Alongside these obstacles , female veterans struggle with being recognized at all .
Showing gratitude for the gift of freedom :
In Honor of Their Efforts by Crystal Han
What is the best way to show gratitude for the gift of freedom ? Veterans Day gives us the opportunity to honor our veterans for their military service , often by saying ‘ thank you ’, but is there more we could be doing ?
Vice Chair of the Santa Clara County Veterans Commission and U . S . Army veteran , Mellea McLaughlin , shared “ It ’ s kind of an awkward thing when everybody ’ s like , ‘ Thank you for your service ’, which is almost like saying , ‘ Hi , how are you ?’ It ’ s just words . It ’ s kind of a rote response .” She and every veteran she knows enjoy seeing the community ’ s support for them , but the fact is veterans struggle with many things people might not be aware of .
Transitioning back into civilian life is challenging for veterans . Within the military , basic needs like food , housing , and clothes are all covered . A soldier ’ s primary focus is to follow rules and procedures that ensure the safety of their team as they work towards a common goal . In so doing , they form strong bonds with their fellow soldiers , to the point where they ’ re like family . Outside the military , much of that structure is lost . If a veteran doesn ’ t have supportive friends or family to rely on , they must navigate the everyday stressors of finding housing and
20 careers alone . Compounding this are the psychological aspects of serving in the military . “ You don ’ t have to be in combat to experience trauma and PTSD . There ’ s male and female military sexual harassment and bullying ,” Mary Cortani , founder of the nonprofit Operation Freedom Paws and U . S . Army veteran , said .
Agencies like the Department of Veteran Affairs ( VA ) exist to help veterans receive care and benefits for physical and psychological injuries sustained , but navigating it is a complex and convoluted process . Many veterans don ’ t know where to start when it comes to requesting benefits , or that they ’ re eligible at all , and it can take years to receive approval . “ If you turned your paperwork in and it said ‘ this and that ’ instead of ‘ this or that ’, it would ’ ve been denied ,” McLaughlin explained . After years of being denied , many veterans give up and become angry that they ’ ve been left behind . Others who successfully got into the system still have to deal with high turnover rates of mental health specialists and long wait times for certain types of care due to high demand .
Alongside these obstacles , female veterans struggle with being recognized at all .
Cortani joined the Women ’ s Army Corps towards the end of the Vietnam era , a time when women were stigmatized for serving and weren ’ t allowed to call themselves veterans .
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