Veterans Affairs committee  I'm sorry....

Veterans Affairs committee  Yes, ma'am. For me, on dealing with Veterans Affairs, when I have to deal with Veterans Affairs, I shut down for about three or four weeks after I deal with them. I start shaking. I see an email on my VAC account and I just shut down. I just recently got a reassessment for my cervical spine, and I have in total probably 14 pages of paperwork to do.

Veterans Affairs committee  Absolutely, sir. I've already submitted my recommendations. I just didn't quite get them in fast enough for translation. There are two major ones. The first one would be to remove bias and have bias training. Whether it's an unconscious or conscious bias, whether it's from a situation they've been in or it's a value they've been brought up with, help people to identify that in adjudicating certain claims.

Veterans Affairs committee  Yes, that is correct. There are different line items that VAC will pay for. Basically, if you're given a mobility aid in the Canadian Armed Forces, it's expected that they'll cover it, but they won't. They'll only cover the items that they actually pay for, so instead of paying $100 for a couple of brakes to be adjusted and to be repaired, they would go out and buy a $7,000 or $8,000 new wheelchair.

Veterans Affairs committee  I will give you a bit of a background, if that's okay. I had these injuries before, and I was selected and I was competing in the Warrior Games in Tampa in 2019. I had an accident while I was there and I had a neurogenic shock. I actually damaged my C2, C3 and C4 vertebrae, I believe.

Veterans Affairs committee  I had to self-refer to the OSI clinic. I wasn't offered any support. Very much like my fellow witness, I was diagnosed with adjustment disorder as well. That I couldn't handle change was essentially what that was, but I had been suffering from PTSD for over 20 years. It was never identified or treated appropriately.

Veterans Affairs committee  Good afternoon, Chair and the committee, or should I say good evening? Time zones are wonderful, aren't they? I really appreciate this opportunity and want to thank you for allowing me to speak today. I have to admit that this is the first time I've ever publicly spoken about the incidents that I endured and what my experiences in the CAF were like as a female and then, following that, my experiences with VAC.