Resources help Soldiers cope with brain injuries – The Fort Hood Sentinel

Since 2000, more than 339,000 service members have been diagnosed with the signature wound from the wars in Iraq and in Afghanistan: traumatic brain injury.

Called the invisible wound of war, traumatic brain injuries are hard to diagnose and difficult to treat because of the diseases symptom diversity that can include anything from depression and anxiety to balance and memory issues.

There are so many forms of comorbidity associated with TBI that it makes for a very complex case presentation, said Dr. Scott Engle, director of Fort Hoods Intrepid Spirit Center, which held an open house March 24. Imagine all these symptoms put into a blender and mixed up. It would be very difficult to pull out one and just treat one symptom by itself alone.

The Intrepid Spirit Center uses a multidiscipline, holistic and integrated treatment plan to treat not just one symptom, but the whole person. Recent data, Engle said, confirms that the center and its programs are making a difference in helping Soldiers manage

depression and post-traumatic stress.

These results are a function of our warriors commitment, the support of their spouses and Family and the care of our incredibly dedicated staff who bring their best every day, Engle said.

Since the centers 2016 opening, in addition to physical and occupational therapists, the center has nearly doubled its staff size adding a speech pathologist, an art therapist, a chiropractor, a neuro-optometrist, a massage therapist and an acupuncture specialist to its array of services supporting its readiness platform to rehabilitate, reclaim, redirect and redeploy.

The open house, held in honor of Marchs National Brain Injury Awareness Month, featured displays, therapy and equipment demonstrations.

This years theme was Integrating Arts in the Healing Process and featured guest speaker Ret. Brig. Gen. Nolen Bivens, who serves as the military community advisor for the National Endowment of the Arts Military Healing Arts Creative Forces program.

This past year, Intrepid Spirit Center added arts to the healing equation by collaborating with NEAs Endowment Creative Forces Initiative, which serves the unique and special needs of military patients and veterans who have been diagnosed with traumatic brain injury and psychological health conditions, as well as their Families and caregivers.

According to NEA, Creative Forces places creative arts therapies at the core of patient-centered care in military medical facilities and makes community arts programming available in the states or regions where clinical sites are operating.

Besides the Creative Forces Initiative, NEAs decade of collaboration with Department of Defense includes creative writing workshops, performing arts programs, the Blue Star Museums military appreciation program and grant funding for veterans-centered programs.

Sometimes it is difficult for our warriors to put into words their wartime experiences, Engle said, adding that art is a perfect avenue to allow for freedom of expression, a point stressed by Bivens.

Bivens said he became a believer in the healing power of the arts after discussions with leaders in art programs and witnessing how creative arts, especially art and music therapy, became a pathway for Soldiers to communicate and share their wartime experiences.

I think the arts are so natural for healing, he said, and what I have discovered in the arts, particularly in the National Spirit Centers, is that art is a way for our Soldiers to figure out, self-select and maybe get back home.

The rest is here:
Resources help Soldiers cope with brain injuries - The Fort Hood Sentinel