U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs CWV – News Update

Get the Recruitment & Retention, Employment & Integration, Well Being & Treatment, Servicwomen in the News, Women Veterans, and Upcoming Events DACOWITS news from June 2022. [From DACOWITS]

How can your body help your mind? How can we work on connecting them? What role does your breath play? The fourth session in this series, Connecting Mind and Body, will help to answer these questions. A big part of yoga is breathwork and connecting your breath with movement. Often in yoga a particular movement is paired with either an inhale or an exhale. [From VAntage Point]

This month’s Women Veteran Authors Book Corner author is U.S. Army retired Master Sergeant Tanya R. Whitney, who served from 1983-2010. Whiteney wrote “A Soldier’s Journey Home,” a collection of poetry written as part of her therapy for overcoming PTSD. The poems highlight her Army ideals and her transition from combat to retirement. [From VAntage Point]

Today’s #VeteranOfTheDay is Air Force Veteran Donna Marie Hortop, who served as a mental health flight commander and chief of mental health. Donna Marie Hortop was raised in Plymouth, Michigan, and is the youngest of her three siblings. She attended the University of Michigan and earned a master’s degree in social work. [From VAntage Point]

We honor your service, Donna!

There is a crucial time after being discharged from the hospital where making nutrition changes could prevent the need to go back. As dietitians, we understand how hard it can be to digest nutritional information when discharged from the hospital. [From VAntage Point]

The Kansas City VA welcomed women Veterans and their families to honor and celebrate the service of women in the military over the years. The annual Salute to Women Veterans event began as a small ceremony in 2017 for WWI and WWII women Veterans. In 2018, Vietnam-era women Veterans were honored and, in 2019, Persian Gulf women Veterans were honored. The event has now grown to celebrate all women Veterans. [From VAntage Point]

Navy Veteran Tammy D’Alesandro was struggling. “I’m not ashamed to say I was in a really bad place. There were days I didn’t want to be here anymore because I didn’t know who I was,” she recalled. “That was hard.” [From VAntage Point]

Your COVID-19 questions answered. We’re listening to your questions about COVID-19 vaccines and hosting blogs on questions from Veterans. [From VAntage Point]

Communication is fluid: the situation, information, and people we talk to shape how we deliver a message. For Veterans in gender transition, finding their voice can be enhanced with the help of specially trained speech-language pathologists (SLPs). The Gender Affirming Program for Speech (GAPS), is a collaborative project between VA’s LGBTQ+ Health Program, the Audiology & Speech Program Office, and the ORH Veterans Rural Health Resource Center in Portland, Oregon, to provide voice and communication training for transgender and gender diverse Veterans. [From VAntage Point]

VA joins President Biden in saluting our LGBTQ+ Veterans this month, and every month. Pride Month is also a reminder that just as LGBTQ+ Veterans volunteered to defend our freedom, it is our responsibility to help defend theirs. “I often say that America can be defined by one word: possibilities,” said President Joe Biden. In his Proclamation on Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender, Queer, And Intersex Pride Month, the President affirmed, “This month, we celebrate generations of LGBTQI+ people who have fought to make the possibilities of our nation real for every American.” [From VAntage Point]