A place for my brothers and sisters to recover

in #health7 years ago

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I am still new to STEEM. This is only my second day on here. It is very easy for me to see the potential that it has though. My interests are cryptocurrency, silver gold and coins , prepping, hiking/camping/ backpacking and so on. There are plenty of categories on steem to satisfy my main interests. However, id like to see a new category that I think would be very popular but more than that would have the potential to really help people and connect people that can help each other. I am a combat veteran. I served four years in the United States Marine Corps as a rockets and demolitions specialist in the infantry. I did two combat tours in Iraq. My first tour was pretty tame and not that long. My second tour was very brutal. Upon return from deployment I was diagnosed with post traumatic stress disorder, like most others combat vets.

I wrote a story yesterday about some other traumatic events that happened to me after the military and I found it very therapeutic. It got me to thinking of the possibilities. Suffering combat veterans can anonymously discuss their symptoms and issues with other veterans suffering in silence from the same issues. Other Veterans that are recovering and dealing with their symptoms successfully can offer support and advice. Not to mention that people that have been so badly effected to where they cant work could at least earn a little extra cash while at the same time giving them a new sense of purpose now that their military mission is over.

In short I want to start a Veterans Support section or a Combat Veterans sections or something of that nature. I don't want to alienate or devalue service members that didn't see combat but the plain truth is that combat is an experience like no other. Nothing compares or equates to it and unless someone has experienced it , there is no way to relate. As a former Marine infantryman , I value everyone that supported our efforts. Our job couldn't be done without good logistics getting supplies from home to the front line. The medical personnel that keeps us healthy to get there and nurses us back to health when we get hurt. The administrative crews that keep the pay correct and flowing while we are thousands of miles away but still able to at least financially support our loved ones . The list goes on. They are all respected and appreciated , they just didn't have the same experiences.

What I'm really writing this for is to seek any and all advice about how to best accomplish this and do it successfully. I am also looking for as much support for this as I can get. I'm not sure if I just start writing and tagging it with the new section id like to get off the ground. I don't know how it would get any exposure by doing it this way. thEQCRPWDG.jpgthM85XSRW7.jpg

Marines and soldiers fight to keep each other alive and safe during combat. This should not change just because we came home. The fight is often harder after returning because then we are fighting alone. It doesn't have to be that way. The suicide rate among US combat veterans is unbelievable. Our country should be embarrassed by how young men and women that risked everything are tossed away and forgotten about once their purpose has been served. We should at least always have each other to lean on. The hardest part of that is finding other vets. I am a member of the American Legion and VFW but these are not therapy groups. they are great organizations but, men and women suffering from PTSD, and the depression anxiety and all other behavioral disorders that come with it , probably shouldn't be surrounded by cheap alcohol when trying to cope with these issues. I cant stress enough that we need to look out for each other.

Anyone that would like to get involved with this idea or can give me solid advice on how to make this happen please reply with your thoughts or ideas on how to get this off the ground

Semper fi and semper steem

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@stay-in-the-gray welcome to steemit, am sure that you will be a big success here. Feel free to see my posts on how to be successful on steemit and follow me for more tips . Steemit is a platform that rewards hard work, authenticity and great contents. Wish you success.

I cant thank you enough for your vote of confidence on my success here on steemit. I have followed you and will definitely check out you posts. I need all the advice I can get. not only do I have the hard work , authenticity (and I hope at least good content) but I have a vision and a mission to help my brothers and sisters that served. I feel it is a calling and I wont rest without succeeding. I am so very grateful for your support charls1. God bless and keep on steemin on

you are welcome an I wish you success in your good work. See this my link for tips https://steemit.com/steemit/@charles1/stop-whining-here-are-way-to-improve-your-earnings-on-steemit , also read my recent and olders posts...success to you

Great stuff! Greetings from Spain! :)

Hola Albertoyago. Thanks for checking out my post and supporting it.

Hey dude. USMC corpsman here for ya. OEF also PTSD/TBI. I love your idea. Following you and got your six if you want to start a combat vet channel. There's a certain type of support guys like us need that is sometimes hard to get outside of the fellowship of guys who are going through the same thing. Semper fi

Start posting articles with a primary tag that you both can agree upon. @vetsconnect seems good. The point is, generate content under the new category and watch it grow.

