A Brief Note On Ptsd And Survivors Guilt

PTSD is a psychological disorder that develops in some people that have experienced a scare, shocking, or dangerous event even though it's natural to feel afraid during or after a traumatic situation (National Institute of Mental Health, 2016). Some people with PTSD don't show any symptoms for weeks or months and PTSD is often accompanied by depression, substance abuse, or one or more anxiety disorders. Fear triggers changes in the body that help defend against danger and avoid it know as the “fight-or-flight” response. People with PTSD may feel stressed or frightened even when they are not in danger. Almost everyone will experience different reactions after trauma, but most people recover from initial symptoms naturally. Not everyone with

As of 2014, there are 22.5 million veterans in the United States. According to Veteransinc.org, between 529,000 and 840,000 veterans are homeless at some time during the year. Did you know 33% of homeless males are veterans? Aside from homelessness, 70% have substance abuse problems, 45% suffer from PTSD, and there are 22 veterans who commit suicide every day. The problems don’t end there, homelessness is just one problem for our veterans. 573,000 were unemployed in 2014. There are many causes for unemployment such as PTSD, war injuries, or lack of knowledge in the work field.

Coming home to nothing; no help, no support, no job, and no one to talk to about their personal experiences while being deployed. This type lifestyle is something veterans face on a day to day basis. Transitioning back into society can be difficult, but we as Americans should help them make this extensive change. The introduction of the book For Love of Country, written by Howard Schultz and Rajiv Chandrasekaran inspired me to look more into how the American society helps those who sacrifice their lives so our lives can be free. The introduction also helped with the theme of veterans and one topic question. What are the common repercussions of veterans leaving the army and what can American society do to help them?

Two of the biggest disadvantages are the mental illnesses and substance abuse that occurs. There are many mental illnesses that veterans can suffer from once returning but the primary one is PTSD. PTSD is post-traumatic stress-disorder which occurs when veterans unforgettable memories from war (“FAQ About Veteran Homelessness”). When veterans return, they are most likely a different person than when they left for war which can be hard for family and friends to adapt to the new person that the veteran has become. Some veterans turn to alcohol and drugs to try to get rid of their memories of war. Numerous veterans suffer from alcoholism to cope with their PTSD, which leads to them being rejected by other people including friends and family. Most veterans who return home do experience much loneliness. They have lower marriage rates, higher divorce rates, and 1 in 5 veterans live alone which is not good for their mental health (“Veteran Homelessness Facts”). Another disadvantage that veterans have is that their military skills and occupations are sometimes not transferrable to the real world jobs. This results in shortage of money and not able to pay for the essential items that they will need to live a happy life. Because of the importance of money in today’s world, not being employed might just be the worst situation to be in making it an even bigger reason why veterans need some kind of training to get a job. The best thing for a veteran is to come back from war to a place they can call home that is safe and drug free so that they can live a healthy life (“FAQ About Veteran

The family environment impacts the health of each member. Studies have found that there are poor health outcomes for children (including depression, poor development, higher rates of illness, lower academic performance, and cardiovascular and neuroendocrine disruption) were linked to a stressful environment (Ray). Secondary Traumatic Stress can occur among the individual(s) caring for the person who has been traumatized is affected by the traumatic experience (Stahl 37). The older children tend to be more affected by the veteran’s new behavior and worry about themselves, blame and feel responsible, and may often mourn the person the veteran once was (Ray). No treatment for the parents can lead to the possibility of the child experiencing psychopathology when compared to a normal population. Both parent and child are becoming emotionally numb and aren’t communicating so the relationship shatters. A stressful home means a stressful veteran who doesn’t to want participate in the world and will result in poor treatment outcomes. Just by misdiagnosing a veteran with the wrong condition can lead to a huge mess of problems. Therefore, it is clear to see that the VA should do some reform on their policies and medical diagnosis procedures to ensure that the veterans do end up on the wrong path to

The amount of combat soldiers who commit suicide is often shown an extreme expression of PTSD. {Journal of the American Medical Association Psychiatry}. Phil Harvey and Lisa Conyers- coauthors of "The Human Cost of Welfare." has mentioned that " We'll give you enough for a reasonably comfortable life, but we won't help you find a job." {latimes.com} Unemployment for these brave men when coming home is also a big problem. It's not easy for these men to find a job after their deployment because people often seen the Veterans as

According to the International Society for Traumatic Stress Studies, in their report “The Influence of Depressive Symptoms on Suicidal Ideation Among U.S. Vietnam Era and Afghanistan/Iraq Veterans With Posttraumatic Stress Disorder,” “Veterans with PTSD are more likely to have social, occupational, and functional difficulties, including social isolation, frequent interpersonal altercations, and suicidal ideation” (Pukay-Martin 578). In other words, veterans may lose interest in things they once enjoyed, they may become very isolated and irritable, jittery, fearful, and have frequent nightmares that may prevent them from sleeping properly, all of which are elements of a dissatisfying lifestyle (“PTSD”). These serious hindrances to the potential of a healthy lifestyle can have even worse consequences, as they may have a devastating impact on family life. Finley maintains that “families of veterans with PTSD were hard hit with divorce, substance abuse, and violence[...where veterans and spouses had] lower relationship satisfaction[...and] many older veterans with PTSD had gone through three or four marriages over the course of their lives” (Finley). One can only imagine the pain and suffering that a normal individual would feel from the effects of divorce, let alone going through divorce several times. Veterans,

