Veterans Affairs committee  There have not, really. Even though there is the My Vac Account platform, you still have to submit form after form, and everything is siloed. A veteran is not considered a whole person. It's a back issue, a knee issue, a PTSD issue, and each component has its different set of paperwork that needs to be filled out.

Veterans Affairs committee  Absolutely.

Veterans Affairs committee  Jeanette, do you want me to go ahead?

Veterans Affairs committee  When I'm not able to support my veteran, it becomes chaos. We have two little children who are eight and 11. The blocks for us are going back and forth from Blue Cross to VAC and to Blue Cross from VAC. One will say something and the other hand will say another thing. I'll give a straight example.

Veterans Affairs committee  It's a huge challenge. I'm well versed in that world because I'm a nurse, and I know how they work. Someone who doesn't do that for a living will just abandon it. Then they will go into full crisis mode and, as somebody else has testified, they will end up in the streets, in the hospital or in jail, because it's a lack of support....

Veterans Affairs committee  To sum up, when the entire family, the entire unit, is doing well then I think the veteran does well also. If we're all dragging behind him, it's not helpful.

Veterans Affairs committee  Yes. Mental health being something that.... You will rarely see people [Technical difficulty—Editor] themselves and bathe or physically dress themselves. It was made for people who are unable to do anything physically. That benefit wasn't made for people with mental issues. It is known that for people who have mental issues, they want them to participate in IADLs, but sometimes it's just not feasible.

Veterans Affairs committee  Yes. For a veteran who went to Afghanistan, mowing the lawn, with the sand, the noise and the smell of gasoline, will actually trigger him to have panic attacks, and it will trigger his hypervigilance. Therefore, he can mow the lawn physically, but he'll be stuck on the couch for a week or so after that coming down from all the anxiety that triggers.

Veterans Affairs committee  Thank you for your question. My husband sustained mental injuries from his service. At home, I do perform all of the instrumental activities of daily living, but my husband is able to perform the activities of daily living. The difference between them is that he's able to dress himself, feed himself and bathe himself on his own, but everything that turns around everyday life—such as cooking a meal, getting groceries or doing laundry—he is not able to do on his own.

Veterans Affairs committee  We're going to share our time. My name is Marie-Andrée. I am a registered nurse by trade. I'm the spouse of a veteran who sustained some injuries—physical and psychiatric injuries—and together we started Caregivers' Brigade in 2013 to offer some support online to spouses like us who struggle with finding solutions in our everyday lives.