Deployment Anxiety Reduction Training (DART)

Post-traumatic stress disorder (commonly referred to as PTSD) is one of the most common, consequential and perilous illnesses a soldier returning home can face. Yet, here

PTSD is listed among a group called Trauma-and-stressor-Related Disorders. For a person to be diagnosed with PTSD, they must have been exposed to, witness, or experience the details of a traumatic experience (e.g., a first responder), one that involves “actual or threatened death, serious injury, or sexual violence” (APA, 2013, p. 271). (PRU, 2016, p. 66). The aforementioned definition of PTSD relates to soldiers; the manifestations and causes experienced with traditional PTSD can look somewhat different. Obvious causes of PTSD in soldiers stem from exposure to stressful circumstances within combat, exposure to the suffering and death of others, destruction, personal danger, and injury. A study on Vietnam soldiers provides insight on less obvious causes of PTSD. The study suggests

Since the Vietnam War, methods of treating PTSD have developed and lowered the number of cases, but simply lowering the number of cases is not good enough. Unless service members can be prevented from experiencing these negative emotions, every one of them is engaged in a possible suicide mission. With the proper procedures introduced and carried out as proposed, not only the service members can be helped, but their families as well.

Posttraumatic Stress Disorder (commonly known as PTSD) is an important issue associated with military soldiers. The primary focus of this paper will be on the causes of PTSD and the effects it has on returning soldiers from the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan. I will attempt to elaborate on the soldiers' experiences through my own experiences in combat both in Iraq and Afghanistan. I will explain what PTSD is, look at the history of PTSD, how people get it, and differences of PTSD between men and women, and treatment options.

Post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) among veterans has been prevalent in the United States ever since the diagnosis of shell shock after World War I. PTSD continues to be prevalent in veterans from the Vietnam War, to the Gulf War, to Operation Enduring Freedom and Operation Iraqi Freedom. The estimated lifetime prevalence of PTSD among veterans during the Vietnam era was 30.9% for men and 26.9% for women (U.S. Department of Government Affairs, 2015). Based on a population study the prevalence of PTSD among previously deployed Operation Enduring Freedom and Operation Iraqi Freedom was 13.8% (U.S. Department of Government Affairs, 2015). PTSD in combat veterans can be very difficult to understand. This is widely due to the lack of research

In the United States (US) posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) affects 8 out of every 100 persons (United States Department of Veterans Affairs [USDVA], 2015). In which account for about 8 million people that include the military veterans (USDVA, 2015). About 10% of women and 4% of men will develop PTSD during some course of their lives (USDVA, 2015). Veterans are more susceptible to PTSD due to longer exposures to trauma, danger, or witness a violent life threaten incidence during their military service periods (USDVA, 2015). The development of PTSD becomes chronic after no longer seeing or under the “fight-or-flight“ experiences causing a psychological and/ or mental breakdown (National Institutes of Health [NIH], n.d). Such

Post traumatic stress disorder (PTSD): a mental health condition triggered by experiencing or seeing a terrifying event. PTSD and depression are the two most common mental health problems faced by returning troops. “In about 11 to 20% of veterans of the Iraq and Afghanistan wars.. Have been diagnosed with PTSD,” (War Casualties). War obviously takes a toll on veterans in numerous ways. Varying from physically to mentally. Not all of them develop problems but a noticeable amount have been diagnosed. There are veterans or active duty soldiers that return home who don’t seek treatment due to the fact they feel alone. PTSD can be life threatening if it is not treated. Returning home and trying to adjust to

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

PTSD in America’s Military is a silent obstacle that must be overcome by not only the veterans suffering from the disorder, but also by the American people. To discuss how Americans deal with PTSD, we must first understand what it is. PTSD stands for Posttraumatic Stress Disorder, as defined by the Department of Veteran Affairs PTSD “is a mental health problem that some people develop after experiencing or witnessing a life-threatening event, like combat, a natural disaster, a car accident, or sexual assault.”(Department of VA). PTSD is a mental disorder that causes people to not behave as they normally would, due to them being “haunted” by some traumatic event that occurred. Some symptoms include: “recurring memories or nightmares of the event, sleeplessness, loss of interest, and feelings of numbness, anger or irritability, or being constantly on guard”(Make the Connection). These symptoms can lead to difficult, and even damaging problems to arise that affect not only the person suffering PTSD, but also those around them. Some of these problems include, but are not limited to, “feelings of hopelessness, shame, despair, depression, substance abuse, pain, and social difficulty.” (Department of VA). These problems lead to more problems, and if left untreated long enough can lead to even death. As you can see, PTSD is a debilitating disorder, that must be faced by veterans and Americans alike.

