When are we going to start REALLY taking care of the Mental Health of our Soldiers

[cedarvalleynewfoundlands]

Today in Iraq, a Soldier walked into a Stress Clinic on a US Army installation and gunned down 5 fellow soldiers. This is so sad I dont even know what to think or say.
I have a nephew that was in Iraq and is now home and has severe emotional problems that arent being handled, mainly because he doesnt think he needs the help.
We send our kids to war. Our government takes them and teaches them how to be soldiers. PArt of that job is to kill other human beings, which isnt a normal state for most of our kids.
Soldiers dont have a choice in whether or not to go through Basic Training. It is part of how the Military makes them into the incredible human beings they are.
If Basic Training isnt a choice, why isnt there some sort of MANDATORY intensive 6 week course after they get back from War that counsels them and teaches them how to assimilate back into normal Society?
It shouldnt be an OPTION that they can get counseling and help if they want it, it should be a REQUIREMENT for every Soldier returning from a War Zone.
Would it help every Soldier....No.
Would it help some.....Definitely.
Climbing down off my Soap Box and returning to work!!!!!!
****Sorry, this probably should have went under "OPEN DISCUSSION", but I dont know how to move it.****

 

[4ondafloor]

Hi Mary.
I share your concern regarding mental health care for our fighting men and women.
Basic training does not contain "how to kill" but rather "how to conform to military standards. Its what comes after basic that molds them into the field they choose. (or in some cases, gets chosen FOR them)
With that said, obviously something went wrong here for this young man and it eneded tragically. I'll reserve comment until we hear all the facts and not what the media chooses for me to hear.
Going back as far as I can remember we have ingored the care of our veterans. It's not new. Everytime we get funding and are able to take a baby step forward we end up three steps back because the funding either falls short or gets yanked.
Instead of making it mandatory that every soldier returning from a war zone seek counseling, how about periodic counseling while in country?
War is an ugly thing. There really is no nice way to handle it is there.

 

[cedarvalleynewfoundlands]

Instead of making it mandatory that every soldier returning from a war zone seek counseling, how about periodic counseling while in country?
War is an ugly thing. There really is no nice way to handle it is there.

That would be an improvement to. I just feel that when they are in a War zone counseling shouldnt be an option, it should be part of the required military protocol. Not everyone would benefit, as you cant force someone to think or feel a certain way, but at least the door would be opened.
Sometimes, all someone needs is a little push to get them talking.

 

[Erika]

I agree, we need to take care of them, sending prayers for all

 

[ina/puusty]

The ones who have transisioned here..have all needed help..but have done a rather ginger/delicate..picking and chosing..of what they have sought..and..what they have avoided. The field of coping, and reintigration to society here..has been badly managed..in my opinion. ina n HB n Kesa

 

[CMDRTED]

It is, he was being sent to the first stage of counseling. There was a problem and he took a weapon from another soldier. The details are not yet out. The Army and Marines know this is a problem and they ARE reacting to it nad have reacted to it before this happened. Like anything else in this world, people and observations fall through the cracks.

 

[2newffamily]

This is - and at the same time is not - a complicated issue. And one that has been going on for a long, long time. Too long. Soldiers fighting in WW1 were branded as cowards if the stresses of war and killing took it's toll. There was no help for them. WW2 was only marginally better - marginally, not significantly. Then along comes Korea, but that wasn't a war, it was a "Police Action". No real help for the soldiers under fire there either. Let's advance now to Vietnam. Not much improvement even then for our returning warriors and I can't imagine there is anybody - except the younger generation - that isn't aware of the horrors that the soldiers witnessed and experienced there. It was thought that we were more "enlightened" then, but these poor souls suffered in ways unimaginable to those of us who never fought. So here we are now - Iraq, Afghanistan, the middle east, etc. etc. I do not understand how in such a supposed "enlightened" era, the age old problem still exists. It is shameful that our fighting men and women, both sides of the U.S./Canadian border, do not get the support they so deserve. The shame rests solely on the shoulder of our politicians and government.

 

[KodysGrandma]

It's always tough. As pointed out it's always been the same. I lost 3 uncles in WWI, 2 to bullets, 1 to "shell shock" which was the name given PTSD in those days. When my husband got back from 14 months inside an iceberg his first wife was warned not to wake him up suddenly or touch him to do so. She forgot one time and he threw her across the room. A friend's brother returning from Sprecial Forces in Vietname almost killed her for the same thing. Nevertheless it is hard to draw absolute lines. Not all soldiers see or do the same things. Not all of them start from the same mental point of have the same mental make-up. A colleague had to Baker Act her husband 20 years after the fact. I didn't find out about my husband's situation until 4 years ago, roughly 35 years after the fact. Those decisions are not easy for anyone, the soldiers, the doctors, the military leaders or the country.

