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Army testing alternative pain treatment
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AUGUSTA — A new approach to pain management at Dwight D. Eisenhower Army Medical Center is setting the tone for the rest of the Army.

The recently launched interdisciplinary pain center focuses on replacing pain medication with alternative remedies such as acupuncture, along with teaching soldiers coping mechanisms for pain. It's an important resource in an active duty force where muscular skeletal issues make up about 80 percent of medical board evaluations, said Maj. Jeffrey Tiede, the chairman of Eisenhower's Department of Pain Management.

In the Army, most joint and lower back pain comes from the punishing demands of lifting, twisting and running wearing about 120 pounds of "battle rattle," including 40 pounds of body armor. Narcotics can provide temporary relief, but there is risk of addiction, and studies have shown no long-term gains from treating pain with medicine, Tiede said.

Instead, the pain team at Eisenhower takes three weeks to wean service members off the drugs through remedies including acupuncture, massages and yoga. Three to four hours of the 10 hour days are spent exercising and teaching soldiers to stretch the muscles that cause them pain. The methods are met with some skepticism. But the soldiers undergoing treatment are eager to get better and stay in the service longer.

"The fortitude and the mindset of the soldiers is phenomenal," Tiede said.

Eisenhower's approach to pain management is gaining traction. As a "pain hub," soldiers from forts Campbell, Benning, Jackson and Stewart come to Eisenhower for treatment. Service members from other branches are also coming to Eisenhower for treatment, including Marines from Camp Lejeune, N.C.

Word of mouth is spreading, also. Tiede said referrals are coming not just from primary care physicians, but commanding officers and platoon sergeants across the Army. The pain is serious, but "the bottom line is they will gain the endurance to manage it themselves," Tiede said.

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Raiders welcome new commander,
Ashe takes over from Crider
0908 Raider Brigade cmdr
Third Infantry Division commander Maj. Gen. John Murray congratulates incoming 1st Armor Brigade Combat Team commander Col. Robert Ashe on Aug. 28 after passing him the brigades guidon during a change of command ceremony on Cottrell Field. Ashe, a native of Albany, has spent many years in the 3rd ID. - photo by Photo by Sgt. Emily Knitter

During a sweltering morning ceremony, Col. James Crider bid farewell to 1st Armor Brigade Combat Team and passed off command to a new leader during a ceremony Aug. 28 on Cottrell Field.
After almost 31 months in command, Crider said he was sad to leave.
“The time in command goes by very quickly,” Crider said. “We seem to be very busy day-to-day, but suddenly you look up and somebody is telling you you have to go. You never feel like you’ve completed because the mission doesn’t ever really come to an end.”
Maj. Gen. John Murray, 3rd ID commander, was on-hand to pass the brigade colors from Crider to the new Raider Brigade commander, Col. Robert Ashe.
Ashe said he is looking forward to the future with the Raider Brigade. A native of Albany, he has spent the better part of a decade in the 3rd ID, and coming back to Fort Stewart was his first choice of assignments.
“I am glad to be here, and I am looking very forward to getting to know people within this organization,” Ashe said. “The detail of what missions are ahead is less important if we get the team right.”
During his speech, Crider relayed his faith in the new commander.
“Col. Ashe is the best choice the Army could have possibly made to serve as the commander of the Raider Brigade,” he said. “He has an Army-wide reputation of excellence that he has earned while serving in the toughest jobs a combat arms officer can have.”
Crider, his wife, Jill, and son, Jack, are headed to Fort Bliss, Texas. Before leaving, he had one final message for the soldiers and families of the brigade.
“I just want to thank everyone, starting with a lot of the people who are close to me by virtue of their position,” he said. “I appreciate all that they have done to help me so that I can make good decisions and keep this brigade going in the right direction. I am grateful to all the soldiers who really give it everything they have every day. Overall, I just want to say thank you and that I sincerely appreciate their service and their sacrifice. I know this is not an easy lifestyle.”

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