Sameer Khan

Name: Sameer Khan
City/State: Woodbridge, VA
Branch of Service: Marine Corps
Dates of Service: 2004-2012
Last Rank Held: E5
Military Occupation: 0311- Rifleman
Current Occupation: Retired Police Lieutenant
X: N/A
Instagram: dugjar0311
Facebook: N/A

Sameer outside of the military:

I love spending time with my wife and son. When I am not hanging out with them I enjoy playing Warhammer 40k and video games.

Sameer on joining the IAVA Cavalry:

I have experienced years of frustration of struggling with PTSD from my military experience as well as my time as a Detective investigating Crimes against Children. I spent years suffering in silence, but after years of therapy through various modalities I was able to overcome the darkness. I have also experienced the loss of family and friends from the suicide epidemic that has plagued the veteran community. I want to use my experiences to advocate for other veterans and first responders who I know are out there suffering like I once was.

How the military experience affected Sameer’s personal growth:

My unique military experience is a twist to the classic tale of the middle-class kid who volunteers for combat duty. I was in high school when 9/11 happened. I also lived in Northern Virginia and classmates of mine had family at the Pentagon. I experienced my personal anger with my country being attacked while simultaneously experiencing people looking at me with suspicion due to my family being of the Islamic faith. Regardless of how some of my countrymen may have viewed me, I believed that it was important to answer my nation’s call to arms to engage in the Global War on Terror. The trials and tribulations of a deployment to Iraq gave me strength to be courageous in the face of adversity.

IAVA’s policy priorities that are the most pressing:

I believe that providing Veterans with access to medical cannabis not only makes sense but is also essential in combatting Veteran suicide and opiate overdoses. Additionally, I also believe that alternate treatment modalities to include micro dosing of psilocybin or LSD while in the care of a medical professional is an effective treatment for PTSD. I unfortunately have lost many friends to suicide and overdoses and firmly believe that these alternative modalities can be the breakthrough we need to successfully reduce these tragedies that plague the veteran community. Time is of the essence and every day that access isn’t available results in only more lives lost. Medical cannabis can be the tourniquet we need to stop the bleeding.

IAVA’s policy priorities with the strongest personal connection for Sameer:

Through my personal experience with substance abuse and losing friends to opioid overdoses it has become clear to me that cannabis reform is paramount to lowering veteran suicide and improving overall mental health. This is a medication that the VA should be prescribing in lieu of OTC painkillers