Rural Veterans

Over the last 6 years I worked with Veterans that have been diagnosed with PTSD. I have seen symptoms of this diagnosis play out in a variety ways. This experience has only fueled my passion to want to become more educated and experienced on the topic so that I can better service to Veterans. I also believe that becoming better educated on the topic will allow me to dispel some of the myths associated with PTSD. As discussed in class, before the accept into the DSM-3 in 1980 service member that experienced symptoms of PTSD were seen as unfit to handle the psychological casualties that came with the War. They were often viewed as weak and were forced back on the battlefield despite showing clear indicators that the fatigue that comes along with battle had begun to affect their daily lives. After the mainstream acceptance of PTSD in 1980 many active duty service members and Veterans still had a hard time proving to the VSA that they were indeed suffering from PTSD. Over time there has been a mainstream acceptance that many Veterans as well as other populations may suffer from PTSD. The mainstream acceptance of PTSD has the ability to offer hope to those that are affected by the

Oh the all too often battle cry veterans of the Global War On Terrorism (GWOT) in particular can be seen saying in veteran affiliated social media pages and groups. For quite some time now, GWOT veterans have been stereotyped as psychotic douche bags who whine and bitch about everything, yet in the same instance demand and expect to be treated like immortal gods. I believe the main reason for this huge disconnect between society and the veteran community is the PTSD elephant in the room.

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

Combat veterans are among the highest at risk for issues in transitioning form military life to civilian. Many potentially suffer from both physical and/or mental traumas. Many veterans and even active duty services members have allowed the unofficial culture of if you need mental or medical help you are weak. Many military families are also afraid of utilizing family support mechanisms out of fear of

There is concern about military service members receiving stigma about getting or needing treatment in the area of mental health. Stigma occurs when individuals view others negatively because they have been labeled or identified as having a deviant behavior against societal norms; deviant behaviors such as mental illnesses or diagnoses uncommon or harmful to others. How does that impact the military? Military men and women alike are termed heroes, warriors, and survivors; this is quite the reputation to keep up. Military members go to war or deploy to hostile combat environments, which many come back with severe mental illnesses and diagnosis that need immediate care. At this point they may not feel like a hero. The terms psychological, mentally ill, PTSD, and behavioral health has gained a reputation as having or being a problem. Being labeled a problem is not what service members want. Many studies are trying to pinpoint the problem and resolve the stereotypes associated with getting treatment. Consequently, an individual’s attitude toward mental health treatment is thought to be affected by other people’s views on mental health care (Held & Owens, 2012).

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

The freedoms Americans enjoy come at a price; brave military men and women often foot the bill. Many men and women pay with their lives; others relive the sights, sounds, and terror of combat in the form of PTSD. Several causes and risk factors contribute to the development of PTSD. Combat-related PTSD appears slightly different than traditional PTSD. History tells of times when soldiers diagnosed with PTSD were viewed as “weak.” Resources have not always been available to struggling soldiers. The adverse symptoms of PTSD on soldiers and their families can be crippling.

The study of psychology refers to collective trauma as the effect experienced by many people in the aftermath of a tragedy or event. The pain of collective traumatic disorders is common among soldiers who experienced military combat, but has the potential to affect an entire community. Although, Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) can alter relationships with the family and the community, future generations will not have to endure combat directly to experience collective trauma. Many Veterans suffering from PTSD might shy away from others due to stigmas associated with the diagnosis. Some might have difficulty concentrating, or have guilty feelings, cannot find work, feel helpless, fearful, or have a loss of interest in usual activities. All

On the other hand the number, the number of patients with psychiatric disorders is lower for rural veterans then urban, but the rural veterans diagnosed with psychiatric illnesses are sicker than urban veterans (ORH) This is most likely because rural veterans are more unlikely to seek treatment due to pride, this will cause them to be sicker when diagnosed then those who were diagnosed early.

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

In actuality, veterans continue to face barriers on their process for resocialization. Despite the effort that society puts in to ease such transition veterans find difficulty adapting to modern society due to a warfare identity. The military trains its veterans with the purpose to make them stronger in personality as well as to teach them how to control their emotions. Veterans are force to assimilate the military culture by detaching from their very own self-identity prior to the military. The identity that has been created by the military is also responsible for the negative stigma that our veterans’ currently suffer in today’s society. They are often portray as, murderous and violent. These traits are not strictly related to combat, but

In the past, veterans who disclosed suffering from signs of PTSD encountered a great deal of ignorance and bias. According to the U.S. Department of Health & Human Services (n.d.), veterans who had the illness were often considered weak, were rejected by comrades, and even faced discharge from military service. In fact, even physicians and mental health specialists often questioned the existence of the disease, which of course led to society’s misconception of PTSD in general. Sadly because of this existing prejudice it appears even today soldiers are still worried to admit having PTSD symptoms, and therefore they do not receive the proper support they need. While individuals are assured that their careers will not be affected, and seeking help is encouraged, most soldiers see it as a failure to admit having a mental health illness (Zoroya, 2013). Educating military personal of this illness, and making sure no blame is put on the veterans who encounter this disease is therefore vital.

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,

If veterans do struggle with PTSD after they return from combat the Department of Veterans Affairs, a governmental agency that helps struggling veterans recover, offers two treatments. Studies have been done to see if one of the therapies is more effective than the other. There is not yet evidence that one therapy is better than the other. Cognitive processing therapy, CPT, helps by giving the vet a new way to deal with the maladaptive thoughts that come with PTSD. It also comforts them in gaining a new understanding of the traumatic events that happened to them. One of the other benefits of CPT is that it assists the person in learning how these disturbing events change the way they look at everything in life and helps them cope with that (“PTSD: National”). The second newer option of the two is prolonged exposure therapy, which is repeated exposure to these thoughts, feelings, and situations (“Most PTSD”). This type of therapy is now a central piece in the VA’s war on PTSD. “The problem with prolonged exposure is that it also has made a number of veterans violent, suicidal, and depressed, and it has a dropout rate that some researchers put at more than 50 percent, the highest dropout rate of any PTSD therapy that has been widely studied so far,”(“Trauma Post”). Both of the therapies are proven to reduce the symptoms but both have extremely high drop out rates and low follow through. It

Many challenges still remain as Iraq and Afghanistan veterans seek available access to mental health care. These challenges include the resistance and stigma to seek care, lack of