Wounded Warrior Program aids civilian transition

The AP has a great article on the efforts of the Army's Wounded Warrior Program to help wounded veterans - particularly those with mental/psychological issues - transition to civilian life. The Wounded Warrior Program (aka AW2) focuses on enabling wounded warriors to find and maintain a successful career in the civilian workplace. To do so, AW2 has worked with employers to educate them on the realities of conditions like PTSD or TBI, letting them know that veterans with 'invisible wounds' "might not be able to work regular hours or might startle too easily, suffer outbursts or require time off for counseling."

Army officials say many new veterans suffering from PTSD and brain injuries struggle to find and keep a civilian job. Advocates say many employers don't know how to accommodate veterans with these "invisible wounds" and worry that they cannot do the job and might even "go postal" someday.

"There is a stigma attached to the invisible wounds, and it's largely borne out of ignorance," said David Autry, a spokesman for Disabled American Veterans. "There's a fear that somebody will go off the deep end."

The program has also worked with individual veterans who need assistance juggling the transition to life in the workplace and the struggle with combat-related psychological disorders. The article tells the story of Richard Martin who, with the help of AW2 and his employer, has devised a number of ingenious devices to help him cope with his PTSP and TBIs in the workplace.

Richard Martin keeps a rearview mirror on his desk to prevent co-workers from startling him in his cubicle. The walls are papered with sticky notes to help him remember things, and he wears noise-canceling headphones to keep his easily distracted mind focused.

Martin, an Army veteran who was nearly blown up on three occasions in Iraq, once feared that post-traumatic stress disorder and a brain injury would keep him from holding down a civilian job, despite years of corporate experience and an MBA.

"Here I am with this background and I'm having problems with my memory," said Martin, a 48-year-old engineer and former National Guard major who now works for Northrop Grumman, helping to devise ways to thwart remote-detonated bombs.

The defense contractor recruited him through its hiring program for severely wounded veterans of Iraq and Afghanistan. The company consulted occupational nurses on how to help him do his job without becoming overly nervous when someone, say, drops a heavy object. Martin figured out other tricks, like the headphones, on his own.

This is a great example of veterans, military programs like AW2, and employers like Northrop Grumman working together to overcome the issues associated with military-to-civilian transitions and invisible wounds.