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Troubled Huntington GI aided by new center

Mendenhall, far left, in training, and with wife, Linda Kushner, in their Huntington home. (Newsday / Julia Gaines)

BY RHODA AMON | rhoda.amon@newsday.com

9:49 AM EDT, May 3, 2008

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When Sgt. Stanford Mendenhall returned to Huntington from duty in Iraq with the "Fighting 69th" infantry, he found himself unable to work, suffering repeated flashbacks and severe chest and back pain and getting no help from military sources.

The pain began in Baghdad, where Mendenhall patrolled the dangerous airport road, seeing explosive deaths and destruction and helping pick up body parts. Returning in 2005, he faced Army and Veterans Administration doctors who, he said, couldn't find anything wrong with him.

In the next two years while he fought for help, the former Hicksville letter carrier went into a financial spin; his car was repossessed, fuel, utility and credit card bills mounted to more than $40,000.

Mendenhall, who was 42 when he returned home, older than most soldiers, first enlisted in 1984 for three years because there was no work in his Alabama hometown.

He re-enlisted in the 69th National Guard unit in Manhattan in 1987 and served on security duty at Ground Zero after the Sept. 11, 2001 terrorist attacks. He was deployed to Iraq in 2004.

"You do what you're supposed to do," he said, "but when you come back they don't want to take care of you."

A soldier in distress

A spokeswoman at the Keller Military Medical Center at West Point said, "We addressed the concerns that he came to us with a year ago." The process may be taking longer, she said, because "there are a lot of soldiers going through here these days."

Mendenhall has post-traumatic stress disorder, or PTSD. About 320,000 military personnel returning from Iraq or Afghanistan have PTSD, a major depression, according to a RAND Corp. report, "Invisible Wounds of War," released last month.

In Mendenhall's case, emotional distress was coupled with physical injuries and ailments, including a spinal fracture, bone loss, lung problems and seizures, some of which may have been caused by exposure to toxic materials either overseas or possibly at the 9/11 site, experts say.

But Mendenhall has found a place where he is heard, receives treatment for PTSD and gets help navigating the military medical establishment.

The Rosen Family Wellness Center for Law Enforcement and Military Personnel and Their Families was opened last year at the Manhasset campus of the North Shore-Long Island Jewish Health Care System. About half the center's 30 current clients are military, most of whom, like Mendenhall, are having difficulty readjusting to family life.

Many respond with symptoms such as "emotional numbness, withdrawal and a loss of interest in any activities," said Victor Labruna, associate director of the center and a psychologist. "You go from killing people to tucking a child in bed. It's a big change," he said.

The center also helps families, including children, to learn to accept and integrate the returning soldier, said Labruna, who also counseled Linda Mendenhall on family matters.

Linda Mendenhall, an attorney, said she has written dozens of letters "not just for my husband but for hundreds of young National Guardsmen" who need help. Both have 15-year-old sons from former marriages.

Mental and physical issues are intertwined and impact on each other, Labruna said. Emotional distress, he said, can cause stomach problems, headaches and other symptoms.

For Mendenhall's medical problems, Labruna's been writing letters and making calls to authorities at the Keller Military Medical Center at West Point, where Mendenhall hopes to get physical therapy to relieve neck pain. "We see the big picture here and can take the time to be advocates," Labruna said. The service is free to those in need.

So proudly they heal

The Rosen Center was founded in 2007 by Rear Adm. Robert A. Rosen and his wife, Florence, and the Federal Law Enforcement Foundation. "We saw a great need to serve those who go in harm's way to serve us," Rosen said. Staffed with psychiatrists, psychologists, social workers and other health care professionals, the center provides behavioral health counseling.

"They answered our nation's call and their lives were interrupted. They've come back with invisible injuries that may not be apparent but are just as damaging as physical injuries, We want to help these people get back on their feet," said Rosen, who lives in Rhinebeck and has real estate offices in Jericho. "We can't rely on government" to provide the healing services, he said.

Similarly, "police officers are under terrible stress" in their efforts to apprehend criminals and protect the community, said Rosen, 71, who is now in his 50th year of military service. He recently retired as commander of the State Naval Militia and is currently a senior adviser to the State Senate Committee on Veterans, Homeland Security and Military Affairs and adviser to the State Adjutant General.

The center coordinates with other clinical services provided in the health care system. There is also an outreach program to soldiers being deployed or redeployed to Iraq. Screenings for alcohol and substance abuse are provided and there are also seminars on stress reduction, smoking, sleep problems, nutrition and weight gain or loss.

Supported by the Rosen and Federal Law Enforcement foundations, private contributions and the resources of the North Shore-LIJ Health Care System, the center has also applied for government grants.

Military or law enforcement individuals or families in need of help can call 516-562-3260 or e-mail rosencenter@nshs.edu "No one hurting or needing help gets turned away," Rosen said.