Page 305 - Total War on PTSD

I understand the burdens those who have served in harm’s way bring back with them when they return home. I have worked alongside them and I now represent many of them as their attorney.
The sacrifices both members of the military, as well as our civil servants, make in the service of the nation need not be reflected in physical wounds. And, frankly, in many ways the unseen “trauma” can be more challenging than the physical burdens — especially when left untreated.
Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD), formerly referred to as “shell-shock," is real. The impact of serving in harm’s way on the individual and their loved ones is real. The difficulty in transitioning from active duty back to civilian life is real.
Years ago, back when I served with the Department of Defense, I met a Marine who served multiple tours in Afghanistan and later in Iraq. Each time he returned home it became more and more difficult for him to adjust. He had to go back. Over time, his service morphed into a personal need to be “in the fight”. What wound up happening is that he did not know how to be a “civilian” any longer. He did not know how to “live life” in a place other than a war-zone. He needed to be in a place where when he woke up there was a “mission” to undertake that day if not that morning. His story ends well because he eventually became a leader helping those in need globally as a humanitarian. He made the transition and he is, without question, a success story. But notice what he was fighting — the transition back home. He could not be somewhere other than a war- zone, and every time he redeployed the need to be in the war-zone was simply reinforced. His story ends well, but for many it does not.
We all know and read news stories of the mental anguish with which soldiers return home. By-products of this are anxiety and depression. Sometimes it leads alcohol and/or drug abuse. Other times it leads to physical violence. Sometimes, as we know, it can lead to suicide. I have known someone in each of those categories — and perhaps you have as well.
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