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War-related trauma doesn't just plague our veterans - it also haunts our military children, too. Is there a technique for weakening traumatic memories? The fact is, our troops are also dying at home. Add Nevada to the list of states considering special courts for our veterans suffering PTSD - as war has injured them, not that criminality has overcome them. Add Texas to the list of states looking to boost the mental health of military families. Because the most pervasive combat injury is invisible.

"This series uses the experiences of several troops suffering from PTSD to delve into the biology of the disorder; substance abuse among victims; the stress that the disorder places on spouses and children; treatment options and availability; the specter of suicide among PTSD sufferers; what current research may mean for the future, and many other issues."

The men crewed .50-calibers through Iraq neighborhoods, survived roadside bomb blasts, attended memorial services for buddies. Now they were being asked to cut cattle, on foot, in front of one another and a handful of real cowboys. It's safe to say there wasn't exactly a rush to start. But within a few minutes, the 15 veterans of Iraq and Afghanistan-almost all of them self-described city boys whose experience with livestock extends only to the dinner plate-had learned a thing or two about patience and teamwork, and for a few minutes of laughter and sweat, they could forget about the war that still haunts them. "It's like we're back in the field now," said Jeremy Williams, a 26-year-old who lives in a small town near Huntsville and served three tours in Iraq with the Marines. The veterans came from throughout the United States to spend four days at the stylish Wildcatter Ranch, invited by the Wounded Warrior Project and the owners of the ranch to help restore their spirits. Some of the men have physical injuries, but each of them is struggling to deal with combat stress and their return to civilian society. The men went canoeing and rode horses. They got massages and shot skeet. They stayed in luxurious rooms and they visited an elementary school, where the children gave them Graham Steers ball caps. "I have never seen anything like this before," said Harvey Stubbs Jr., 32, a Chicago-area native who was medically retired from the Army because of his injuries. "The outpouring of love ... has been amazing. A lot of people give lip service to supporting the troops, but these people have opened their hearts to us in ways I can't believe."

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Mort Reichek - New Jersey - Age:83 ***would be great to interview*** What I do: Retired (former senior editor of Business Week) Me at home: Married, grandchildren My blog's beginnings: Began publishing when I achieved octogenarian status in 2005 Why I blog: As a retired, physically aching 83-year-old man, who once relished playing tennis, blogging has provided a stimulating alternative. Focus: Current events and memoirs as a one-time journalist, World War II army veteran, and first-generation American raised in an immigrant family in the Bronx. On the blog's impact: I published a piece about a fellow journalist who had been a Soviet air force colonel before defecting to this U.S. This produced responses from two of his children who were very young when he died. They were naturally eager to learn more about their deceased father. Above details from http://technorati.com/blogging/state-of-the-blogosphere/who-are-the-bloggers/

The most wonderful of spring days to all of you who have put your time and love and energy into caring for your children, making sure they have the tools and confidence to go out into the world and live a full, healthy and productive life. For our military mothers, the pride of seeing her child -- now, all grown up -- in uniform, must be an enormous one.

PTSDcombat.blogspot.com (Ilona Meagher, author of Moving a Nation to Care: PTSD and America's Returning Troops, has created an "online journal" for vets returning to civilian life.)