It’s easy to talk war statistics: 891,903 soldiers
hospitalized from October 2001 to June 2012; 161,385 of those soldiers were hospitalized
for mental health injuries alone. Though
these numbers do sound extremely high, what is the difference between 161,385,
and 161,386? Statistics are just
numbers. But what’s more heart wrenching
is to hear even one of these
soldiers’ stories. When one begins to
put a face with a statistic, things become a bit more real.
One marine, who was wounded in Iraq, told his story in an
article published by The Atlantic in 2011.
In October of 2006, the marine was performing an on-the-ground
inspection when he was suddenly shot through the mouth. He would have surely died if it were not for
the assistance of his fellow soldiers.
Among many other life debilitating injuries, the marine now suffers from
Post-traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD).
PTSD is a disorder that occurs after a person has experienced or
witnessed a life-threatening event. This
event is often so distressing that the person will re-experience the event in
dreams, recurring thoughts, hallucinations, or flashbacks. The person will also likely avoid certain
stimuli related to the traumatic event which may heavily affects one’s ability
to function in everyday life. For
soldiers returning from Iraq and Afghanistan, PTSD is tremendously common.
This former marine is now calling for other marines to seek
help rather than simply “tough it out.”
However, seeking help for PTSD is more difficult than one might suspect,
as the Department of Defense does not offer “off hours” for PTSD treatment. Veterans must find time in their busy days to
schedule an appointment, as the Veteran’s Center is only open 8 to 4:30. The marine writes: “And what about all the service members
struggling with PTSD who work two jobs to make ends meet, or who are single
parents without flexible schedules? This
is, unfortunately, a tragic circumstance faced by far too many of our young
veterans.”
For those who have not been deployed, understanding the how
the trauma of coming home can be worse than the actual deployment may be
difficult to comprehend. Post-traumatic
stress disorder has become a major problem in the military today. Suicide is now the leading cause of death in
the army (Rosenurg). This means that it
is absolutely essential that we take a closer look at taking care of our
veterans not only on the battlefield, but also with the battle they experience
after coming home.
Though many soldiers experience PTSD after returning home,
the stigma associated with seeking help for the disorder deters many from
therapy. The lack of therapists employed
by the military, and the incentive to under diagnose due to expenses doesn’t
help either.
Luckily, psychologists and researchers are paying more
attention to the treatment of PTSD, coming up with new and innovative
treatments in the past few years. For
example, the “Mind Body Program” focuses on treatments that emphasize group
therapy, breathing exercises, acupuncture, yoga, and self-expression. Though at first glace this type of therapy
might seem unlikely for a soldier who have just returned from war, the results
may surprise you. Many who have tried
this therapy, have seen improvement in PTSD symptoms.
So, what can be done?
Though we can’t necessarily protect our soldiers from getting PTSD in
the first place, more resources must be allocated in the treatment of PTSD. This means the military employing more
psychologists. Those psychologists
should also perform more research on effective treatments for PTSD. This also means removing the stigma
associated with the disorder so that veterans may seek help without feeling
ashamed. The military should encourage
veterans to see a psychologist after returning home, and should perhaps even
require a few sessions.
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