What are returning veterans really experiencing?Did their stress get released or may they still suffer. Many of our returning veterans faces a lot of problems from problems ranging from PTSD to no jobs.These problems are important because some veterans commit suicide because they can’t get help.Homelessness is among the most urgent problems facing our veterans and simply the easiest problem to fix.Upon returning home, they may struggle to find employment, obtain felicitous health care or secure treatment for war-related mental illness and this is the problem when the government failed to help the returning veterans

This is very difficult for people to get jobs and have a social life. PTSD can make somebody hard to be with. Living with someone who is easily startled, has nightmares, and often avoids social situations can take a toll on the most resilient family. Research shows that Vietnam Veterans have more marital problems and family violence. Their children have more behavior problems than do those of Veterans without PTSD. Veterans with the most severe symptoms had families with the worst communication. This is because people who have PTSD have a hard time feeling emotions or expressing them. They may feel detached from others. This can cause problems in personal relationships with the spouse. The numbing and avoidance that occurs with PTSD is linked

Veterans face many obstacles and barriers to overcome when transitioning back into civilian life. Macdermid & Riggs (2014) discusses how military deployment has many consequences for an individual and their families. According to Sayer, Frazier, Orazem, Murdoch, Gravely, Carlson, &Noorbalooci (2011) all military branches already require their troops to complete a reintegration program before discharge but these programs typically only

According to the Wounded Warrior Project website, a survey in 2014 revealed that 34.9 percent of the Wounded Warrior alumni population experienced worse financial status than in 2013. According to the United States Department of Veterans Affairs, 14.2 percent of veterans between the ages of 18-34 are in poverty. The majority of the 14.2 percent will have a child that the veteran will be struggling to maintain his or her cost of living. In addition to the poverty rates, 30.2 percent of female veterans that have children are either widowed, divorced/separated, or never married, as reported by the United States Department of Veterans Affairs. Veterans Affairs also reports the median income with female veterans is $53,998 and $55,297 for male veterans, and between male and female veterans, 10.5 percent of all households are without income. All of these facts come to the same conclusion: veterans need our

This is something that happens to veterans quite often. They return home, lose their job and find themselves struggling to support their families and pay their bills. Veterans should be able to spend the rest of their lives enjoying their families and relaxing, but unfortunately, that is not always the

The leading psychological condition of a returning veteran is post-traumatic stress disorder or PTSD. The Mayo Clinic defines PTSD as a, “Mental health condition that's triggered by a terrifying event — either experiencing it or witnessing it. Symptoms may include flashbacks, nightmares and severe anxiety, as well as uncontrollable thoughts about the event.” PTSD has been known to affect the lives of many returned veterans as they try to re-enter into society. Some of the more common symptoms of PTSD include, “recurring memories or nightmares of the event(s), sleeplessness, loss of interest, or feeling numb, anger, and irritability (What is Post traumatic Stress Disorder).” This can really affect the way people live their day to day life. There are people who cannot go a whole day without having an episode or panic attack. Some can’t even be around other people without it triggering bad memories, making it impossible for them to leave their homes. Other complications of PTSD include, “Increase your risk of other mental health problems, such as: Depression and anxiety, issues with drugs or alcohol use, eating disorders, suicidal thoughts and actions (PTSD).” This disorder is more common than most may realize and is so commonly not diagnosed or treated due to how they felt their peers would see them or even the potential damage to their careers. Nbc news wrote that, “Only 38 percent to 40 percent of those who indicated

With the withdrawal of U.S. military troops from Iraq and the reduction in force due to federal budget constraints, thousands of military members are returning to civilian life. For some military service member the adjustment to civilian life is challenging. During the reintegration period, veterans face a variety of issues from relating to friends and family, moving to find work, entering the work force and creating a new structure within their daily lives. Not all problems can be solved, but as a step forward every veteran should be assigned a social worker and provided with better job preference within federal, state and county sections. Reintegration process has come a long way from previous years, but there are still visible issue that

Moreover, when it comes to finding post-military employment, Veterans frequently face more difficult personal and medical issues when compared to their civilian equivalents. Many vets have PTSD as a result of their service in combat; many have both physical and mental disabilities, such as a traumatic brain injury. A 2010 study in Psychiatric Services found that possibly half of all Iraq, Afghanistan and Gulf War-era Veterans accessing services through the Veteran’s Administration have had issues reintegrating into the civilian sector and have found “some” to “extreme” difficulty in social functioning within civilian life (Sayer, 2010). Additionally, the percentage of Gulf War I and Gulf War II vets reported as ‘long-term’ unemployed (that is, 27 weeks or greater) was 46.9% and 36.1% respectively, in 2010. Regarding labor force participation, veterans were somewhat more likely than nonveterans to participate in 2013 among 18 to 24‑year‑olds and 35 to 44‑year‑olds (U.S. Bureau of Labor,