"IF YOU ARE IN IMMEDIATE DANGER CALL 911"
"IF YOU ARE DEPLOYED AND IN IMMEDIATE DANGER FIND AN MP OR CHAPLAIN"
Welcome my name is Wayne Edward May and I am a survivor of Military Sexual Trauma. As a male I have found it hard to get the help I have needed The VA in my state has very limited services for Male Survivors after months of asking my VA health care providers they said to call Bay Pines VA Healthcare System in Bay Pines Fla. They have a Center for Sexual Trauma Services after talking to a social worker at Bay Pines she told me to call a very nice lady who told me about Dr Jane Harris and her work with MST she was in a Vets Center in Bloomfield NJ 1 1/2 hours away from me. I was able to get to see her but the drive and lack of funds made it very hard.for me.If this service was at the VA Hospital in East Orange NJ only a short drive from the Vet Center I could have got help for travel. So due to funds I could not get the help I needed Dr Harris tried to help the best she could and she found someone closer to me at a New Vet Center. Which I now go to every week. My friend a female MST survivor story is very different she was sent to a group at The Local VA hospital and then to a program just for Females all of this was done in less then 3 months.Most programs in the VA are geared at The Female Soldier who have a higher rate of MST. I am doing this blog so Male Soldiers and Vets who are survivors of MST have a place to come and talk about it and a place to go for help.
M.E.N.D. Managing Emotional Needs with Dignity For Male Survivors of Military Sexual Trauma "IF YOU ARE IN IMMEDIATE DANGER CALL 911" "IF YOU ARE DEPLOYED AND IN IMMEDIATE DANGER FIND AN MP OR CHAPLAIN"
Sunday, January 9, 2011
What is Military Sexual Trauma?
"Military sexual trauma refers to both sexual harassment and sexual assault that occurs in military settings. Both men and women can experience military sexual trauma and the perpetrator can be of the same or of the opposite gender."1 There are varying degrees of this behavior throughout the military. To some people in the military, this type of behavior is seen as "normal" or may even be portayed as a part of initiation or acceptance to a unit. In some units, the behavior is condoned "from the top down," meaning that even the commanders are aware of the behavior and do nothing to stop it, if not actually participating in it.
This is one reason why Male Military Sexual Trauma is not widely reported in the first place; because the victim may feel that they are crazy for thinking that they have been wronged, when it's "normal" behavior in the unit.
It is not normal.
You have to be careful once this has happened, to make sure that you get the best advice possible, because it is possible that your chain of command will turn against you, and attempt to cover-up the incident, or humiliate and ridicule you making it out to be your fault, when in fact it is not.
The chaplain may be one person you feel safe going to, or perhaps it is JAG, or another soldier.
References
1. Street, Amy. and Stafford, Jane. (N.D.) Military Sexual Trauma: Issues in Caring for Veterans. National Center for PTSD. Department of Veterans Affairs.
This is one reason why Male Military Sexual Trauma is not widely reported in the first place; because the victim may feel that they are crazy for thinking that they have been wronged, when it's "normal" behavior in the unit.
It is not normal.
You have to be careful once this has happened, to make sure that you get the best advice possible, because it is possible that your chain of command will turn against you, and attempt to cover-up the incident, or humiliate and ridicule you making it out to be your fault, when in fact it is not.
The chaplain may be one person you feel safe going to, or perhaps it is JAG, or another soldier.
References
1. Street, Amy. and Stafford, Jane. (N.D.) Military Sexual Trauma: Issues in Caring for Veterans. National Center for PTSD. Department of Veterans Affairs.
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