and those who came back with posttraumatic stress disorder. others who served in the united states marine corps who were shot by snipers. adam burke from florida hit by mortar rounds. all of them came back. what we share with young people when we do this is that there was a place in their life where they came back to their communities and they were on a new frontline and many of them were afraid and it was difficult. what we did with them is we challenge that. we challenge all of these men and women in the same way we challenge them to find a way to continue to serve. adam burke, who was hit by a mortar round, ended up setting up his own nonprofit. another one set of habitat for humanity and another one became a youth hockey football coach. and then the internship at the first lady's office, joining forces, lissa steinman ended up becoming a biology teacher and what happened was for all of them, they started to serve again and they took on this challenge of finding a way to continue to serve on the new frontline. what we have found is that to

so you create this molotov cocktail of posttraumatic stress disorder on top of sexual abuse on top of not being paid as much as your male counterparts and the other restrictions you deal with, the military needs to face this head on and deal with it. >> put the secretary of defense panetta already said six months ago it was not going to be stood for anymore. is that enough? >> i don't think it's enough. there has to be the programs in place. it's changing a culture and institution that's been in place for a very long time. >> a male-oriented culture. >> let me make a statement. until you have diversity sensitivity training and change the culture and make women more welcome in the military, it's not going to change. >> that's it for this edition of "to the contrary." please follow me on twitter at bonnie erbe and at "to the contrary" and check our website, pbs.org/ttc, where the discussion continues. whether you agree or think to the contrary, please join us next time.

often young folks suffering from posttraumatic stress disorder, who are exposed to a lot of trauma in their lives are immediately placed in special education classes instead of given the -- even though they have the aptitude of not even higher aptitudes than a lot of their contemporaries, because they're having behavioral issues, in many cases i believe it's related to the environment. and some of the issues that they're exposed to. and, so, i think it's critical that we start to look at people who are struggling in a more compassionate way. so, since i've been supervisor, one of the organizations that -- community-based organizations that i've been very impressed by is the west side community services. i think that the -- (applause) >> there are a lot of communities, communities of color. they still have stigma attached to that name, mental health. so, it's really incredible that these individuals in this agency that's run currently by dr. jones who does pretty incredible work in the community in the western addition. (applause) >> that, you know, that they provide culturally compete

going towards developing better treatment for veterans suffering from traumatic brain injuries and posttraumatic stress disorder >> a group of anti-war veterans held its own event today. iraq veterans against the war and vietnam vets against the war gathered at the vietnam war memorial in downtown chicago. they held a moment of silence in honor of those who've died... and those who will die in the line of duty. they called for an immediate withdrawal of u.s. troops from afghanistan... so american military men and women can begin the process of healing. >> the veterans and spoke about their experiences in war and their continuing struggle to heal from the psychological scars of battle >> also on this veterans day the national veterans art museum held a grand opening at it's new location. the exhibition is called welcome home featuring the arch of two veterans \ \ \ \ \ \ \ \ \t of 2 veterans. it is part of a series of shows and performances exploiting the trauma of war. the museum is open to the public from today through memorial day >> still to come, a murder that horrified a west suburban commu

. >> posttraumatic stress. >> posttraumatic stress disorder. >> back home at ft.in colorado, he started feeling like people were out to get him. a few months later, someone discovered robert's illegal shotgun hidden in his barracks. according to army papers, he told investigators he was suicidal. at one point he spent a whole day drinking and sat at the end of the bed with the barrel in his mouth. >> i sometimes wish i would have died in iraq so my life would have meant something. >> forced to quit the army, robert ended up homeless. >> i went through some pretty bad times when i first got out. i was doing a lot of methamphetami methamphetamines. i was smoking a lot of dope and i was getting in with some rough crowds. >> and many of those rough crowds were made up of people just like robert. returning veterans. as many as one in three soldiers returning from iraq or afghanistan suffers from traumatic brain injury, severe depression, substance abuse or ptsd. >> i was dealing with other people that weren't so nice. >> is that weird for you to hear? >> that is really

questions like whether or not a second gunman was involved and whether the sergeant is suffering from posttraumatic stress disorder. a general is expected to make a decision by next week. >> you are watching "bbc world news." here are the headlines. china has begun the process of handing over to a new generation of leaders the close of the communist party congress in beijing. millions of people are joining in protests across europe, budget cuts are aimed at reducing government debt. let's pick up on what is going on in europe. all over, the message is the same. people have had enough, you want to go out on strike. >> there are nerves among some investors in the markets, hundreds of thousands across europe and they are very worried. highlights, focusing on austerity, so say the protesters. austerity measures to not work. this is what europe is doing as we speak. low volumes being traded, because of all the uncertainty, there is a certain validity in saying that these numbers do not work, but if you look at the lack of economic growth, today we learned the third quarter in the greek economy shrank by

