We're all in this shit together

We're in this together, man. In life, yes, but I speak to a less broad audience. Caregivers of people with living with PTSD. Veterans, more specifically. 

I sat in on a telephone conference today that centered on caregivers and their needs. It was called the "Forgotten Me". Now. I'm not going to criticize the fact that those who put on this conference were trying to accomplish something good. BUT. It sucked. It focused on breathing exercises and how to identify when you're stressed. Bitch, please. One universal fact of being a caregiver is stress. It just is. That's why caregiver burnout is a real and sometimes, damaging thing. While I can see the appeal is stopping to take a deep breath, breathing exercises are not going to heal my stress or eliminate my worry.  I suffer from "doitall syndrome". By that I mean I take it all on and I have this wild and arrogant view that I can DO IT ALL without any help. I mean, I'm superwoman after all, right? Haha. 

I can't do it all and when it falls apart is when I inevitably lose my shit. At least I'm consistent. 

Okay, so back on topic. During this conference there was a portion at the end where the individuals participating could talk and give feedback. As you can imagine, it was a lot of "well, I was SO impressed with the breathing techniques" and the like. However. There was one voice that was more vocal than the others. She spoke about being alone. It happens. I've talked about it. A lot. She also spoke about not having support. Again. VERY common. But, towards the end of the session, she came in swinging. She blasted post-9/11 veterans and caregivers. She went on and on about the WWII veterans and their lack of support and the Vietnam veterans. 

Now. She had a point. 

There is a divide between the older sect of veterans and the new. There just is. There shouldn't be. Veterans are Veterans. Brothers in arms. 

The system has failed our veterans in more ways than one. PTSD and TBIs are just now being fully examined. It's not a new occurrence, although the prevalence is higher than  in the past. I can see where the bitterness comes from. It should be directed towards the right people, though. Other veterans and caregivers are not the problem. We should be here to hold each other up and to commiserate together. The system is the problem. It's been broken for a long time. 

The good new is, we can work to fix it. There are advocates working to do that, right now. There are organizations working to right the wrongs. There are individuals who are there. There are people who care and dare I say, love. We can work together. Like I said, we're in this shit together.