REMEMBERING THE ULTIMATE SACRIFICES: U.S. Service Members, 1776-2025
TOTAL BATTLE DEATHS…………………………………………………………….. 1,308,468+
TOTAL WOUNDED………………………………………………………………………. 1,452,040+
MISSING…………………………………………………………………………………….. 40,000+
TOTAL SUICIDES, 2000-2025……………………………………………………….. 163,000+
UNTREATED BRAIN WOUNDED VETERANS, 2000-2025……………….. 877,450+
TOTAL SACRIFICES…………………………………………………………………….. 3,840,958+
American History has been described as constant war, punctuated by periods of peace. Depending on your count, America has been involved in 85 “wars” since 1776. Practically every year in our 250 year history had American service members in harm’s way, frequently in multiple areas of the world. Whether fighting Indians or Iranians; whether alone or in alliances; whether defending direct American interests, or the sovereignty of the oppressed, American service members have bled and died, doing their duty.
And throughout those 250 years, Americans have believed that we citizens owed them an obligation to care for them to the best of our national ability.
God knows how much money we have expended fighting those wars. And only God and perhaps A.I can calculate how much we have spent trying to alleviate the suffering of the wounded and families of the fallen.
Memorial Day. We remember. An historical event, a looking back, a time of reverie and commitment to do better.
We can do better.
Wars kill and maim and leave lasting damage. Some we can see. Less visible, but no less damaging, are Blast and combat injuries and the lasting effects on loved ones, and families, and society at large caused by brain wounding.
Keep in mind as you reflect on the dead and the wounded, and our obligation to them:
- DoD and the VA declare that Suicide Prevention is their #1 clinical priority.
- Hyperbaric Oxygen Therapy nearly eliminates suicidal ideation, a result of pain and depression resulting often from undiagnosed and untreated brain wounds.
- Combat, BLAST, and one-time and/or constant banging of the head can lead to brain wounds.
- Painful and debilitating symptoms accompany brain wounds and have been observed in patients later found to suffer neurological disorders that lead to Alzheimer’s, Parkinsons and Chronic Traumatic Encephalopathy.
- The VA and DoD have a suicide epidemic that is increasingly tied to actions taken — and not taken — by their own medical personnel.
- Scientific, peer-reviewed research connects BLAST damage to brain wounds, TBI, PTSD, and CTE.
- Institutional medicine is slow to adopt science demonstrating that Hyperbaric Oxygen Therapy helps heal brain wounds, diminishes suicidal ideation, and improves Quality of Life in service members and other victims of brain wounding from Concussion/TBI/PTSD/BLAST.
- No military or institutional medical organization uses HBOT for brain wounds, and even goes to lengths to denigrate the science and warn against the risk of HBOT, despite scientific, clinical, anecdotal, and evidence-based practice to the contrary.
- HBOT is available today. 14 states have legislated its use. TreatNOW has effected over 33,000 successes, including 12,500 successes and restored Quality of Life to Veterans suffering brain wounds in over 180 clinics nationwide.
- Institutional infrastructure exists today to treat over 10,000 Veterans daily. A concentrated effort to build additional capability could save tens of thousands of lives and hundreds of billions of dollars.
- TreatNOW estimates that all 877,450 brain-wounded Veterans could be treated with HBOT for less than one-half of one percent of the $4.7 Trillion cost to NOT treat.
- And every investment in a Veteran redounds to the benefits of millions of Americans similarly brain-wounded and untreated. HBOT can help heal all wounds, whether from sports, accidents, assaults, falls, stroke, surgery, diabetes, gas poisoning, Covid, or many other diseases.
If only we remember to do the right thing: TreatNOW
Our knowledge of brain wounds and how to heal them has “exploded” in the last decade. The medical universe is mired in old notions about the brain and how to heal brain wounds. We can help in their education by allowing and funding State hospitals and clinics to use HBOT to heal TBI/PTSD while Congress and the VA and DoD catch up.
HBOT Heals Brains, Stops Suicides, Restores Lives. TreatNOW
Information provided by TreatNOW.org does not constitute a medical recommendation. It is intended for informational purposes only, and no claims, either real or implied, are being made.