so suffering from posttraumatic stress disorder.e we've seen it being used in a mobile application with this type of therapy. application is called pe coach. pe standing for prolonged exposure. it can be down loaded on any smartphone. it allows soldiers to listen to recordings of their own therapy sessionings. it helps them to relive and overcome their fierce. therapists use the same program assigning weekly homework assignments and evaluations to keep soldiers on track by monitoring their progress. >> not only are you recording the session, and listening to io understand what went wrong and you don't have anything wrong. it's just you are not the average person, you are a soldier. you are put out on the front lines, and you just came across very stressful events that happened to affect your life and some events were more stressful than others. >> veterans affairs says more than half of new veterans are seeking treatment for war-related mental disorders. we all know that ptsd can be crippling. it can lead to anxiety, depression and

the 10 veterans are part of a posttraumatic stress discord recovery program known as -- disorder recovery program known as the pathway home. at first a lot of skepticism from these servicemen. the relationship started with the rubbing of the dolphins. once they got comfortable, the vets started dancing with the dolphins. they even rode the dolphins around the tank. >> i'm riding a dolphin! >> reporter: in just two short hours, an emotional connection between the veterans and the dolphins, end up with kisses. >> i just want to feed them fish, and swim with them. >> reporter: this was the first time these wounded warriors got to work with these dolphins, and with such a big success, that the program's now thinking about having other soldiers come here for future treatment. as for these 10 veterans, they left with big smiles. and even a gift. paintings from the dolphins. >> go to bed, just excited, and you know, happy, and hopefully not having any nightmares. >> reporter: in vallejo, i'm da lynn. cbs 5. >>> the national park service is honoring veterans this weekend by offering free admissio

from the fact that she herself is a survivor of childhood trauma and has been working through posttraumatic stress disorder and working on her own healing and recovery. i don't know that anyone who has done work in this area not only in the mission district but in the city and county of san francisco who doesn't know laura guzman and what she represents. i don't really know what the right description for laura is. in my mind i think laura is sort of a force of nature that she has the ability of bringing people together. and what's remarkable about the work that she does is that she works with a population that is very challenged, that the work doesn't happen in a vacuum, it happens with the involvement of community. and laura has done a tremendous job of bringing into this picture the residents of the surrounding neighborhood who are her strongest supporters. and the fact that she's residents themselves are part of the solution and are committed to helping these individuals is a testament to what laura does. i don't know that there is anything that laura sets her mind to that she will be ab

combat soldier, he returned from the war with many of the same ailments as other veterans including posttraumatic stress des order which left him 100 percent disabled. folks i watched my father, who was a very proud man, beg, with the government for the benefits he deserved. and i watched my father, again a very proud man, have to raise his family in public housing, and feed his family with food stamps. it was not until my father and other veterans gave voice to the inexcusable mistreatment of other veterans that change was slowly put into place. now, i detail that story, i share that story with you, because it has shaped who i am as a person, and a candidate. it has instilled in me the need to serve, the need to give back, and the need to give voice to those among us who too often are powerless and do not have a voice of their own. and it has given me a sense of duty, and purpose. i took that sense of purpose, and i studied journalism at the edward r. mural school of education because it gave me an opportunity to engage in the issues shaping my community. i took that sense of purpose, and i work

. >> if you find yourself struggling with the wounds of war, which is posttraumatic stress disorder, be there for you as well with the care and treatment you need. no veteran should have to wait months or years for the benefits that you've earned so we will continue to attack the claims backlogged. we won't let up. we will not let up. >> president obama also mentioned, this was the first veterans day in ten years that no americans are serving in iraq. >>> as the country celebrates veterans day, how much do we really know about our veterans? josh levs is here with some surprises and a little bit of a quiz as well. >> yeah, a little bit along the way. a lot of people don't know about veterans, and i've been learning a lot. i want to show you a couple examples. i pulled up some facts for you. let's start with this one. how many veterans are there in this country? i'll give you a few choices. 17.5 million, 21.5 million, 23.5 million. >> i'll go with c. >> 21 po.5 million. let's go to the next thing here. this is really interesting. i'm giving you some facts. 1.6 million women, 2.3 millio