 

[R Taft]

How sad.............Ronnie

 

[zennewf]

I don't know how these soldiers do it ... with so little support from our government. I think an organized reintegration program is a no-brainer. And how about some decent pay and benefits and less wait time at the VA?

Every once and a while a story crops up locally about an Iraq war vet who is homeless and without a job .... it makes my blood boil. We take it all from them, their youth, their health, their innocence ... and we give them pretty much nothing in return.

Liz

 

[KodysGrandma]

Medical care in the active military as well as VA is iffy these days. Sitting between 3 Navy bases and close to huge Air Force one we hear a lot of horror stories.

It comes down to- resources are limited. Where should they go. I personally would put the military way ahead of lots of other things that get money.

 

[4ondafloor]

Right there with you Emmie.
It took my Dad from 1971 until this past April to finally receive the benefits he deserved from exposure to Agent Orange in Viet Nam. That to me screams pathetic.
22.5 yrs of service. Thanks!
Despite my disdain for policy and "hush hush" tactics, I still stand behind the miltitary 110%. Its those who govern that fall short.

 

[cedarvalleynewfoundlands]

I still stand behind the miltitary 110%. Its those who govern that fall short.

:allg069: :allg069: :allg069: :allg069:

 

[Tricia2]

The issue of mental illness in the military

The issue of mental illness in the military has clearly reached a critical juncture. Troops presently serving in Iraq are suffering from combat related mental illness at a staggering rate, and the projected numbers foretell a mental health care crisis for veterans. Yet, because of the strong mental health stigma and the related career consequences that exist in the military, there continues to be an unspoken rule to conceal mental illness and "buck-up." The result of this kind of repression and denial is leading to tragic results for returning troops, manifesting in shattered lives and in too many instances, suicide. These brave Americans have laid their lives on the line in service to their country. Until stigma is addressed and the reality of the mental health needs of military veterans is fully recognized, our returning troops and veterans from wars past will continue to suffer - needlessly.

 

[CMDRTED]

Treatment and benifits cost money. It's easier to justify spending big money for taking care of soldiers on active duty. Afterwards everyone seems to forget they exist. Same o, same o since the civil war.

After 33 years of service I learned the hard way. Other that this, I can't comment politely......................:cussing2::grrr:

 

[cedarvalleynewfoundlands]

Yet, because of the strong mental health stigma and the related career consequences that exist in the military, there continues to be an unspoken rule to conceal mental illness and "buck-up." The result of this kind of repression and denial is leading to tragic results for returning troops, manifesting in shattered lives and in too many instances, suicide.

This is the case with my nephew. Came back from Iraq a mess, and says he's "fine".
I have tried talking to him about getting some help, as have his parents and other aunts, Uncles and cousins. The problem doesnt seem to be that help isnt available, the problem seems to be a denial on his part that he needs help or that anything is wrong.
He told me he had a job to do, he did it and he's fine. His wife says he wakes up with nightmares, blows up and punches holes in walls and has stated on several occasions everyone would be better off if he blew his head off. apparently he's drinking heavily also.He's had 2 serious accidents since he's been back.One of them was under suspicious circumstances. I'm not so sure it wasnt actually a suicide attempt. He left a sweet gentle, down to earth guy, and came back someone clompletely different. It is heartbreaking to me. I feel like unless he gets some help he will end up being a casualty of the war, either through suicide or a totally wrecked life.
IMO, he is way past the point of being able to take care of this himself, yet cannot admit to himself that his life is out of control and he needs help.

 

[sara722003]

I can't even discuss this with one thread of pretend-sanity. I was turning 50 when the US ' declared' war on Iraq (which I thought was preposterous, since there had NEVER been a connection between Obama and Hussein ---> note Mcclathey News sources from those years). Anyone reading them online or delivered to your lucky home knew this WAR was costumed in disguise.

Yes, I have had nephews galore go 'fight' this ridiculous 'WAR'. Get real. This was a quagmire heading in, and I thought the reasons it continued to be so was b/c we didn't have enough Middle East specialist who had lived abroad and incorporated their experiences into their lives.

I lived for almost 2 years with a french family in Paris between my HS and college years over 30 years ago, and it taught me more lessons in those 22 months than I've learned since.

My uncle is an Egyption Medical DR. who shakes his head at what the US has wrought these last 10 years!!

We've dug our own grave. It's time to begin digging out from the horrendous hole we dug for ourselves.