Evidence of meeting #41 for Veterans Affairs in the 42nd Parliament, 1st Session. (The original version is on Parliament’s site, as are the minutes.) The winning word was services.
A recording is available from Parliament.
5:10 p.m.
Liberal
5:10 p.m.
Liberal
Bob Bratina Liberal Hamilton East—Stoney Creek, ON
That must be very touching for you. Can you anticipate bad sessions?
5:10 p.m.
As an Individual
Usually it's a letter from Veterans Affairs, hearing about another suicide. We've had to figure out his triggers. The shower in our house is a trigger. If he has to have a shower, that is a stressor. We can't have ceiling fans because that's like a helicopter. There are things that we have had to identify and then get rid of in our house.
5:10 p.m.
Liberal
Bob Bratina Liberal Hamilton East—Stoney Creek, ON
Do you think there is any way you could have been helped to anticipate these things? Did you have to learn all of this as it happened?
5:10 p.m.
As an Individual
It can be done with the help of the psychological team that's involved and if someone is doing a good trauma history and actually working on that trauma, instead of just doing talk therapy, which can take a very long time. It wasn't until people did a deeper history that we were able to identify some of the issues.
5:10 p.m.
Liberal
Bob Bratina Liberal Hamilton East—Stoney Creek, ON
How often would you say you're able to sit with another woman or other women who are experiencing this and just exchanging things?
5:10 p.m.
As an Individual
In the community I live in, I have two great girlfriends who also have husbands who served in the military and have PTSD. The three of us try to get together and walk as often as we can with our dogs. Sometimes it's once a week and sometimes we go a month without it. It depends on life and scheduling.
5:15 p.m.
Liberal
Bob Bratina Liberal Hamilton East—Stoney Creek, ON
We hear about this from the veterans themselves. We hear about the sports and the physical education, how they're getting the teams together, and just the getting together. So, that's as important for you.
5:15 p.m.
As an Individual
Yes, because other people just don't get it. It's nice to have people who listen without that judgment.
5:15 p.m.
Liberal
Bob Bratina Liberal Hamilton East—Stoney Creek, ON
Are your children transitioning into a better understanding? What's it like for them now?
5:15 p.m.
As an Individual
It's getting better now that Marc has identified where he needs to change. The veterans transition program initially is 10 days but over three different weekends. On the first weekend, things instantly changed with our children, but for us, not so much; it was worse. Then, the second week it was so much better between us, and then our children. It helped him identify that he's not alone and that he can still be a good dad. It is getting better, but it's hard. We talk about daddy having an empty head and you can't see all the injuries you have.
5:15 p.m.
Liberal
Bob Bratina Liberal Hamilton East—Stoney Creek, ON
Because they should be aware that their father is a hero. He served his country.
5:15 p.m.
As an Individual
I find that Marc and a lot of the newer veterans have a hard time with that word. That's a hard one to swallow for them. He doesn't even have veterans plates, because he's not there yet for himself.
5:15 p.m.
Liberal
5:15 p.m.
Liberal
Bob Bratina Liberal Hamilton East—Stoney Creek, ON
—the self-esteem that's no longer there that should be there?
5:15 p.m.
As an Individual
They're focusing on all the bad things and saying, “Oh well, I could have done this differently; and what if I would have done this, and what if, what if...?”
5:15 p.m.
Conservative
Cathay Wagantall Conservative Yorkton—Melville, SK
Thanks so much, Stephanie. I appreciate this beyond words.
I just have to ask a couple more questions about mefloquine. It has become quite an issue that has come to me with our veterans.
Did he have a choice as to what anti-malarial drug he could take?
5:15 p.m.
Conservative
Cathay Wagantall Conservative Yorkton—Melville, SK
Okay.
I got the sense, and we've heard this other places too, that you take it or you're reprimanded. So the choice was to disobey without their knowing and to keep the appearance up. Is that correct?
5:15 p.m.
Conservative
Cathay Wagantall Conservative Yorkton—Melville, SK
From what you talked about, I underlined the words, “meds don't heal trauma.” We have an issue in this country with overmedication, let alone what has happened with our soldiers and our veterans. How did he get off his meds? I know psychiatrists don't want to....
I've had scenarios where they're given and given, but they do not want to help you come off. So how did that happen?
