Dad has "exploded" out of depression

My mom reports that my dad is doing fantastic. My Aunt Mary wonders if maybe he can be turned down a bit. From my mom's report it sounds like he is involved in life again. My dad back to arguing with my mom, complaining about things, driving all over, and planning activities. Before the new medication, he was just watching life go by from the sidelines. If you call him now, don't be surprised if he talks your ear off!

I talked to both my dad and mom by phone over the weekend. When my dad called me on Friday, he was very emotional. He wanted to let me know he had received a response from the National Personnel Records Center (NPRC) to his request for his dad's military records. My dad specifically asked which medals were awarded to his dad.

My paternal grandfather was a World War II Veteran. The NPRC letter states that my grandpa earned several awards. These included a Bronze Star Medal, a Purple Heart, a European-African-Middle Eastern Campaign Medal, American Campaign Medal, Combat Infantryman Badge, World War II Victory Medal, and an Honorable Service lapel pin. My dad is very proud of his father's service to his country.

My grandpa enlisted in the Army Air Corps in California ten days after the bombing of Pearl Harbor. Later, he somehow ended up in the infantry and fought in combat in Europe. The military records detailing my grandpa's actions and whereabouts were unfortunately lost in the 1973 fire at the NPRC. Near the end of the war in Germany, he was shot in the knee by a German soldier. In a letter describing the incident my grandpa wrote that the soldier was possibly SS.

My dad is also interested in whether there could be a link between his three different cancers and his father's military service. My grandpa was in the military when my dad was conceived. My dad is wondering if there was possibly a chemical his dad was exposed to or a medication his dad may have taken that could have contributed to my dad's cancers. Medical records are among those records destroyed in the fire.

Oh, I almost forgot to mention that my dad hasn't vomited since the stent was put in!