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Joe 33 Staff Sergeant United States Marine Corps

Marlton, NJ United States

I served in Iraq during the initial invasion. I crossed breach point west into Iraq the night of March 19th 2003 with my unit. I was with I MEF TSG, our main mission was running supply convoys between Kuwait and Iraq among many other side missions. I suffered for years when I came home. I later found out that I had PTSD. It took years for me to admit that this Marine was having problems. With the help of the VA, I am starting to better deal with my issues. There is a lot that has to be done on two fronts - we need to better educate our troops on the long term impact of hiding their issues and to speak up. We also need to educate the general public better on the signs of these hidden injuries. This doesn't just effect OEF/OIF veterans - its veterans of all generations.