PTSD (Post Traumatic Stress Disorder) is a common anxiety disorder that occurs in combat veterans during time of service, after exposure to physical and/or emotional trauma. There are many symptoms of abnormalities that result to veterans dealing with this disorder, and most are evident from a few weeks or even months after they come back from the combat area. Some of the developments include avoidance of people that could trigger a negative memory from the past, difficulty in sleeping, and having nightmares that cause reactions with violence because of their paranoia. (Understanding PTSD” 2). Depression is another major symptom that occurs and can lead to abuse of alcohol and drugs (Glicken 1). PTSD can cause hardships in relationships and affect work performance. This mental state can result disabling the returning veteran to be unable to function normally at work and other areas of their lives. It can lead relationships to be destructive, violent, and end up divorced or otherwise unstable (“Understanding PTSD” 1). PTDS does not only affect a particular person, it affects their whole surroundings as well (“Understanding PTSD” 5). Studies have shown that at least 31.8% wounded in combat had PTSD, compared to 13.6% that weren’t injured (Glicken 1). The veterans who are exposed to a traumatic stressor is the definition of PTSD and the main cause of this psychological issue (Boone 2). The protracted wars in Iraq and Afghanistan over the past 10 years have required

Imagine returning home unscathed from battle to your physical body. Staff Sargent shakes your hand will depart the ship and the reality of being a citizen never truly becomes a real reality. Losing fellow friends, seeing heinous and often gruesome separation of body and limps and doctors check off as “A ok”. The true effects of PTSD are not limited to soldiers and the effects of PTSD are so vast that medical professionals often have troubles diagnosing all cases. Not to mention many victims of PTSD are unaware of what is causing all their anxiety attacks or depression so mix that all in with a government that doesn’t properly fund its veterans returning from battle with medical therapy and we are left with one giant mess of ticking time bombs that are struggling to ever truly feel at peace. It is the goal of this research to bring to light some of the critical issues of PTSD as well as current systems in place for treatment.

The military members who are deployed to war zones, especially in the Middle East countries experience very high levels of PTSD and emotional distress. These members, both who have been on active duty and reserve component once they experience combat, they get exposed to very high levels of traumatic stress. Consequently, they develop adverse health effects such as PTSD. PTSD is considered as a long term reaction to battle field exposure, which can last short term, or long term that is, a few minutes, days, weeks, months or even a lifetime. PTSD is characterized with symptoms such as anxiety, emotional numbing, depression, and feelings of guilt. If the condition is not treated and it turns chronic, then the individual may experience functional

“…It is the soldier who must suffer and bear the deepest wounds and scars of war.” These words, said by the American General Douglas MacArthur, ring with a sad truth. Many people suffer in war, but possibly none more so than those who fight in it. Soldiers are faced with waking nightmares on the battlefield: constant threat of death, pain, and loss hang heavy over their heads, and they are often the first to bear witness to the horror and inhumanity of war. It is unfortunate, but unsurprising, that soldiers quite often come away from active duty mentally scarred due to their experiences on the front. Post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), a severe anxiety disorder that develops in response to exposure to trauma, poses a serious concern

PTSD can be a debilitating disorder, and its symptoms can have a negative impact on a number of different areas in a person's life. In particular, PTSD can negatively affect a person's mental health, physical health, work, and relationships. The research is attempting to intensify cognitive, personality, and social protective factors and to decrease the risk factors to deflect fully-fledged PTSD after trauma.

The consequences of P.T.S.D (Post Traumatic Stress Disorder) are limited to varied scales of human behavior and experiences in life. Several avenues of performance and human interaction are related to the development of stress avenues among people. Childhood experiences are part of the mechanistic influences that have a larger share of what people go through in their lives. The experiences developed within the notion of dealing with the stresses and embracing the new strategic feeling of life are central to all the activities and experiences of the people in the society. The environment is one of the other factors that are related to the general growth and development of s child to adulthood. The elemental activities that are related to the general consequences of having to be part of the social structures also have a common arena. This is an arena of influencing on the general behavior and development of a child. In the adulthood, there are several features of human involvement that are related to the general character or personality of the person at hand. Therefore, this study has undertaken an intense exploration of the consequence and effect of P.T.S.D on soldiers returning home from deployment (Finley, 2011).