Constructions of Gender and the Treatment of PTSD within the U.S. Military

Hundreds of thousands of United States veterans are not able to leave the horrors of war on the battlefield (“Forever at War: Veterans Everyday Battles with PTSD” 1). Post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) is the reason why these courageous military service members cannot live a normal life when they are discharged. One out of every five military service members on combat tours—about 300,000 so far—return home with symptoms of PTSD or major depression. According to the Rand Study, almost half of these cases go untreated because of the disgrace that the military and civil society attach to mental disorders (McGirk 1). The general population of the world has to admit that they have had a nightmare before. Imagine not being able to sleep one

Over the last decade, the wars in Afghanistan and Iraq have drastically increased the need for effective mental health services and treatment for U.S. veterans and service members, especially those suffering from Posttraumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD). Nearly 1.5 million American service members have been deployed in Operation Enduring Freedom (OEF) and Operation Iraqi Freedom (OIF) since the attack on the Twin Towers in September 2001 (Price, Gros, Strachan, Ruggiero, & Acierno, 2013). Approximately 25% of soldiers and wounded warriors returning home from OEF/OIF present with mental illness due to combat-related violence and other trauma exposure (Steinberg & Eisner, 2015). According to Price and colleagues (2013), OEF/OIF soldiers and veterans are at greater risk for developing mental illness compared to others who served in past military operations.

This paper explores post-traumatic stress and how it is seen as a disorder. Post-traumatic stress can manifest into post-traumatic stress disorder. The evaluation and review books and articles seem to reveal a relation to these symptoms and military member, either active or non-active veterans. These symptoms do not manifest strictly into the full-extent of the disorder in all cases of military, however, things such as depression and other physical symptoms are discussed through the readings. The end result is that we discovered that through the readings PTSD will in fact lead to suicide if left untreated.

The main problem discovered is military members are experiencing psychological problems from stressors due to deployments and not seeking help for their discomforts. Many of the military members returning

Today, hundreds of thousands of service men and women and recent military veterans have seen combat. Many have been shot at, seen their buddies killed, or witnessed death up close. These are types of events that can lead to Post- Traumatic Stress Disorder ("Post Traumatic Stress Disorder PTSD: A Growing Epidemic. “) Anyone that has gone through a traumatic event can be diagnosed with PTSD but research shows, military men and women are more susceptible to having PTSD (PTSD: A Growing Epidemic.) And, with little help from the US, many Veterans do not get the help they need or get treated for PTSD. Military men and women begin to

Over 20 percent of military service members returning from Iraq and Afghanistan reported symptoms of PTSD or depression but only a bit more than 50% of them have sought treatment. One reason for this is due to the fact that many of these veterans reside in rural areas

Many veterans are unable to leave behind the trauma of Vietnam and psychologically return home. They struggle with a variety of extremely severe problems that neither they nor their families, friends, or communities knew how to understand

Military Pathway (2013) concluded “Military life, especially the stress of deployments or mobilizations, can present challenges to service members and their families that are both unique and difficult”. Hence, it is not surprising that soldiers returning from a stressful war environment often suffer from a psychological condition called Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder. This paper provides a historical perspective of PTSD affecting soldiers, and how this illness has often been ignored. In addition, the this paper examines the cause and diagnosis of the illness, the changes of functional strengths and limitations, the overall effects this disease may have on soldiers and their families, with a conclusion of

The prevalence of PTSD is shown that women develop the disorder at a rate twice of that of men, despite other factors (Simmons, 2010). As stated in the National Comorbidity Survey, total lifetime prevalence of

Post-traumatic stress disorder, PTSD is a psychiatric disorder that may develop after experiencing or seeing a traumatic or a brutal life threatening event. It is increasingly on the rise in war veterans. For those with PTSD only 53 percent have seen physicians or a mental health care provider. And for those who sought out care, roughly only 50 percent received adequate treatment when returning from combat. Although there are many treatments available most patients disregard the obvious signs of PTSD. Because some are afraid of the stigma of PTSD and being labeled as a crazy or violent person, If we create awareness and stop this ignorant notion, people with the disorder would

Post-traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) is caused by traumatic events such as wars and physical abuse. Patients with this disorder must undergo a variety of treatments to control its symptoms. Each culture is affected differently since people are raised based on their own culture’s beliefs. Gender also plays a big role in how the patients react to the disorder showing how the cultural view of gender changes the perspective of PTSD, there are different types of therapy that help to control it, desensitization, cognitive behavioral therapy, group and hypnotherapy not only no civilian patients are affected, war veterans has the most cases of PTSD. Gender also plays a big role in how the patients react to the disorder showing how the cultural view

Bernardy, N. C., Lund, B. C., Alexander, B., Jenkyn, A. B., Schnurr, P. P., & Friedman, M. J. (2013). Gender differences in prescribing among veterans diagnosed with posttraumatic stress disorder. Journal of general internal medicine, 28(2), 542-548.

The United States Army is a gigantic institute with an international presence. One of its fundamental sources of power is the diversity of its personnel, which includes 1.6 million workforce across the active, reserve, civilian, and contractor parts. While the Army was at the vanguard of ethnic incorporation in the 1950s and at present is one of the most assorted institutes in the U.S., further advancement must be made on the diversity front. The term "diversity" can be classified along countless aspects; this paper concentrates on racial diversity since the exceptional and traditionally important role that race has in matters of diversity in the Army. Internal communications concerning delegate leadership throughout the force, the Army sketches power from its cultural and racial diversity.

War has caused many veterans to suffer from a condition known as PTSD. PTSD or Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder is a condition where a veteran or soldier suffers from stress and anxiety on a regular basis that affects their everyday decisions. According to (Gabriela Acosta), “depression, post traumatic stress disorder(PTSD), anxiety, traumatic brain injury and other conditions as a result of their service, and these issues affect not only the service member, but also their spouses, children, extended families and friends.” There are many veterans whose mental health has changed the way they live and the way their peers around them live. This creates a more difficult environment for many of the closer peers and can affect their lives as much as it has affected the veteran’s life. This has long term effects that can lead to depression in the veterans and feelings of loneliness caused from a veterans experiences serving and being in the field of

T. Stecker, J. Fortney, F. Hamilton, and I. Ajzen, 2007, address that mental health symptoms have the likelihood to increase within post deployment for military veterans, especially for the ones who have seen combat. An estimated quarter of recent war veterans who are currently receiving care in the Department of Veteran Affairs (VA) Health Care System have reported mental health problems. Soldiers who have served in Iraq come home suffering from depression, anxiety, and posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD). The Statistics of Iraq soldiers meeting the criteria for depression, anxiety, and posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) is greater than the soldiers who served in Afghanistan. The mental health symptom rates for soldiers who served in Iraq were as high as 20% for PTSD, 18% for anxiety, and 15% for depression.