there's a new women's health center at the Veterans Administration Hospital in
Leeds
attention is also being paid to what's known as im St
military sexual trauma sexual harassment an actual sexual assaults
and it's now being treated as one more very important component of the overall
physical
and psychological health needs a female veterans
veterans coming home is made possible by the corporation for public broadcasting
and by pride stores
in women vets it is a challenge in the VA
because again traditionally were not used to doing that we're not used to
working with
women patients I'm and as an institution
you don't really realize that until someone stands up and says this
isn't working this is I'm not been treated the way I need to be treated
not because we're being malicious but because was just don't realize
so I am its it's things that we really have to listen to our vets to
to pick up on and then you make the effort to change things the women that
we serve have
band willing to on step up to the plate arm
put on a uniform arm go to war if
call to so they really are different
and women who don't find in the community that
problem around mstr any kind of sexual trauma
is that it fax people's lives in ways they don't realize
it comes up as first by your your stress level
as much YouTube space so much higher your ability to cope with
any stressors is impaired I'm
and they come with you know headaches abdominal pain sort of vague muscle
complaints you know physical complaints that
you definitely need to address and try to stand up for what's going on but
when you then it look at the global picture can say you know why
you know you're having real physical pain having real physical problems
can we connect this to
trauma you've had in the past have how you've dealt with that Rama and maybe
find
healthier ways to do it too much for you military sexual trauma is a huge problem
I'm we screen every single veteran that comes into our care
for military sexual trauma as we know it is
a a big problem and a
what we've learned is that 25 percent 14
female veterans have experienced military sexual trauma
we had gone away to do om
a funeral detail I was actually assault by
someone handling I brought it for and
as basically called a liar on
I am learned at that moment that number one
soldiers don't cry and if this is what I wanted to do
I needed to just it
move forward and that's what I did
I'm can see that wasn't painful hell lot of
self-destructive behaviors I'm
the Bible
I held it together I'm it
mainly because I'm that stubborn
and I just wasn't gonna let that situation
those people causing to stop because I
I wanted term service
and then where you go
to turn for help on oftentimes
there's great shame in self-blame involved after an assault
and one may not a
ask for assistance may not report
a the incident which then means
you may have to work beside your perpetrator a
for a long time
I
kinda shocked the world of it was a bad thing
when I came back kinda set my family for a loop
I tends I still work through I self isolating and I'm
I love those things I I was
existing and not living and as teaching my kids had existing outlets
so I started coming in
on to the basket clinic for for treatment
and I really do encourage people to come forward and
to to know that there is help available and that
a there's 0 a there's a way that we can
reduce symptoms improve quality of life and
and I I do you get to be parda many wonderful success stories
a and sure there's struggles along the way
a man when people's you know when people what's a start the group also you know
symptoms will worsen before they get better and that's just the nature of
trauma work
but it means that we're working on something and
you know I believe weekend get through this together you know as a
as a group
veterans coming home is made possible by the corporation for public broadcasting
and by pride stores
WG by: is proud to partner with the VA central western Massachusetts
soldier on in the bilingual veterans outreach centers in Massachusetts
to support veterans in their successful transition to civilian life
information at WG be wide-eyed veterans coming home
Dow toward