved one's graveside. Maybe it will by that of our father, brother, sister, mother, aunt, uncle, child, or grandparent. Some of us will attend a parade honoring our Veterans or maybe we will go to a family picnic. Hopefully all of us will be humbled to spend a little time with some veterans.
This is also a good time to recognize that many veterans suffer from post traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) and they need our support and understanding. It is important to have some concept of how PTSD can affect one's life. According to the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA), the following are other common problems associated with PTSD:
Drinking or drug problems
Feelings of hopelessness, shame, or despair
Employment problems
Relationship problems including divorce and violence
Physical symptoms
You might be interested to learn how some Veterans are helping other Veterans in dealing with PTSD. Here is a TIME 100 Video: "Helping Veterans Help Each Other" featuring Barbara Van Dahlen's unique Give an Hour™ non-profit organization.
As we close today, we wish you a Happy Memorial Day.
Health headlines this past week might have caught many baby boomers off guard. The Centers for Disease Control issued a cautionary warning to all baby boomers (those born between 1945 and 1965) - You should get a onetime test to see if you are infected with the liver destroying virus Hepatitis C.
Here are few facts that prompted the CDC to take action:
American deaths related to Hep C-related diseases nearly doubled from 1999-2007.
More than 15,000 American die each year from a Hep C related illness.
Three (3) percent of baby boomers test positive.
Infection is possible from sources other than drug injection or transfusions prior to the blood supply being screened for the virus. These sources may include tattoos, shared razor blades or toothbrushes, piercings, manicures and sniffed cocaine.
One should not assume that those infected have lived carelessly. Remember before 1989 Hep C was an unknown entity. The nation's blood supply was not screened for Hep C until the early 90's. Think about how many baby boomers needed a transfusion as a result of childbirth, accidents, surgery or other diseases prior to 1989.
To learn more about the CDC warning, you can watch NBC's Nightly News recent report:
Do you remember your prom night? Most of us have good memories. Some of us happily participated and some of us stayed home. Some of us shared prom night with our "steady", some shared it with a good friend. Decades ago it was all about picking out a formal dress, maybe borrowing a dress, renting a tuxedo, ordering a corsage, waiting for your mom and dad to take a few photos and then you were off to the prom in a regular old car. Now teenagers spend time with going to the hair salon, having their make-up done, renting a limousine that can accommodate 20 teens and perhaps reserving a room at the hotel where the prom is being held.
In today's world parents seem to "accept" that drinking, experimenting with drugs and having sex with one's partner is part of prom night. Most parents hope against hope that prom night won't include those activities, but statistics indicate:
53% of teenagers have four or more alcoholic drinks on prom night
14% of girls have sexual intercourse on prom night
This week NBC's Today Show host Al Roker got some answers about how to "help your kids have a safe & fun prom night." Share the video with your friends and teens. Let us know what you think...
Parenting comes with many responsibilities. Each stage of a child's life is impacted by a parent's actions. And now some parents are finding their own actions and a decision regarding hosting a party for their teen comes with much personal risk. It is May; a month filled with life passages and celebrations. We have proms, graduations, end of the season sporting events, the start of summer vacation. So why not host a party for your teenager.
For some reason many parents take this approach: "I would rather have my teenager's friends party at our house where I can control and supervise the inevitable use of alcohol and maybe a little pot." This seems like a simple and harmless premise, but not only does this line of thinking imply approval of an illegal act, it may indeed contribute to dangerous and deadly behavior - short and long term.
This week NBC's Today show featured a story about what one set of parents have endured as a result of playing hosts for their teenager's party. You might find their story useful.
(Photo credit: Wikipedia)
This Sunday, May 13, 2012, families across the United States will take the day or a few hours to honor Mothers. While Mother's Day is celebrated around the world, not all countries celebrate on the second Sunday in May. Mother's Day, like most holidays, can be a wonderful time for families or it can bring stress, sadness, or depression. Holidays can trigger memories of our loved one, particularly if you are the child of an alcoholic (addicted) mother or the mother of an alcoholic child. Yes, it can be a two way street, affecting many generations.
This past week Leah Pells released her autobiography Not About the Medal. Leah is a former Olympic middle-distance runner having represented Canada in three Olympics. When asked, by the Canadian Press, what motivated her to write the book, Leah responded:
"I'd been carrying around a lot of these things that happened for a long time and I just felt I needed to release them," she said of her motivation for writing the book."
"So that was my first reason. The second reason is, I'm not satisfied with the way our society treats addicts. I just feel there needs to be much more compassion surrounding that particular illness. My mom was an alcoholic and the way society treats people with alcoholism and addiction is so negative, and I feel that it makes it even harder for the addict to seek recovery."
Like most children of alcoholic parents, Leah strived to be perfect and to succeed, because she thought her success would relieve her mom's stress and she would stop drinking. Conversely, many parents of alcoholics also strive to be perfect and to succeed, hoping that their behavior will somehow "reach" their alcoholic children and inspire them to find treatment and a lifelong program of recovery.
Here is a very short video of Leah discussing her book:
So this Mother's Day no matter where you are take just a bit of time to remember your Mother. And at the same time Mothers should take a bit of time to remember their children. If addiction is part of your family dynamic, then think about going to an Al-Anon meeting or an AA meeting.
