“No Shame in Seeking Help” – Real Warriors Campaign DoD Blogger Roundtable

Staff Sgt. Meg KrauseStaff Sgt Meg Krause had her act together! Joining the Army in 2001 she served as a medical technician at Landstuhl Army Medical Center in Germany and then found herself in Iraq. It was according to her a “life changing experience for me”. Something she did not expect!

Leaving active duty in 2006 to attend college at Penn State she stayed part of the military with duty in the Army Reserve. Then the problems came: alcohol abuse, tardiness, poor class attendance, attitude changes, bad decisions and more! The unit leadership and peers noticed, family and friends too! But she failed to respond until her First Sergeant sat her down and said, I too had PTSD and needed help. You must seek help as well!

Col. Christopher Robinson
With that kind of start to this DoDLive Bloggers Roundtable it was not hard to pay attention! We met with Air Force Col. Christopher Robinson, B.A., M.A., M.P.H., Ph.D., Deputy Director – Psychological Health for the Defense Centers of Excellence for Psychological Health and Traumatic Brain Injury (DCoE), Staff Sergeant Krause and Master Sgt. Stephanie Weaver, National Guard Counterdrug Liaison, Substance Abuse and Mental Health Administration who all provided some great information about how many services are available to our veterans and their families!

Krause began her treatment with the Veteran Affairs program for PTSD and is now a Real Warrior Campaign participant. I asked how she felt after being part of the VA and she is described it as “phenomenal treatment’. She also felt very strongly that her soldier skills, unit response and PTSD treatment were not female issues but soldier issues. The discussion was lively and was quite an information exchange. The biggest challenge: getting service folks to seek help. She said there is “No Shame in Seeking Help” and that is what the Real Warrior Campaign is all about.

I was totally overwhelmed with the information flow and how much of an effort the Defense Department and Veteran Affairs have undertaken to provide resources, training, medical screening and much more for our combat veterans and their families. I am Facebook fan of the DCoE and see their announcements all the time. With links to resources from the DCoE website and the Real Warrior Campaign website our veterans can get treatment and help at anytime with live chats, 24 hour hotlines, etc! Browse them for more information that you may need! Remember that someone may have their act together and not realize they need help! You may be that First Sergeant, Commander, friend or family member that recognizes the need for help first!  Looking up the information in advance and preparing is what a soldier, airman, marine and sailor and their loved ones do best! Being prepared is key!

A big thank you Staff Sgt Krause for sharing her story with us! The DoDLive folks have put together another great Roundtable to help get out the information! The next step is up to you! Get informed! Be prepared! Seek help!

To listen to an audio transcript of this Roundtable please go to DoDLive. For more information on PTSD from Col K please click on Our Letters to You, Col K.

Photo Credits: DoDLive


Staff Sgt. Meg Krause, Medical Non-Commissioned Officer for D Company 450th Civil Affairs Battalion, Riverdale, Md


Col. Christopher Robinson, Deputy Director – Psychological Health Defense Centers of Excellence for Psychological Health and Traumatic Brain Injury (DCoE)byColonel KonFriday, June 10, 2011Email ThisBlogThis!Share to TwitterShare to FacebookShare to PinterestMilitary Life:Col K,military family,PTSD,Veterans