Life From Active Duty Is Notoriously Difficult For Soldiers Suffering From Posttraumatic Stress Disorder

Some symptoms of PTSD include uncontrollable flashbacks/hallucinations and thoughts in which the body can seize up and even shut down (as if the experience is happening again), feelings of worry, guilt or sadness, feeling alone, trouble sleeping and/or nightmares, being on edge, depression, angry outbursts, and thoughts of hurting one’s self or others. As one can see, PTSD is a matter of high seriousness.

PTSD has had a major impact on veterans and their families who have fought in war. Studies show that over the past 13 years, about 500,000 US soldiers have been diagnosed with the disorder (Thomas). This does not only cause problems for the veteran with PTSD, but the families are affected in many ways also. This disorder has done as much as destroyed relationships and families.

Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder statistics are exceedingly difficult to gauge among veterans. According to the following source, “it is possible to have undiagnosed PTSD for 30 years and not realize it” (Veterans and PTSD). Symptoms may not be diagnosed anywhere from 1 year after service to a lifetime. Also, it must be taken into account that after retiring many veterans may lose touch and not receive treatment for symptoms or further affiliate with the military. In the 1980s, regarding PTSD in Vietnam veterans, it was found that 15%-30% of veterans reported having PTSD; however, in 2003 a new study found that four out of five reported symptoms.

(More Than Half of post 9/11 Combat Veterans Report Emotional Trauma). Post 9/11 veterans are also at higher risk to suffer from family strains or anger incidents which can often lead to homelessness. (More Than Half of post 9/11 Combat Veterans Report Emotional Trauma). The list goes on. While the percentage of people deployed in the military consists mostly of men, studies show that women who serve in the military are at higher risk for PTSD. (PTSD: National Center for PTSD). Women are more likely to be jumpy, have emotional troubles, and will definitely have a harder time dealing with things that remind them of war. (PTSD: National Center for PTSD). These episodes of jumpiness in anger in both women and men can ruin families, and sometimes even lives. If you ever see someone in public acting strange, before you make a judgement of that person and say to your friends: “look at

Battling war is something a Veteran knows all too well, but battling the demons in their mind after the war is something that they have to learn how to cope with. One of the most mentioned issues that Veterans face today is a disorder called combat post-traumatic stress disorder. Combat PTSD can easily be defined as a disorder that affects the mental state of the armed forces service member that has been through a difficult or shocking experience during their time served in the military. Experiencing war is not something that everyone can relate to, but it is something that can affect a

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

The symptoms of PTSD make every day civilian life difficult for many Veterans. The disorder can affect a person’s ability to work and interact with their environment and those around them.

Some veterans experienced feelings of depression and distrust, and that the war impacted them negatively. PTSD is a severe emotional disorder that an individual can get after a traumatic life event they experienced, and for the veterans it was the Vietnam War. War includes witnessing terrible violence, the feeling of guilt of having to kill people and seeing your friends injured or dead, and the mixed emotions in the battlefield. In 1988, the National Vietnam Veterans Readjustment Study reported that 481,000 men and 716 women currently suffer from some degree of PTSD as a result of their experience in war, and overall 40% of Vietnam veterans have suffered from PTSD at some time of their life. In addition, it has been estimated that 900,000 Vietnam spouses and partners, and approximately 1,098,000 children are affected by their respective partner's and father's combat-related PTSD. These statistics showed that the Vietnam War extremely affected the veterans', and not in a good way. PTSD could have been very common among the veterans', because of the traumatic experiences they went through in the war. The war was not to be treated like a game. The war was a reality for the soldiers, and they could have constantly had the feeling of "I am going to die any minute now". Another issue that they developed was domestic violence. About one-third of six hundred men were reported of physically violating their partners. Their violent behaviour towards their partner/family could have also linked to PTSD. Veterans who were reported to perform domestic violence were treated with therapy to help them reduce their threatening behaviour. They either had group therapy with their family, or individual therapy. Not only was PTSD terrible for the veterans', but it was also bad for their children. Due to their children being raised in a home with their father having PTSD, the disorder could have

Many people experience PTSD symptoms shortly after the traumatic event, but that is not always the case. Some veterans do not experience symptoms until later in life. Others will start experiencing symptoms early, and they will continue to have symptoms until later in their life. Additionally, many veterans will have symptoms right after the event, the symptoms will go away and then come back later in life with a vengeance.

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

The symptoms of PTSD are very broad and can be very mild to severe. Persons who suffer from the disorder can have unwanted memories of an incident, bad dreams or nightmares, emotional numbness, guilt, emotional outbursts, feeling on edge, and over worrying. Other symptoms may include sleep related problems and being able to maintain both personal and professional relationships. Statistics indicate that those diagnosed with PTSD continues to grow. An estimated 20% of Operation Enduring Freedom and Operation Iraqi Freedom veterans, 10% of Gulf War veterans, and 30% of Vietnam veterans have experienced PTSD (ptsdunited.org).

“This research showed that Vietnam Veterans have more marital problems and family violence. Their partners have more distress. Their children have more behavior problems than do those of Veterans without PTSD. Veterans with the most severe symptoms had families with the worst functioning.

War never changes it remains a grotesque indiscriminate monster born of hate and agony. People simply fail to comprehend the wounds war leaves on others mentally and physically. Post traumatic stress disorder eroding the mental health of soldiers on the battlefield and off. Flesh torn and bones broken, there are a thousand ways to kill a man and war uses them all. The horror the soldiers and those around them face on and off the battlefield will always change them.

Post-traumatic stress disorder affects about 7.7 million Americans. Dr. Rothbaum in the article PTSD: A Growing Epidemic, states that of those 7.7 million Americans, about 31 percent of military men and women are affected by post-traumatic stress disorder (2009). Thousands of men and women in the military may have been shot at or they may have witnessed death. This is the reason why members of the military are at high risked for developing post-traumatic stress disorder (Rothbaum, 2009). Like most people affected with PTSD, members of the military develop PTSD from an ordeal involving physical harm or the threat of physical harm.

As the Vietnam War began preventative measures were being taken to decrease the psychological impact of war on soldiers. Unfortunately as the war ended soldiers were often met with hostile demonstrations by anti-war activists and society offered little acceptance of Vietnam veterans even years after the war. This is when early studies on PTSD and the effects on military families began being documented. Early research showed that PTSD can have devastating, far-reaching consequences on the patients functioning, relationships,