Kaitlin Miller lives in Saint Louis and is the daughter of former guest, marine recon, and Vietnam veteran, Dan Van Buskirk. Dan recounted his war experiences, his participation in Guitars for Vets, and his work with training service dogs for veterans. Kaitlin grew up in Alsey, Illinois and went to school in Saint Louis and has worked in several roles in the service industry. Today she works in accounting with some senior project management responsibilities at Gaus & Associates. Kaitlin has been married for eight years and has two young boys. She has a passion for helping veterans, animals, and people through her volunteer and non-profit skills.

Kaitlin joins me today to discuss how the war within the home of veterans affects family connections. She shares the challenges that she experienced after her father returned from Vietnam and highlights how helpful the support from the VA and other groups can be. We discuss why it is important to reflect and look inwards at how living with a veteran affects you and shares how she expressed many of her feelings through art. Kaitlin discusses the need for an online portal to connect the children of war veterans and how spirituality and a connection to nature have helped her.  

"The war can come home and doesn't just stay there.” - Kaitlin Miller

This week on the Stigma Free Vet Zone Podcast:

The family challenges experienced by the children of Vietnam veteransKaitlin's struggle to keep family connections alive and end the cycle of cutting contact when problems ariseWhy it is vital not to pass judgment and be in tune with veteran parentsHow Kaitlin felt proud of her father, even though there were hard and challenging timesHow the stresses and experiences of war can affect a marriageHow Dan sought help through the VA and other groups and how it benefited their relationshipWhy it is vital to focus on how things affect you as well as how war affects themWhy you should spend time looking back at how the ‘war within your house' affected youHow Kaitlin has expressed her feelings through artMoving forward and helping those around usWhy the children of veterans would benefit from having a platform to connect with others who went through similar experiencesWhy spirituality and a connection to nature is a huge part of Kaitlin's life

Resources Mentioned:

Dan Van Buskirk & Linda Bobot on Forging Sacred Relationships with Service DogsGuitars for Vets

This episode is brought to you by…

The Orban Foundation for Veterans is dedicated to bringing greater hope, understanding, resolution, and togetherness on issues of civilian readjustment for all military veterans and their families. Orban Foundation for Veterans promotes the importance of education, identification, understanding, acceptance, and resolution of many of the complex and severe responses to war and military life.

Visit our website to learn more about the Orban Foundation for Veterans and to support our mission.

Helping Veterans & Their Families Transition to Civilian Life

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