Thanks for the support and the info alexlimo. I think you are right about @vetsconnect. that's the category name id like to stick with. I follow all who reply too. keep steemin

Hey greenside. I dig the name too. Thanks for the support. I cant stress enough how much it means. I have been rolling an idea like this around in my head for a long time. I just didn't have the platform to do it on. Facebook and twitter are not for me. Steemit is perfect. You are right about sometimes only being able to talk to each other about certain things. Vetsconnect I think is what the category should be called specifically for that reason. A place for veterans to connect with each other and support each other and lift each other up. semper fi and semper steem , thanks corpsvalues. I followed too

Here's what you do to create a new topic of steemit articles. Just keep writing articles like the one above and make 'vetsconnect', your first tag. Invite veterans you know in real life to join Steemit and have them create posts under the same topic; being sure that you all agree to use the same primary tagline of 'vetsconnect' or whatever -- just be sure to finalize the name choice early on. Before long you will have a whole new category for veterans to share their stories with one another and the world.

Keep up the good work and get other veterans involved and the Steemit community will give you the support you need. You already have my support and I will do what I can to get you rolling even though I just started myself.

Thanks again alexlimo. your support means the world to me. I don't want my brothers and sisters to suffer in silence anymore. Your time and your advice are more valuable than you know. And again, I agree with you on the category name. you convinced me. vetsconnect it is. I appreciate your support in my mission. keep steemin

@stay-in-the-gray I think that is an awesome idea. You wrote that writing your story down had a therapeutic effect on you. I think not only does Steem allow you and other veterans to share their stories in an anonymous way, but actually receive appreciation for what you sacrificed in form of monetary rewards. I imagine it can be very hard to actually get enough income after you are diagnosed with PTSD and I think it is a shame to let all these people down after they fought and risked their lives,so that others can retain their standard of living. I think if you spread the word about Steem with your fellow veterans and keep on posting, that you will create a very valuable community. Best wishes!

I thank you with all sincerity for your support on my mission. you get it. By reading your reply I can tell you understand the vision I have and what I want to do for my brothers and sisters who never left another behind but , when they got home, they were left behind and forgotten about. Well ive never forgotten about any of them and they are why I'm doing this. Comartica , I appreciate you more than I can express. thank you and God bless. Keep on Steemin on.

Welcome! Upvoting and resteeming. If I can be of assistance, please let me know. I'm still a minnow too, but willing to help if you have questions. If you use these tags, you will get more support:

minnowsupport minnowsunite

Thank you so much threehugs. upvotes are great, resteeming is awesome. I cant thank you enough for taking the time to read my post and support it. I'm trying to do something big and need all the help I can get. I followed you and if I can return the favor let me know

Just Pay it Forward my friend!!

And keep steeming :)

welcome here :) i wish you come over your stresses and start your new life . keep us posted with your combat experiences .:)

Thank you so much abduls. I appreciate your support and please support the category I am starting, vetsconnect

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that's motivation awellrunlife. thank you for taking time to read my post and reply. please support vetsconnect too

Thank you for your service! Thank you for sharing your story! This sounds like a very noble cause and I have started following you to keep up with your progress. I'm brand new so don't have any advice personally but I wish you much luck!

I sincerely appreciate you beerme. I am honored that you are on board with me and vetsconnect. At this time of infancy for the category, any support is huge and means the world to me. I'm glad that you see the vision I see and are interested in it. FYI, I shared the tip of the iceberg when it comes to my story , so if you are really interested , there will be a lot more to come as I open up to show other vets how it can be therapeutic to get the weight of the devil off your chest. I am also following you and will upvote and support you also. God bless you beerme. Keep on Steemin on

Can't wait to hear more from you about this! I'll be paying close attention to your posts.

Hopefully in this steemit we can support each other, and know each other, I think you are a very good writer, I am waiting for your best work in this steemit, I salam @ auliaramadhn, if you like my comments follow and upvote, I will do the same for you. thanks.
this is my intro site
https://steemit.com/introduceyourself/@auliaramadhn/hello-im-new-member-join-here-to-steemit-201793t201323520z

Great Post love the idea I am also new to Steemit

thank you trendyandpopular. I have big plans for steemit. come along for the ride. keep steemin

Welcome to Steemit! I hope that you are successful in establishing a Combat Veterans section. There is so much support here! Have resteemed and upvoted. Good luck!

