Today, many war veterans are still experiencing the horrific events they experienced during combat. This is not just a case of veterans remembering a specific event, rather it is a much more serious case of them actually reliving the event or having a "flashback" of being in a certain situation. When service members began to show signs of this, it was called “shell shock” in the early stages of the research. Many World War II veterans were diagnosed with “Shell Shock.” Their symptoms include, but are not limited to: being excessively scared when loud noises occur, having extreme mood and anger problems, being generally confused, trouble sleeping, cold sweats, increased risk of alcoholism and drug use, difficulty to remember short term memories, and the list goes on and on. There was no treatment for this disease, so many veterans of that era never saw any kind of relief. In the 1970s, when service members returned home from Vietnam, they also suffered from similar problems, many healthcare workers attributed this to the use of Agent Orange during the war. Yet nothing has really been done to help these veterans. who suffered from what some call the invisible scar, or as we know it today; Combat stress disorder or post-traumatic stress disorder. Many service members suffered in silence from this disorder. Many speculate that the reason they suffered was because there was no treatment for the disease, others speculate that it was a stigma among servicemen, that if a serviceman complained of having disturbing thoughts resulting from their combat experience, they were considered weak . That particular stigma remains in the military today. Today, many service members… middle of paper… bring service members seeking help. The Army is also running a campaign to help service members realize that it takes a stronger person to be able to ask for help when they need it. The Army spends hundreds of thousands of dollars each year trying to address this problem. Still many veterans suffer in silence. Many veterans believe that when they initially seek treatment, they are cured. This is not the case, as previously stated, PTSD has long-term consequences and many of them are triggered by things that the service member or veteran may not even be aware of as a problem. That's why people need to understand that recovery from this disease is a lifelong journey, not a quick fix. So why is this an important issue to address? The answer is simple: soldiers who need help must seek it, before it is too late, and they take their own life or that of someone else..
tags