Young Canadian veterans and the legacy of war - how to address the 'doubling of the rate of post-traumatic stress disorder' since 2002

By Ilona Dougherty | Nov 10, 2015

Journal of American Medical Association Internal Medicine concluded that some of those veterans showed “ improvements” following H yperbaric Oxygen Treatment

Time to 'rebrand' the poppy

Every year we remember those that put their lives on the line and the resulting impact on families. The news sites run photos of small huddles of elderly Second World War veterans standing at attention at war memorials across the country. It’s an affecting image but it doesn’t really describe Canada’s veteran population anymore — a population which is getting 'younger'.

“By 2016,” Veterans Affairs reports, “it is expected that modern-day Veterans will comprise almost 72 per cent of those who receive services from Veterans Affairs Canada” and the average age of a modern day Canadian veteran will be 57.

Even our veterans from the two world wars were young men once. War is still the province of the young. Roughly 700,000 Canadians aged 21 and younger served in the Second World War. Over the last half-century, we’ve gotten used to the idea of war veterans as old men — of the idea that the experience of combat belongs to an earlier generation. Afghanistan changed that — and it’s time for Canadians to understand the problems of veterans in the prime of their lives.

This modern context is a challenging one. Recently, it was reported that 59 Canadians who served in Afghanistan subsequently committed suicide.

The problems of younger veterans will require some outside-the-box thinking — on how to address the doubling of the rate of post-traumatic stress disorder since 2002, for example.

It’s a problem that demands swift action from the new Liberal government, which promised in its election platform to address pressing concerns like veteran suicides through improved access to mental health services — and to recognize that many veterans still have long lives and careers ahead of them. Which is why the platform promised both a new Veterans Education Benefit and opportunities for retraining for veterans and their families.

The problems of younger veterans will require some outside-the-box thinking — on how to address the doubling of the rate of post-traumatic stress disorder since 2002, for example.

The U.S. military has conducted several studies on Afghanistan and Iraq veterans suffering from PTSD and blast trauma. A recent report in the November 2014 issue of the Journal of American Medical Association Internal Medicine concluded that some of those veterans showed “improvements” following ‘hyperbaric oxygen treatment’ — breathing pure oxygen in a pressurized room, a therapy used to treat divers with decompression sickness.

'Hyperbaric Oxygen Therapy is a potent mean of delivering sufficient Oxygen to the brain for repair processes and induction of neuroplasticity'

Canadian hyperbaric expert Thomas Fox says far more research needs to be done in this field. “Therapeutic hyperbaric oxygen was identified as definitive in addressing neurological abnormalities in the blast casualty,” he said. “It is time to train today’s physicians on a treatment option that can address the veterans under their care and avoid long-term neurological disabilities and costs.”

The Royal Canadian Legion has recognized that the time has come to “rebrand” the poppy. The time has also come for us to update our ideas of who veterans are — and what they need from us.

Heal The Warriors - Australia

HyperMED : OXYMED Australia is offering free Hyperbaric Oxygen Therapy for immediate returning Aussie War Veterans suffering the effects of TBI, Shock Blast, PTSD and Concussion Syndrome. In addition to a world first combination of HBOT and Lokomat (Robotic Gait Assisted Walking), we are also committed to assisting our Aussie War Vets for their service to this great country.

For more go to www.hypermed.com.au