Hi ch4nel. Thank you for the welcome and taking the time to read my post. upvoting and resteeming is so appreciated. You are so right about the support on steemit. That is one of the main reasons why I am trying to do this here. Your support is not taken for granted, no ones is. God bless you hun. Semper steem. Oh, I followed too

Welcome to Steemit! Wish you all the best!

thanks for the good karma shadowblade. keep steemin

@stay-in-the-gray, I think that what you have proposed is a great idea. I was a medic with the 93rd Evacuation Hospital from 1989-91. My two sons are both on active duty now. The more we can help each other out in life the better. I hope that there will be people who will be able to reach out and be there for my boys if they ever need it. Laying the foundation now is a way to pay it forward. I am up voting, resteeming and following you.

Hey, welcome to steem

Thanks kingbach, preciate ya

Welcome to Steemit!

Thanks steemmaker. I am loving this platform.....so much potential.

Welcome follow me thanks you

thanks for stopping in and checkin out my post. I followed.

Hey there! Welcome to the fastest growing monetized platform for bloggers and writers. You may find it easy to quit and not persist because it is tough here at times.

Nevertheless persistence beats luck.

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Hey @stay-in-the-gray, Welcome to the steemit community. This link should get you started https://steemit.com/steemitboard/@steemitboard/steemitboard-witness-update-2.

Feel free to ask me any question you have. I would love to help if i can.
https://steemit.com/@shovonbd

Would be super happy if you follow me @shovonbd I follow back. We can grow together. Thank you

Hi shovon, thanks for checkin out my post and taking them time to welcome me to the steem community. Iwill definitely check out the link you suggested. I did follow too. I am new so I am responding to everyone that replies to my posts and I follow everyone that intelligent replies. God bless and keep steemin

Welcome to Steemit! Hope you find this to be a great place to share your ideas and thoughts. Keep Steeming on!

Thanks for checking out my post and welcoming me firepower. I am already amazed by the support I am receiving for what I want to accomplish.
Semper steem!!

Just come up with a tag and invite others to use it. That's the only way to create a "section" off the ground as far as I know.

Hi vultureking, thank you for checking out my post and taking the time to give advice on how to accomplish my "mission". The tag I have chosen is "Vetsconnect ". Thanks again man. Semper steem and God bless

Welcome to Steemit! Wish you all the best for you and your family ☺

Hi Indesta120282. Thank you for taking the time to check out my post and reply. I appreciate your warm wishes for me and my family. please help vetsconnect when possible. God bless and keep on steemin on

I's a pleasure 😉 vetsconnect? I don't understand?

Beerme hit the nail on the head. If you are really interested and know any veterans that you think might be suffering in silence please follow me and check out my posts "a place for my brothers and sisters to recover" and "support Vetsconnect" you might like them . they might be very eye opening. I appreciate your curiosity and time Indesta. your support would be very welcome also :)

Ok i ll do it !

you're the best indesta. thank you so much

Vetsconnect meaning veterans connecting with other veterans I believe - great idea!

thats right beerme. I'm trying to start a category where veterans, that are suffering in silence from the horrible things that combat does to humans with a conscience , can get support from other vets like me that have been chewed up spit out and brought to the edge of sanity but , found a way back. The suicide rate among vets is way to high. I was almost a statistic myself. I don't say that lightly either. I don't want any of my brothers and sisters to come anywhere near as close as I did to that. I picture a place where they can process their experiences and emotions while learning coping skills from others more advanced in their recovery while making some coin at the same time. chances are that they aren't holding down a job if they are battling their own mind full time. Thanks for the support beerme. keep on steemin on

Be strong and keep on fighting the good fight!

Congratulations @stay-in-the-gray!
Your post was mentioned in the hit parade in the following category:

  • Pending payout - Ranked 6 with $ 78,47

Thanks arcange. That's awesome news. The money is great but I really want the exposure for vetsconnect. My mission here on steem is to start a new category called vetsconnect where military combat veterans can come to get support from each other and help each other work through the problems and issues that traumatize them . Any support , intellectual, technological , financial or any other would not be taken for granted and will always be appreciated to the fullest. God bless and keep on steemin on

Hi Welcome to steemit! I upvoted and im following you! Keep it up!

Hi nunojesus. I appreciate you takin the time to read my post and reply. Thank you for welcoming me. Your upvote and follow are not taken for granted. I will return the follow. please support the category I am trying to start called vetsconnect. Resteems of anything to do with vetsconnect to give it exposure would be so deeply appreciated . Thanks again and God bless

Hey .....welcome to steemit family ......nice to meet u ya ....... I had upvote and followed u .... 😬😬return a favor if u wish too thx ya .....

