Just had a phone conversation with my medic from Vietnam
I learned that he will be retiring from the VA (where he has been working in prosthetics) this year.
When I got hit, Doc was a cherry medic in-country, and I was his first casualty. AK fire had blown away half my teeth and jaw, hit my shoulder, and I was peppered with shrapnel.
I remember Doc running up to me, throwing his hands in the air, and screaming, "Oh, my God, he's hit bad."
After I was evacuated back to the States, I wrote a letter to my platoon to let them know I'd survived (they'd been told I'd died). I could have addressed my letter to my platoon sergeant, my top squad leader, or any of the guys I'd been with through those times in combat. Instead (and I have no idea how I was smart enough to do this), I wrote that letter to my cherry medic.
Doc found me 20 years later, after he'd seen me interviewed at the Wall on Good Morning America. He still had my letter packed away somewhere, but the only thing we both remembered about it was my PS: "Your bedside manner sucks."
Somehow, Doc and I both survived the war and its aftermath. Both diagnosed with PTSD, both managing and surviving our trauma.
The first time we spoke, Doc told me, "Your letter literally saved my life." He didn't need to explain. I'm all too familiar with how caregivers, especially combat medics and corpsmen, blame themselves for the deaths of those they were unable to save.
For me, it was a real pleasure to be able to let Doc know that I didn't die, after all. Even though his bedside manner sucked. 
Doc's grandfather was a Jewish war vet who had fought the Nazis in the U.S. Infantry in WWII.
Doc and I live far far apart, across the country from each other. But on his retirement day, I'll be celebrating with him.
To Doc... 
= new reply since forum marked as read
He dealt with traumatic wounds in combat. After I got hit, he was overrun 2 or 3 times.
Calling him a "pecker checker" is an undeserved insult to a combat medic who really went through the shit. 
And thank you both for your service.
Definitely worth posting twice, not a problem IMHO.
Once for you, and once for Doc.
...
I'd guess the 8 kids were less to keep his mind off it and more to look forward to a better future.
Your dad's service there, at that time, as a medic is a BFD--even if he was reluctant to talk about it.
He might have even been in the 101st--my unit in VN--which would give him a historical connection to my medic...
Thank you so much for sharing it with us. I think I have something in both my eyes... 
you got me sitting here all blubbery..on Memory Lane .
Doc and the other field/combat medics have always been my personal heros. They got you back to us under tremendous pressure and sacrifice.
Give my regards to "Doc."
7th Surgical MASH
CuChi, So Vietnam
1966-1967
We love our field medics, of course, but we also love those who cared for us after we were extracted from the field. If not for people like you, I wouldn't be here today.
When the Medevac chopper landed and they rolled my gurney into the 85th evac hosp at Phu Bai, The OR's were full with the casualties we'd sent back, so they rolled me off, over by a wall, to wait.
I would have died right there, except that a nurse noticed I'd stopped breathing and they did an emergency tracheostomy on me.
We love all of you, at 7th Surg, 85th Evac, and elsewhere, who were there for us when it really counted.
Out in the field we had an expression, "It don't mean nothin'." But what you guys did DID mean something--and many of us wouldn't have had a chance to live our lives after that fucking war if you hadn't been there to care for us.
Cu Chi was a very tough place, jaysunb, and I'm glad you made it. And, from one survivor, let me say...thanks for being there for us.
Looks like we were Thua Thien buddies. I was '69-'70, 101st out of LZ Sally and FB Bastogne. Operating from Phu Bai out into the A Shau.
I'm glad you made it, brother.
One for Doc.
Many women served in other capacities--both military and civilian.
I don't know about its availability today, but the book A Piece of My Heart provides a good perspective on the service of women in that war--and their trauma.
Thank you for your service, pinboy3niner.
:cheers:
i wonder how you felt about the TV show M*A*S*H (Were they in Korea?). I'm 40 so i never had to deal with the Draft or war to the extent your generation did. But i do remember being affected by that show, and as a consequence believing that War was WRONG from a very early age. Hope i'm not sidetracking, just wondering...
To the Medics!
When the movie came out, a group of us patients went to see it on pass from Letterman Army Hospital in San Francisco. When we came out of the theater, we were totally jazzed. We loved the irreverence and the antiwar attitude of the film.
The TV show was a subversive, antiwar commentary on the VN War that was able to be aired only because it was a comedy, and ostensibly about a different war.
To the medics.
misty-eyed too. This story could almost make a movie screenplay itself (altho I don't know the first thing about screenwriting, even tho I live in La-La land
Glad that you both kept in touch with each other and glad you made it home brother.
Swiftboat service was also some hairy shit. I'm glad you made it, calmeco702.
