A major newspaper coined a new category for repetitive falsehoods, the “Bottomless Pinocchio.” These are falsehoods repeated at least twenty times. We are adding to the brain-wounded totals. We can only hope that we stay in the hundreds, not the tens and hundreds of thousands over the last twenty years. But in what is surely a first, DOD reported in less than two weeks that of at least 140 of the 290 U.S. troops reported wounded last month, 140 have been officially classified as TBI-related.

Three and a half weeks into the Iran Encounter, ABC reported over 200 US casualties. 140 were reported to be suffering from what used to be called “the invisible wounds of war,” TBI and PTSD.

Authorizing HBOT puts the US on an equal footing with Israel. It would start an immediate cost savings, rebuild force resilience, improve quality of life for hundreds of thousands of Veterans and their families, and is in keeping with the basic precepts of MAHA and their New Vision of Transformative Medical Care.

March is TBI Awareness Month, as the White House has reminded us. The Sea of Troubles at the VA and DoD is the suicide epidemic, their continuing #1 medical priority. It is also Academy Awards month. Up for Best Picture is HAMNET, named for William Shakespeare’s son, and the background to his revenge tragedy, Hamlet.

Hamlet’s reflections on Yorick’s skull is focused on death and revenge. The “Sea of Troubles” for Hamlet was bringing justice to his father’s murderer. For us and the families of the 159,000+ suicides, justice demands accountability for the Suicide Epidemic, and the memories of service members who died before their time.

It’s hard not to be cynical in the face of a medical culture that is slowly changing over time. That’s inevitable as more worldwide science shows how effective Hyperbaric Oxygen Therapy is in reversing suicidal ideation and in helping heal those brain wounds which keep announcing their presence with months and years of symptoms that degrade lives and families.

Helping in that eventuality are such groups as the Heritage Foundation and their growing interest in alternative, innovative technologies like Hyperbaric medicine and photobiomodulation. Equally interesting are Olympic athletes like Mikaela Shiffrin and Michael Phelps and hundreds of professional athletes and teams using Hyperbaric therapy for healing, recuperation, peak performance, and concussion recovery.

BOTTOM LINE UP FRONT: The NFL, DoD and the VA should immediately treat brain-wounded Service Members and concussed athletes with Hyperbaric Oxygen Therapy (HBOT). We can return players to action and stop the suicide and opioid overdose epidemics and bolster readiness imperiled by untreated brain wounds. The evidence of safety and efficacy is backed by over 28 clinical trials. Oversight of Veteran suicides seems to be left to family members, friends, some not-for-profits, and the media since Congress, the VA and DoD allow the carnage to continue.