Hi bongkia. thank you for taking the time to read my post and welcome me. I have returned the follow and will uvpote some of your content

Also my second day. I just upvoted you and followed. Looks like I made your post less valuable though. Not sure why that happened.

I am proud to have you on board roncrowder. your support is priceless, not worth less.....haha. Don't worry , you aren't bringing down the real estate. If you check my blog I actually made a post this morning asking why my posts are losing value. I guess it has to do with the fluctuation of market prices. its been a bad day for bitcoin etherium liotecoin and almost all the others. Keep on steemin on

Awesome! You will make it here for sure.
I wish you all the best.

Thank you for your time and support. It is never taken for granted. Your confidence in me is reassuring. thank you again. I'm now following you, you seem interesting . God bless and keep on steemin on

Thank you for your kind words :)
All I have is given from
Above.

Welcome to Steemit @stay-in-the-gray!

thank you for the kind greeting janusface

Welcome to Steemit @stay-in-the-gray. Wishing you good success on this platform

Thank you for the welcome and warm wishes. I sincerely appreciate you takin the time to read my content and reply.

reachfem24, thanks for your support and welcoming to the community. i appreciate everyone that takes the time to read and reply.

upvoted and resteem @dontryme2 post

That's what I'm talikin bout. Thank you so much dontryme2. The resteems are what I need to spread the word about #vetsconnect. I followed too

Really good idea and I hope it takes off. Keep sharing your stories and the community will keep listening and supporting! Good job mate and welcome to Steemit, from Australia. :D

In respect, I will pass on all the Crocodile Dundee stereotypical quips. Thank you Goliath, for the compliments and support. Most of all, thank you for taking the time to read my post and reply. I will keep sharing my stories, in hopes that other vets will open up and share their stories on #vetsconnect too, then I will know its catching on. Thanks again and God bless you and all of Austrailia

No need to hold back on puns/payouts etc about the Aussie culture, we love it and I can take a joke. But you are welcome, I will be following to continue my support while watching it take off.

Great article @stay-in-the-gray! I am also a vet (Army) who dealt with PTSD after deployments to Iraq and Afghanistan. 100% agree with everything in this post man. We are being sold short at every turn by the community that is supposed to support us. I ended up giving up on the VA after 4 and 5 hours to be seen. Went out of pocket for my own therapy. Lost a lot of good buds to suicide a few years after we returned. It's disgusting that warriors like this aren't given basic care while the big wigs at the VA are raking in 6 figure checks.

Narconaught, let me start with saying , Welcome home brother. I am so glad that you get it. We have shared shoes. You are exactly who I am trying to bring into the #vetsconnect community. I am not eligible for VA benefits due to an event that happened when I about three months short of separation. (that story will soon be a post on #vetsconnect). My Lt. from my last deployment was an elementary school teacher before the Corps, he was a mustanger too so he had a connection with the enlisted guys that most officers could never understand. He commited suicide a few years after separation. That was about a year after my own, very serious, not just a "cry for help" but never the less unsuccessful attempt to end the suffering by my own hand. We rely on each other to stay alive in combat and war zones. Life is a war zone, every day is a battle, therefore we should still be able to rely on each other to stay alive. The general public can not even begin to understand the mind of a combat veteran. Only other vets can understand. I know I'm not telling you anything you don't know there. I'm trying to say Thank you, beyond words, I appreciate your support for what I want to do. Ill give you a Hooah!!. and a Semper fi. Soldiers and Marines, Sailors and Airmen are all family. We are like brothers and sisters that are born from the same mother (The united States that we put our life on the line for) but we have different fathers, being the branch that we were trained by ,educated by and served in. And to anyone else that reads this, I have all the love and respect for our Allied cousins from the militaries of Canada, Australia, The UK and all other friendlies.
Semper Fi and Semper Steem

@stay-in-the-gray Keep the faith bro. Resteeming your post!

Thank you Chabudot. Resteems are what I need to spread the word about #vetsconnect. Your time and support are so deeply appreciated.

You've nothing but my respect. I served my conscription here in Singapore but I have never seen real combat. I always felt you guys are the real heroes of the world. I can't imagine what it's like to be in a firefight.

You're doing good for the world. I salute you.

