TBI

When Army Veteran Jason came to VA for help recovering from an IED injury, he didn’t realize he would find a purpose in life.

At VA San Diego, Dr. Albert Leung is leading a trial of repetitive transcranial magnetic stimulation to treat persistent headaches. Such headaches are often seen in military personnel with concussions.

After two tours as an IED hunter in Iraq, Josh returned to the states. He had a difficult time adjusting, and was always on high alert, until he went through prolonged exposure therapy at VA.

The theme of this year’s National VA Research Week, May 17–21, is “One Team, One Mission,” reflecting the nationwide focus of VA researchers on improving Veterans’ health care and quality of life.

Researchers found minimal differences in community participation between white and minority service members and Veterans, contrary to results in non-military samples. They suggested that the study results may have been influenced by supportive resources available to service members and Veterans, like employment assistance.

National Guard Veteran Ken knows VA – he was a doctor there prior to his deployment. When he was injured in Iraq, he skipped private health care, and instead chose to trust his care to VA.

PREP - the Post-deployment Rehabilitation and Evaluation Program - is a one-of-a-kind treatment at the Tampa VA for both Veterans and active duty Servicemembers with a deployment-related concussion or TBI.

Neurologist specializes in treating sleep disorders. Program aims to understand sleep and the impact that poor sleep can have on the brain and body. And how sleep is affected by TBI and PTSD.

In this short wrap up episode, hosts Levi Sowers and Brandon Rea look back on the first season of the Vets First Podcast, including topics and guests.

Dr. Bertrand Huber, an Army Veteran, is the director of the PTSD Brain Bank at the VA Boston Healthcare System. His research focuses on the relationship between traumatic brain injury and neurodegenerative diseases, with a primary interest in how the brain clears damaged proteins after injury.

Post-9/11 Veterans have “alarmingly high rates” of insomnia disorder, according to a VA San Diego Healthcare System study. More than half of the Veterans studied had the disorder. Insomnia rates were even higher in Veterans with posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD), traumatic brain injury (TBI), and chronic pain.

Felix Garcia joined the Marine Corps and deployed as part of Operation Iraqi Freedom. Shrapnel wounds from an attack in November 2005 led to his medical discharge. After service, Garcia became active in the Military Order of the Purple Heart and the Coalition to Salute America’s Heroes.