So it is no surprise that when military personnel have severe difficulty getting over the trauma of war, their psychological difficulties have been described as "soldier's heart" (in the Civil War), or "shell shock" (in World War I), or "combat fatigue" (in World War II). After World War II, psychiatrists realized that these problems usually were not an inborn "mental illness" like schizophrenia or manic depressive illness, but were a different form of psychological disease that resulted from too much war trauma: "traumatic war neurosis" or "post-traumatic stress disorder" (PTSD). Most war veterans are troubled by war memories, but were fortunate enough either not to have "too much" trauma to recover from or to have immediate and lasting help from family, friends, and spiritual and psychological counselors so that the memories became "liveable." A smaller number, probably about one in twenty among World War II veterans now, had so much war trauma and so many readjustment difficulties that they now suffer from PTSD.http://www.ptsdsupport.net/ptsd_symptoms_oldervets.html
However the Vietnam war wasn't popular and the veterans from that war were looked on with disdain and in some instances disgust. It was the first time in our history that a war veteran was not welcomed home with parades and thanks for a job well done. This made the pain of having gone to war that much worse.
Not only did the Vietnam veteran experience the horrors of war but returned home to an unfriendly nation at war with itself. Many Vietnam veterans couldn't cope and went over the edge, others buried it deep inside and let it fester. Most are still reliving their horrors even today despite efforts by some to make it right for them.
http://www.nationaloperationwelcomehome.com/index.htm
http://www.whvvd.org/whvvdwebsite/homepage/homepage.html
to name a few.
What is PTSD?
What is Posttraumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD)?http://www.ncptsd.va.gov/ncmain/ncdocs/fact_shts/fs_what_is_ptsd.html
Posttraumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) is an anxiety disorder that can occur after you have been through a traumatic event. A traumatic event is something horrible and scary that you see or that happens to you. During this type of event, you think that your life or others' lives are in danger. You may feel afraid or feel that you have no control over what is happening.
Anyone who has gone through a life-threatening event can develop PTSD. These events can include:
* Combat or military exposure
* Child sexual or physical abuse
* Terrorist attacks
* Sexual or physical assault
* Serious accidents, such as a car wreck.
* Natural disasters, such as a fire, tornado, hurricane, flood, or earthquake.
After the event, you may feel scared, confused, or angry. If these feelings don't go away or they get worse, you may have PTSD. These symptoms may disrupt your life, making it hard to continue with your daily activities.
As you can see, by definition, it is not primarily a combat related illness but it is an illness none the less. War however is the primary cause of PTSD. The symptoms vary by the experience that brought on the PTSD.
There are four types of symptoms: reliving the event, avoidance, numbing, and feeling keyed up.http://www.ncptsd.va.gov/ncmain/ncdocs/fact_shts/fs_what_is_ptsd.html
Reliving the event (also called re-experiencing symptoms):
Bad memories of the traumatic event can come back at any time. You may feel the same fear and horror you did when the event took place. You may have nightmares. You even may feel like you're going through the event again. This is called a flashback. Sometimes there is a trigger: a sound or sight that causes you to relive the event. Triggers might include:
* Hearing a car backfire, which can bring back memories of gunfire and war for a combat veteran
* Seeing a car accident, which can remind a crash survivor of his or her own accident
* Seeing a news report of a sexual assault, which may bring back memories of assault for a woman who was raped
Avoiding situations that remind you of the event:
You may try to avoid situations or people that trigger memories of the traumatic event. You may even avoid talking or thinking about the event.
* A person who was in an earthquake may avoid watching television shows or movies in which there are earthquakes
* A person who was robbed at gunpoint while ordering at a hamburger drive-in may avoid fast-food restaurants
* Some people may keep very busy or avoid seeking help. This keeps them from having to think or talk about the event.
Feeling numb:
You may find it hard to express your feelings. This is another way to avoid memories.
* You may not have positive or loving feelings toward other people and may stay away from relationships
* You may not be interested in activities you used to enjoy
* You may forget about parts of the traumatic event or not be able to talk about them.
Feeling keyed up (also called hyperarousal):
You may be jittery, or always alert and on the lookout for danger. This is known as hyperarousal. It can cause you to:
* Suddenly become angry or irritable
* Have a hard time sleeping
* Have trouble concentrating
* Fear for your safety and always feel on guard
* Be very startled when someone surprises you
What are other common problems?
People with PTSD may also have other problems. These include:
* Drinking or drug problems
* Feelings of hopelessness, shame, or despair
* Employment problems
* Relationships problems including divorce and violence
* Physical symptoms
and can last a life time.
What can you do?
What treatments are available?
When you have PTSD, dealing with the past can be hard. Instead of telling others how you feel, you may keep your feelings bottled up. But treatment can help you get better.http://www.ncptsd.va.gov/ncmain/ncdocs/fact_shts/fs_what_is_ptsd.html
There are good treatments available for PTSD. Cognitive-behavioral therapy (CBT) is one type of counseling. It appears to be the most effective type of counseling for PTSD. There are different types of cognitive behavioral therapies such as cognitive therapy and exposure therapy. A similar kind of therapy called EMDR, or eye movement desensitization and reprocessing, is also used for PTSD. Medications can be effective too. A type of drug known as a selective serotonin reuptake inhibitor (SSRI), which is also used for depression, is effective for PTSD.
The sad thing is we are creating a new crop of PTSD sufferers with the war in Iraq and Afghanistan and we will have to have the treatment available for those men and women returning from this conflict. Maybe we've learned from Vietnam and we will be able to keep this new generation of Veterans from suffering what my generation has. At least I hope so.
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