Thank you Aldentan. Ive always thought we should have conscription here so everyone at least has an understanding of what the military is like, not to mention it enables every citizen to become a valuable tool in crisis events. Don't sell yourself short on your service just because you were never in a firefight. The military life itself is not easy. I sincerely appreciate you taking the time to read my post and comment. Your support is never taken for granted either.
Keep on steemin on

To be honest I wasn't a great soldier. I mean, I could take it physically, but I just wasn't prepared for it mentally. I was conscripted when I was 18.

I realized how bad I was during outfield exercises. I just hated it. But I endured it.

But indeed, it was a valuable lesson in masculinity.

Whenever I hear someone who has served before comment on how war movies are so cool and they'd want to enlist, I just want to laugh because they literally know nothing.

Thanks for the great post too. Keep on keeping on sir.

You seem like you have a good head on your shoulders aldentan. The military is a much more mental endeavor than physical. They want young people that are easily broken down and rebuilt as what they want. I was a little older when I joined so I wasn't totally moldable and it caused me some issues in my enlistment. At the very least ,it sounds like you gained an understanding of what it takes to be a good warrior, whether you think you were good at it or not. It was my experience that the best Marines in were the worst in combat. The best Marines in combat were the worst in garrison. Nobody really knows what they have in them and what they are capable of until they are tested to the absolute limit, which is what combat does. Unfortunately, if someone figures out that they don't have what it takes while they actually in combat, they usually get themselves or someone else killed. Usually someone else.
You are good people aldentan. thanks for your support bro.

Thank you too. I look forward to your posts. If you're on Facebook, add me. Let's stay in touch. https://www.facebook.com/Bboyalden

You will always be able to find me on here but I'm am proud to say I don't do facebook. I don't believe in the censorship that they engage in nor do I agree with anything that Mark Schmucherberg stands for. Politically or ideologically. I understand that I am limiting my exposure by boycotting facebook but I don't want them to control what I can or cant say. Id rather keep my values .

Alright man. No worries I understand. I took a Facebook hiatus myself years ago.

Greetings! I run an anti-war/foreign policy podcast that I post here on Steemit. I would be happy to include your idea in my upcoming episode records and posts.

I would suggest continuing to do writing, create your own tag, and look up some of the curator groups here on Steemit to gain some exposure.

I'll be upvoting and resteeming this post.

Good luck!

That is such good news. I really cant thank you enough for that kind of support Chieppa1 . I'm honored when someone takes the time to read my posts and comment. When people feel what I'm saying and trying to do is worth telling other people about then I feel like God is doing his thing to help. I don't want to pump out a bunch of low quality posts just to get the #vetsconnect tag out in numbers. My goal is to do at least two grade A #vetsconnect posts a week. I want them to be memorable , from the heart, and effective. most of all I want to leave people wanting for more. Unfortunately , I've had to put things on hold for a minute. I live in southwest Florida and have been doing hurricane prep almost every hour of every day this week. I actually live where the storm is expected to make landfall where I live so I am seriously wondering if I will have anything to go back to, I got to my parents about midnight last night which is about three hours north of Fort Myers and have been helping them all day with prep too. I am sure the cleanup will be long and arduous. I plan on getting some articles done during the storm though, even if internet is out and I work offline and upload after. I didn't intend to leave a twenty five hundred word reply, I just want everyone that is supporting what I am doing to understand why I probably wont be able to devote myself to #vetsconnect like I want to for a little while. I want people to know that I am not and never will give up. My energy will just be needed elsewhere for a little while. It is frustrating for me to have to deal with all this storm stuff right now when I was just getting #vetsconnect going and off the ground. Id really like to keep the momentum going instead of going on hiatus because of a storm. Thank you so much for your support Chieppa1. if you are serious about mentioning #vetsconnect in your podcast , please inform everyone that any delay in new posts are due to Irma and I will be posting regularly again as soon as possible.
Thanks gain Chieppa1 , God bless and keep on steeming on

Don't worry about Steemit right now. Focus on family. I already mentioned the project on the podcast and on the episode post here. I definitely follow your progress and spread your work around once you get it off the ground. I have never served in the military myself, and find most of conflicts our soldiers fight to be wastes of good men/women's lives. More reason for me to support them in their return and also inform the public that the most important decision the politician the vote for makes is sending people off to put their lives on the line.

Stay safe.

You speak the truth bukkots.com. I will succeed. I don't know how to give up. Your support means the world