United Children of Veterans

In this article by Jennifer Price, Ph.D, the VA examines four important questions: 

1.  How might a veteran’s PTSD symptoms affect his or her children?

2.  What are the typical patterns of how children respond to a parent with PTSD?

3.  What are the common problems children of PTSD face? 

4.  Can children get PTSD from their parents? 

VA FACT SHEET for Children of Veterans and Adults with PTSD

For now, Australia is more progressive than the United States in acknowledging and studying secondary/vicarious  PTSD, also known as intergenerational PTSD.   Dr. Ken O’Brien, a neurology researcher and State Health Advisor to Queensland, studies the heritability of PTSD, particularly in children and grandchildren of Vietnam veterans.   

His website is called Inheriting the Vietnam War Legacy, and contains links to his research and an explanation of his work in layman’s terms.   

A PDF of his 2007 research study, “The Uncounted Casualties of War:  Epigenetics and the Intergenerational Transference of PTSD Symptoms among Children and Grandchildren of Vietnam Veterans in Australia,” can be found here:  http://eprints.qut.edu.au/13794/1/13794.pdf 

A 2004 presentation at the Social Change in the 21st Century conference, entitled “The Intergenerational Transference of Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder amongst Children and Grandchildren of Vietnam Veterans in Australia:  An Argument for a Genetic Origin,” can be found here:   http://eprints.qut.edu.au/650/1/obrien_ken.pdf

Laura Hammons, creator of Daughters of Vietnam Veterans (DOVV) aims to bring daughters (and sons) of Vietnam veterans together to celebrate art, and to raise awareness about secondary/vicarious PTSD.  This site holds a special place in my heart because I’m a daughter of a Vietnam veteran–and a writer too. 

Laura has been using her site to bring daughters and sons of Vietnam veterans together virtually, but we’ll be planning a Daughters (and Sons) of Vietnam Veterans conference for 2011 to bring people together in real time and place!   We’re meeting in August in Washington, D.C. to begin the planning process!

Veterans and Military Families for Progress (VMFP) is a Washington-based organization devoted to making sure the rights and needs of veterans and their families are: 
    - understood by the American public,
    - endorsed by our elected officials, and
    - protected by legislation, regulation, and public policy initiatives.

I’m a proud member of this organization, and work with President Tom Howe on a committee that reports directly to the White House.  Help us lobby Congress and the Executive Branch on behalf of veterans and their families. 

Find them here:   http://vmfp.org/

June 27 has been declared National PTSD Awareness Day!  This is great news because heightened public awareness about Posttraumatic Stress Disorder can lead to action.  Let’s not forget secondary/vicarious PTSD as we move forward with better educating the public.  PTSD affects not only the person who has survived the trauma, but their family members too.      

Read more here:  http://conrad.senate.gov/pressroom/record.cfm?id=325894&

Check out this spectacular online journal by Ilona Meagher, author of PTSD Combat:  Winning the War Within.  It’s a great place for up-to-the-minute news on anything PTSD-related:

http://www.ptsdcombat.com/

Attention all those in metro Atlanta, Georgia:  Veteran’s Heart Georgia is an organization devoted to the spiritual and emotional healing of veterans, their families, and entire communities.  They have occasional seminars, workshops, and poetry readings–and an amazing monthly support group called “Just Listening,” held at Episcipal Church of the Epiphany at 2089 Ponce de Leon Ave. NE, Atlanta, GA 30307.  I’ll see you there!

In Falling through the Earth, author Danielle Trussoni struggles to understand her father, a veteran who served as a “tunnel rat” during Vietnam.  As an adult, Danielle visits Vietnam and crawls through the tunnels herself in hopes of trying to piece together what happened to her family as a result of the war.

I met Leila Levinson, creator of Veterans’ Children, at a Veteran’s Heart Georgia meeting in Atlanta earlier this year.  Her website is an online community for children of veterans to share stories and to find support.  Veterans’ Children can be accessed at: www.veteranschildren.com

Leila also has a forthcoming memoir called Gated Grief.

Through this website and her book, Quynn Elizabeth explores what it means to be a daughter of a Vietnam veteran with PTSD.   The website includes excerpts from her book, some of which she reads aloud, as well as resources for veterans and their families.

Want to know more about secondary/vicarious Posttraumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD), also known as intergenerational PTSD?  This article in Vietnow provides a great overview, complete with case studies and steps to calm the nervous system.

http://www.vietnow.com/pagesptsd/ptsdeggshells.htm

The following article explores PTSD in children of veterans:  

http://www.mysanantonio.com/military/Soldiers_children_are_war_victims_too.html?c=y&page=1#storytop

In this blog, Cathy Malchiodi provides the latest information on childhood trauma, trauma-informed care, research, interventions, and resources.

See http://tlcinstitute.wordpress.com/2009/10/06/welcome-to-the-national-institute-for-trauma-and-loss-in-children-blog/

Because of my fear and lack of understanding of my father’s symptoms of Posttraumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD), I barely talked to him for 31 years.  In November of 2009, I asked him to complete a project with me.  We would talk every day for 30 days and try to get to know each other.  He agreed to finally tell me some things about Vietnam–a war and a word which was unspeakable in our household.  Helena Oliviero of the Atlanta Journal Constitution (AJC) interviewed us both during the project I called “Thirty Days with My Father,” and wrote an amazing article about our process of reconciliation:  http://www.ajc.com/news/atlanta/talks-with-dad-ease-271813.html

Soldier’s Heart is a group based in New York with outreach programs all over the U.S. to help address the emotional and spiritual needs of veterans, their families, and their communities. They have ongoing trips to Vietnam twice a year, where they take veterans and their families back as part of a reconciliation program.  I just arrived back from a trip to Vietnam with Soldier’s Heart where I was able to walk in my father’s footsteps, and to learn to view Vietnam as a country as opposed to a war.  Find them at www.soldiersheart.net