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This week marks the sixth anniversary of the Iraq invasion, and there is a growing awareness of the stresses faced by Iraq veterans, families and the Army, which along with the Marine Corps, has borne the weight of the war.

Army Maj. Gen. David Blackledge is doing his part to reduce the social stigma attached to seeking mental health treatment for war-related stress.

More than 44 percent of Iraq and Afghanistan war veterans who have sought treatment at a Department of Veterans Affairs medical facility have been diagnosed with one or more possible mental disorders, according to the agency's most recent summary of veteran health care.

The number of troops diagnosed as overweight or obese has more than doubled since the start of the Iraq war.

Maj. Gen. Patricia D. Horoho, RN, the new chief of the Army Nurse Corps, has ambitious plans to transform Army nursing using lessons learned from the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, the best of military nursing research, and the latest advances in the nursing profession.

White, 37, of Cromwell, is an outreach counselor at the Hartford Vet Center in Rocky Hill. He is a member of a new breed of counselors hired by the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs in an attempt to avoid the Vietnam-era mistake of ignoring post-traumatic stress disorder and other readjustment problems experienced by soldiers returning from war zones. He was hired in 2004, one of about 50 counselors recruited because they had served in Iraq.

Doctor uses music's healing power PBS special titled "Healthy Minds," a 13-part educational series in its second season on New York's WLIW 21. The show will focus on how soldiers deal with post traumatic stress disorder and how military and medical personnel are helping alleviate it. The program will focus on music, and how it helps patients come to terms with their war memories and experiences. The doctor's poetry, another element inspired by her therapeutic sessions, will also be featured on the program.

David Zucchino, a service member diagnosed with PTSD, describes his journey through diagnosis, treatment, and the affects on his family.

Hearing the sounds of wounded soldiers crying for help and the staccato of nearby gunfire, Illinois National Guard Capt. Thomas Kim briefly flashed back to a war zone, but his mind quickly returned to the combat trauma simulation being held in a classroom at Rush University Medical Center .

As the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan continue, more and more of our service men and women are experiencing both physical and emotional wounds. The Henry M. Jackson Foundation for the Advancement of Military Medicine and the Tug McGraw Foundation know that the pace at which scientific advancements are made can be accelerated through increased civilian/military partnerships. With the support of co-chairs Tim McGraw and Faith Hill, Country United is a two-day event comprised of the Partnership for Military Medicine Symposium and the Country United Gala taking place on November 6 & 7, 2009 in Washington, DC. The symposium will highlight discoveries in military medicine and foster collaborations among military and civilian partners to further advance research and clinical care. The Country United Gala will recognize the efforts of medical researchers, clinicians, and educators, as well as friends of military medicine.

A new study has found that more than one-third of Iraq and Afghanistan war veterans who enrolled in the veterans health system after 2001 received a diagnosis of a mental health problem, most often post-traumatic stress disorder or depression.

CHARLOTTE COUNTY -- A $200,000 grant will help provide medical care in Charlotte County for veterans of the Iraq and Afghanistan wars. Charlotte Behavioral Health Care received the grant from the Florida BRAIVE Fund at Gulf Coast Community Foundation of Venice. The grant will be used over the next 18 months to address mental health, substance abuse and related psychological needs of 75 to 100 veterans and family members.

For years, the Army has treated the stresses related to combat by treating the soldier, but the vision of a Resiliency Campus, which is in the process of becoming a reality, will devote an entire city block on Fort Hood to spiritual fitness, physical wellness and mental health that will not just treat the soldiers, but their entire families.

As organizations throughout the U.S. work to help combat veterans, the Coalition for Iraq & Afghanistan Veterans decided to bring them all together so they could share knowledge about what they're doing and talk about what still needs to be done. CIAV is a clearinghouse of 50 agencies that seek to help veterans of the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan. At the three-day conference, veterans like McGinnis talked about their experiences trying to access care after returning from deployment, family members talked about their own versions of "combat stress," and care specialists talked about what they had to offer as well as how the different organizations could team up.

Treatment for servicemembers suffering from psychological trauma really is a brave new world. Before the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, there was little research on effective treatments and not much pressure to add to what existed, said Army Brig. Gen. (Dr.) Loree Sutton, director of the Defense Center of Excellence for Psychological Health and Traumatic Brain Injury. Sutton, at a Warrior Resilience Conference here, said her office has been working with the services to develop treatment programs and is researching best medical practices. But the effort isn't a simple matter of an open checkbook; results count.

Eighteen months ago, Lt. Col. KC Bolton took command of the newly created Warrior Transition Battalion at Fort Lewis, where 99 combat-wounded soldiers are recovering from injuries suffered "in theater."

Medical personnel headed overseas, plus students here, learn to face emergencies, make decisions and take action.

Specially adapted homes are being built by Helping a Hero for our severely wounded heroes injured in theater during the War on Terror

A veteran of Iraq and Afghanistan who entered a Veterans Affairs medical center in Kansas with a gun surrendered after trading his ammunition for cigarettes. VA spokesman James Gleisberg said the veteran arrived at Colmery-O'Neil VA Medical Center in Topeka around noon Sunday. Gleisberg said the man then pulled out a gun and threatened to use it on himself. VA police and a SWAT team were called, but the man surrendered about 1:45 p.m. and is now being treated at the VA.