we have seen them come back with posttraumatic stress problems. we have seen them come back with traumatic brain injury. stan and i both know we have been to hospitals. we know how to save them. to protect the torso. we cannot protect the head or the lambs. the last affects of the iud's is following problems. a mother was pushing her son across the street in a wheelchair missing two legs. a wife was pushing her husband across the street missing two legs. during my time at walter reed, you see these terrible injuries. the brain injuries, especially. it is worse because you can get a prosthetic limb but to recover from some of the most dramatic brain injuries may never happen. we celebrated one such young soldier at the memorial day concert two or three years ago. i felt so badly because his mother and sister were now faced with that problem of caring for this young man for the rest of their lives and the rest of his life. we owe so much to these men and women who have served us. most are coming back. they will make a contribution to their companies

joined the millions of americans struggling to piece their lives back together in the shadows of posttraumaticress disorder and for ellis, this therapy came in the form of opera. photojournalist gabe ramirez explains. >> i identified so much as being a combat marine that i didn't think anything else outside the world would matter, but then people started to notice other talents of mine. i met charlie enberg and he issued a challenge. i want you to create a story that can be possibly turned into a musical. i had this idea and this story being this opera "fallujah." all aspects of the opera come from experiences of my own life. i joined the marine corps because i was one of those young men who didn't have any goals in life. so i thought that i'd be this kick ass guy with all of these cool machine guns on both hands, and at that time what i perceived to be war was what i took off of the movies. that is before i got into the combat zone, but when we got there, that is when everything changed. 2004, we were deployed to fallujah. ♪ >> i mean, i remember what we went through was quite significant. it

>> yes, the posttraumatic stress d disorder is in full swing for my panel.ace has been essentially even since we knew who the romneys were and it hasn't changed. there have been some flexes and movements in the numbers but we go into electoral advantage there and demographic advantage in some ways but the race is close. >> you know, it's funny. we're all -- there's sort of two schools of thoughts here. you have the data folks and you have the gut folks and you say, this feels like it could break and if it breaks it breaks in one direction. but we haven't had a break since 1980. >> right. >> it's sort of a reminder, we thought, it could break and if it breaks, kerry wins. obama was polling the same way the whole time. in 2000 there was this assumption that it was going to break for bush and it never did. >> for those of us who work long hours, sometimes it's hard to remember, it's exciting. it's an exciting time, right? it could go either way. i think what you're seeing is part of the reason that it's not. we always talk about a break and then don't end up se

in the past 24 hours, a service member has taken the lead due to posttraumatic stress disorder. -- taken his life to do to post traumatic stress disorder. their other young men and women out there like me who are grieving and trying to grasp onto any life out there. there are individuals of or behind the statistics. i want to bring those people together. that is what i wanted to start a nonprofit. i wanted to create a place where women could come together, men and women together and give the peer support that is necessary to see others like them. we have served many through the american river project. we allow them to overcome mental and emotional problems. it has been amazing. we push them outside their physical boundaries. it has been an honor for me to look at them in the face and see perseverance and to see their legacies being carried on through their actions. we are taking the program is the further. as a nation, it is our duty to recognize these men and women. you cannot see it, but they are there. they have wounds that are not visible to the eye. it is our duty through our new pr

they all have either posttraumatic stress disorder or a traumatic brain injury. >> there's this cloud that hovers over them and a lot of that has to do with the fact that they don't know how to decompress. they don't know how they are going to be or see a future. >> the goal of this program is simple, to help these guys get over their anxieties and learn how to relax again. >> learn how to relax and interact with the community in a positive way and learning how to be a civilian again. know that life is not all bad. >> bringing the vets here was muriel snyder's idea. she's a volunteer with the pathway home who happened to swim with the dolphins for her 90th birthday. >> these fellows need this. they need to get away from their horrible dreams and experiences and just look at their faces. i get all emotional. >> beyond the smiles this is also about creating new memories to replace those other terrible images these men are working so hard to forget. >> i'm never going to forget this. >> in vallejo, laura anthony, abc7 news. >> lisa argen joins us now. the change in fall -- i know it's be

they all have either posttraumatic stress disorder or a traumatic brain injury. >> there's this cloudrs over them and a lot of that has to do with the fact that they don't know how to decompress. they don't know how they are going to be or see a future. >> the goal of this program is simple, to help these guys get over their afternoon i-tis and learn how to relax again. >> learn how to relax and interact with the community in a positive way and learning how to be a civilian again. know that life is not all bad. >> bringing the vets here was mauerial snyder's idea. she's a volunteer with the pathway home who happened to swim with the dolphins for her 90th birthday. >> these fellows need this. they need to get away electric their horrible dreams and experiences and just look at their faces. i get all emotional. >> beyond the smiles this is also about creating new memories to replace those other terrible images these men are working so hard to forget. >> i'm never going to forget this. >> in vallejo, laura anthony, abc7 news. >> lisa joins us now to talk about cold in some places this mo

