Stress Less Heal More Reduces Stress by Negotiating Bills for Wounded Warriors

Filed under Resources by on November 2, 2011 at 4:17 pm {no comments}

By WTC Stratcom
Editor’s Note: Stress Less Heal More is a participant in the AW2 Community Support Network.

Stress Less Heal More (SLHM) was founded in 2009 in San Diego, CA, by Julie Kalb after going through cancer treatment. As a single mother on a limited income, she quickly realized that negotiating her bills would be the key to her financial survival. Now Julie and two assistants help others through their own medical billing challenges.

Since its inception, SLMH has been negotiating household expenses such as utilities, phone, cable, rent, credit card debt, car payments, and hospital bills for anyone with a life threatening health condition.

While SLHM initially focused on cancer, brain injury, Parkinson’s disease, and other serious health conditions, they are now offering their services to active military personnel and Veterans across the United States. Cases can easily be handled in person, by mail, phone, and email. At first while they are only staffed to handle the bill negotiation for five individuals at a time, eventually they are planning to increase the number Soldiers and Veterans they can help.

To get started, the wounded warrior or Veteran can contact SLHM at contactus@stressless-healmore.com, and they will send a form that will enable them to negotiate bills on your behalf. For more information, visit http://www.stressless-healmore.com.

Do you know of a caring organization that wants to assist wounded, ill, and injured Soldiers, Veterans, and their Families? If so, please email me at the AW2 Community Support Network at the email address below. I welcome your recommendations and referrals. Send organization referrals to AW2CommunitySupportNetwork@conus.army.mil

Welcome to the AW2 Community Support Network

Filed under Community Support Network, Non-profit, Resources by on September 14, 2011 at 11:37 am {no comments}

By SSG Emily Anderson, WTC Stratcom

Join me in welcoming the newest organizations in the AW2 Community Support Network. These organizations are part of the 252 AW2 Community Support Network organizations that help better the lives of AW2 Soldiers, Veterans, and their Families. Click on the links below to get to know them.

The AW2 Community Support Network was created based on direct requests from severely wounded, ill, and injured Soldiers, Veterans, and Families. Wounded Soldiers stated that connection with their local community and community leaders was essential for their success and reintegration. For more information, please visit the AW2 Community Support Network webpage.

Do you know of a caring organization that wants to assist wounded, injured, and ill Soldiers, Veterans and their Families? If so, please email the AW2 Community Support Network at the below email address. I welcome your recommendations and referrals.

Send organization referrals to AW2CommunitySupportNetwork@conus.army.mil

It is From the Heart

Filed under 2011 Symposium, Community Support Network, Non-profit, Resources by on July 19, 2011 at 5:24 pm {no comments}

By Patricia C. Sands, WTC Stratcom

Twenty-five organizations convened at the Community Support Exhibit Hall at the 2011 AW2 Symposium to share information about their local support to wounded warriors and their Families.

Twenty-five organizations stood up to be part of the Community Support Exhibit Hall at the 2011 Army Wounded Warrior Program (AW2) Symposium, and more wanted to attend. It’s a very heartfelt gesture when one considers the commitment in time and resources it takes to attend. However, this was not business as usual.

When companies and organizations attend events they have a goal in mind, usually to make money and expand their market. However, these 25 organizations are not at the 2011 AW2 Symposium to make money. Their goal is to see how they can serve our wounded warriors and their Families more effectively. They want to meet the community and the leaders of the Warrior Transition Command and AW2. They want to get the word out that they are here to help and support wounded, ill, and injured Soldiers, Veterans, and their Families.

When reviewing the list of participating organizations below, please remember that their services and products are either free or are covered by insurance. Their efforts are from the heart.

Who are these generous organizations? They are as varied as the individual needs of the Soldiers, Veterans, and Families they support. They also run the gambit of expertise that cover each of the lifecycles that a wounded warrior works through. In addition, many are members of the AW2 Community Support Network, a group of organizations that are needed and vital to the AW2 Soldier, Veteran, and Family as they recover and assimilate back into the community.

I encourage wounded warriors and their Families to click the links below and get to know them.