seeking the death penalty while defense attorneys have argued that alcohol abuse, drug use, and posttraumatic stress disorder all may have played a key role in fueling his actions. the presiding officer says he'll issue a recommendation on whether to proceed to court martial by the end of the week. deadly fighting in syria reportedly left at least 63 people dead across the country tuesday, including 41 in the capital damascus. syrian tanks continue to shell the palestinian refugee camp which has seen heavy violence this month. france has become the first western country to recognize syria's newly brokered opposition coalition as the sole representative of the syrian people. the coalition was formed over the weekend at a summit in doma. at least 24 people at and killed and more than 100 wounded in a series of bombings across iraq. a multiple explosions were reported in at least four different areas, including baghdad and kirkuk. israel and palestinian leaders in gaza have agreed to attack -- agreed to a tacit truce following days of violence in the gaza strip. at least seven palestinians have

. >>> service members suffering from posttraumatic stress disorder have a new tool to help them recover. the military developed a new mobile app called prolonged exposure coach. the app has the user listen to recordings of their own therapy sessions so they can revisit the memory of what is haunting them. and in the process, help them cope. >> you're getting to understand what went wrong and that you don't have anything wrong. it's just you are not the average person. i'm starting to get control of my life again. >> veterans affairs estimates more than half of veterans seek treatment for emotional and psychological problems. >>> talk about a test of endurance in the city today. why some people were literally jumping over taxis and scaling schoolbuses in san francisco today. >> and how long do we keep those umbrellas around? channel 2 meteorologist mark tamayo will be here with a look at the next wet weather system and whether it will affect the thanksgiving holiday. look at you guys with your fancy-schmancy u-verse high speed internet. you know, in my day you couldn't just start streami

tens of thousands of soldiers are suffering from posttraumatic stress disorder.many cases, the trauma of war has become too unbearable for returning veterans. in fact, according to a recent report, more than 6,400 veterans kill themselves each year, which amounts to 18 every day. these statistics can get lost, especially as many here at home remain relatively immune to the challenges of war. during the world war ii era, for example, about 12% of americans had served in combat. today, according to the pew research center, that figure is under 1%. i'm going to bring back in david wood, a pulitzer prize-winning reporter for the "huffington post." you've been doing some reporting in this area, particularly with regard to overhauls, in our veterans department. tell us about that. >> you know, the va has a bad image. i'm not sure why that is. it's the gigantic department of veterans affairs. spends about $132 billion a year. takes care of about 22 million veterans. it's a gigantic organization. four years ago, eric shinseki took over, retired general, served two tours

through difficult circumstances there better prepared to deal with situations that might lead to posttraumatic stress disorder. one of the things we found that is really important for dealing with post-traumatic stress disorder is it is important for people to feel connected. when people come, and feel connected and understood and they feel understood by their family and the community and their team. it helps them deal with the symptoms of post-traumatic stress disorder. one of the things that is so difficult is if you add up every person who set foot in iraq or afghanistan, add up all the people who set foot in iraq and afghanistan over 11 years it still adds up to less than 1% of the population. of men and women come back from serving in iraq or afghanistan they might return to their community and find themselves in a place no one else has served. no one else has been on the front line or experienced combat and they can feel isolated. one thing we have to do is make sure people are connected to their families, their teammates and the community. that is one thing we have to do. the second thi

in our veteran community. 172,000 veterans in iraq and afghanistan have debilitating levels of posttraumatic stress this order and this is the number that has come forward to the va. there are tens of thousands more that are afraid to admit it because you get a stigma, difficult to get hired and job with these issues, traumatic brain injury is another invisible wound so i'm working with the uso, making a video tomorrow to call americans to go in for our troops. doesn't just mean donating money. what this group embraces is you will find ways to get active too and mentor these wounded warriors and if you can't run a race with and maybe you can help online in raising awareness, posting on facebook or whatever but whatever way you can at least welcome our wounded warriors back and try to reach out to them and give them thanks for what they have sacrificed for us. >> i would like to go back to the afghanistan -- having served there in the embassy, but for the surge, i wonder about the complication about the surge to afghanistan, a major part of the iraq idea was buying off local leaders. we have

flags discovery kingdom in vallejo will host a dolphin swim for 14 veterans being treated for posttraumatic stress disorder or traumatic brain injury. at 11:00 san francisco state university will open vets corner. a new veteran center. visitors can meet with student vets. >>> and on sunday, san jose hosting one of the largest veterans day parades in northern california. that of course means street closures and possible traffic delays so be aware. the opening ceremony kicking off at plaza decesar chavez at 11:00 a.m. we'll help navigate you here. the parade starts on delmas street, heads east on santa clara, then south on market street ending at san carlos street. >> it's nice they haven't lost that tradition. >>> 5:27. a lot more ahead of stick around. ♪ ♪ we were skipping stones ♪ and letting go ♪ over the river and down the road ♪ [ female announcer ] at nature valley, we know nature comes together in amazing ways. that's why we bring together natural ingredients, like dark chocolate with toasted oats, or sweet golden honey. perfect combinations of nature's delicious ingredients, from nat

stress this step -- posttraumatic stress syndrome.e have run up a real emotional bill with these guys and we need to show some understanding when the bills start coming through. host: a democratic call from connecticut. caller: thank you for having me on. i was talking to my father about this years ago. i noticed that in listed people have always been held today -- held to a far higher standard. those people were all brought up and court-martialed out and they're given dog leashes and that had to be given to them from the higher ups but none of them are ever prosecuted, but the enlisted people always were. the officers always got a pass. i am seeing it's finally come around but it took many years. i was just wondering if you noticed the same thing? >> it is a good point. military call the difference banks for different ranks. of the grave is a good point. -- of the grade -- the commander of the entire iraq were at that point was directly responsible for what happened. under him, they stuffed it tens of thousands of detainees into the

we have seen them come back with posttraumatic stress problems. we have seen them come back with traumatic brain injury. stan and i both know we have been to hospitals. we know how to save them. to protect the torso. we cannot protect the head or the lambs. the last affects of the iud's is following problems. a mother was pushing her son across the street in a wheehair missing two legs. a wife was pushing her husband across the street missing two legs. during my time at walter reed, you see these terrible injuries. the brain injuries, especially. it is worse because you can get a prosthetic limb but to recover from some of the most dramatic brain injuries may never happen. we celebrated one such young soldier at the memorl day concert two or three years ago. i felt so badly because his mother and sister were now faced with that problem of cang for this young man for the rest of their lives and the rest of his life. we owe so much to these men and women who have served us. most are coming back. they will make a contribution to their companies, comm

[applause] if you find yourself struggling with the wourneds of war, such as posttraumatic stress disordertraumatic brain injuries, we will be there for you as well with the care and treatment that you need. no veteran should have to wait months or years for the benefits that you have earned so we will continue to attack the claims backlog. we won't let up. we will not let up. [applause] as we mark the 50th anniversary of the vietnam war, we have secured new disability benefits for vietnam-era veterans exposed to agent orange. you needed it, you fought for it and we got it done. [applause] that's what we do in america. we take care of our own. we take care of our veterans. we take care of your families, not just by saluting you on one day, once a year but by fighting for you and your families every day of every year. that's our obligation. sacred obligation. to all of you. and it's an obligation we gladly accept for veterans like petty officer taylor morris. six months ago taylor was serving our nation in afghanistan and as a member of an explosive ordinance disposal team, his job was one

posttraumatic stress. the intensity. and yet the messes desire to want to do good. also, we need and wisdom to know when to stop. consistent with the preferences of patients and families. thank you. >> i think this is probably an unanswerable question, but is there any reform on the actual cost. it is impossible to get your brain around the cost of medicine. it cost $303,000. and so what does it cost? of the hospital can sustain itself based on what they get, what does it actually cost? >> i think it's a great question i would hope that the yen physicians in the room and everybody will start asking what it costs. i know a wonderful physician in the midwest who heard the talk in washington not long ago about how physicians need to be good stewards of resources. and so he went back home to his hospital. he has the financial people to go to the inventory with them in his operating room to find out how much of those things cost. he had no idea. turns out, he was surprised. $700,000 or the supplies and equipment in that inventory. 10 percent of it was expired. he -- i re

danny suffers from posttraumatic stress disorder. making it difficult for him to remain calm in large crowds or tight spaces. he is not comfortable sitting with his back to a door or window and feels stressed when strangers enter his personal space. danny has found a way to help battle some of the aftereffects of war. danny's medicine is in the form of four legged pit bulldog that goes by the name of shiloh. shiloh helps danny to remain calm when going out in product, and creates a comfort level and socialization skills. shiloh and other pit bulls to more than facilitate the day to day lives of the recipients. they provide a sense independence and unconditional love. for the veterans caring for a companion animal can provide a sense of purpose and fulfillment while lessening the feelings of loneliness, isolation, and depression. there are over 22 million american veterans today. and although the number of service members being deployed in today's wars are fewer than wars in the past, those returning from wars suffer from increasingly