It doesn’t end with giving wounded warriors and their Families a link to each organization’s website. They will know more about each of these organizations as we follow them through the next year. We will detail their stories through articles and blogs. The more wounded warriors and their Families know, the more they can help. It is all about networking and communicating.

Maybe you, as a wounded warrior or Family member, will be the vital link to refer a resource to the AW2 Community Support Network. Maybe you will be the one to connect another wounded warrior to a much needed resource. The Army cannot do it all. It takes the whole community to work together to make a difference.

Identify Your Pooh Bear

Filed under 2011 Symposium, Resources, Symposium by on July 19, 2011 at 1:26 pm {no comments}

By Alan Morales, WTC Stratcom

AW2 Symposium delegates and caregivers (left to right) Michelle Ash and Jamie Anderson participated in the caregiver resiliency training.

Piglet sidled up to Pooh from behind.
“Pooh!” he whispered.
“Yes, Piglet?”
“Nothing,” said Piglet, taking Pooh’s paw.
“I just wanted to be sure of you.”—Winnie the Pooh, A.A. Milne

I was sitting in the back of the room when this quote was shared with Family member and caregiver delegates at the 2011 AW2 Symposium caregiver resiliency training on Sunday. After reading the quote on the projection screen, I grinned and reflected on the warm feeling I got when I read Winnie the Pooh as a child. Around the room, many caregivers also smiled while others looked puzzled as if they asked themselves, “What does Winnie the Pooh have to do with resiliency?”

The training, taken from the Comprehensive Soldier Fitness Program, mentioned this quote to illustrate an important aspect of resiliency—trust. Resiliency trainer and AW2 staff member Venus Bradley explained that everyone’s life is based on relationships. More importantly, people’s lives are strengthened by those people they trust the most. Whether that person is a Soldier, mother, friend, or coworker, there is someone in each person’s life that they trust.

“Who is your Pooh?” asked Bradley.

Many of the participants laughed in the room, myself included, when Bradley asked this question. But she hit on a point that lingered in my mind. Sometimes individuals don’t turn to their trusted loved ones when they are faced with challenges. Instead, they keep the problem close to their chest and try to solve their problems alone. This is particularly the case when the challenge is with a spouse.

The training intended to demonstrate that in times of trouble, one needs to be mindful of the “Poohs” in their lives. These trusted individuals are often the ones that can help identify the facts of the situation, find the positive, and develop a solution. Sometimes, they are a spouse and other times it might be a friend or a relative. Each situation calls for a different approach, and those you trust are often the ones who can help you figure out which approach is best.

I learned quite a bit from Bradley yesterday afternoon. I learned that self-awareness about relationships can be a powerful tool and that identifying the people you trust ahead of time can be helpful when you least expect it. I walked out of that room realizing that it’s okay to lean on someone else for help in times of trouble and I think most of the delegates did too. We weren’t meant to live life alone, and often the “Poohs” in our lives are the people who make us stronger.

TGIT!—Thank Goodness it’s Thursday Meditation Hour

Filed under Behavioral Health, Community Support Network, Resources by on May 25, 2011 at 3:45 pm {one comment}

By Patricia Sands, WTC Stratcom

Editor’s Note: Warriors at Ease is a participant in the AW2 Community Support Network.

Thank Goodness it’s Thursday Meditation Hour is launching for Army Wounded Warrior Program (AW2) spouses and caregivers.

This teleconference meditation hour is a regularly scheduled event that assists spouses and caregivers to relieve stress and to find new coping skills. The teleconference call is scheduled for the last Thursday of every month and will be first held tomorrow, Thursday, May 26, at 1:00 p.m. EDT.

Robin Carnes, founder of AW2 Community Support Network Member Warriors at Ease, will lead the meditation using iRest techniques. These easy-to-learn meditation techniques are taught by Carnes at Walter Reed Army Medical Center and have proven to be successful. For example, after using these techniques, her students report the ability to sleep more soundly, a decrease in pain, and a general increase in peace of mind in daily life.

If you are an AW2 spouse or caregiver who would benefit from stress reduction, please email the AW2 Community Support Network to reserve your spot for tomorrow’s call at AW2communitysupportnetwork@conus.army.mil.

 

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