Your role—Military parents
Today you receive a letter from your son. It reads:
Dear Mom and Dad,
Sorry I haven’t written much. It has been busy, and I haven’t had time to write anyone. Please forgive me. I do not know where to start other than to be blunt. I know I should not be telling you this, but I do not dare telling my wife. Do not worry too much about me. But lately I’ve been overwhelmed. Being in war has completely changed me. I used to think I could handle any situation; but when I see my friends get blown up within a few yards, I begin to wonder when I will crack. If I was out of military I would see a therapist. Overseas there isn’t time and it is frowned upon. If I seek to get any sort of help or show any sign of weakness they may view me as mentally unstable. So in a way, writing you this letter is my own therapy to keep me sane. I just hope overtime things will improve. I love you very much. Please keep this letter to yourselves and know that I will be returning home safely.
With all my love
Cpl. Smith
This is a topic that never gets discussed openly. I have tried to find articles to prove my point, but the fact of the matter is they don’t exist. However, since I have been around the military I believe I am somewhat credible to discuss about psychological therapy in the military.
Unfortunately, if a serviceman requested to meet with a counselor it could jeopardize their career. For one, they may be viewed as unstable. In the military most men and women become emotionless. Things that would normally disturb civilians wouldn’t bother the troops. The military builds the soldiers to handle great amounts of stress—stress that is inconceivably imaginable to civilians. A solider/Marine is expected to handle the issues that war brings. They are trained to suppress their emotions and as a consequence some crack—hard. A friend once told me while in Iraq one of his friends committed suicide by putting a riffle in his mouth. The solider was not able to handle the pressures of war. Maybe if he wasn’t so ashamed he could have sought out a therapist instead of taking his own life.
Today, the military is seeing an increase of Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) cases from Marines returning from war. In some scenarios the military orders therapy, depending on how bad the case is and other times people ignore the signs. I must admit that treatment for PTSD is much better today compared to Vietnam days. However, I know some people still fear telling their Commanding Officer they need help. I think it is interesting that the military does not mind giving physical therapy in order to rehabilitate their soldiers, but mental therapy they shy away from. Sometimes what cannot be seen is more life threatening. Can you really expect a 19 year old to be totally alright later after seeing people being blown up into pieces? This is not natural for the human mind to comprehend.
I know first hand that one of my friends was put on pills for his PTSD symptoms. He took them in secret for a while because he was embarrassed. I do not believe someone who has gone to hell and back should be embarrassed to take pills to help ease symptoms. But then again, as some people may say the military was not founded by women—real men can handle anything.
The Troop's Advocator
Today you receive a letter from your son. It reads:
Dear Mom and Dad,
Sorry I haven’t written much. It has been busy, and I haven’t had time to write anyone. Please forgive me. I do not know where to start other than to be blunt. I know I should not be telling you this, but I do not dare telling my wife. Do not worry too much about me. But lately I’ve been overwhelmed. Being in war has completely changed me. I used to think I could handle any situation; but when I see my friends get blown up within a few yards, I begin to wonder when I will crack. If I was out of military I would see a therapist. Overseas there isn’t time and it is frowned upon. If I seek to get any sort of help or show any sign of weakness they may view me as mentally unstable. So in a way, writing you this letter is my own therapy to keep me sane. I just hope overtime things will improve. I love you very much. Please keep this letter to yourselves and know that I will be returning home safely.
With all my love
Cpl. Smith
This is a topic that never gets discussed openly. I have tried to find articles to prove my point, but the fact of the matter is they don’t exist. However, since I have been around the military I believe I am somewhat credible to discuss about psychological therapy in the military.
Unfortunately, if a serviceman requested to meet with a counselor it could jeopardize their career. For one, they may be viewed as unstable. In the military most men and women become emotionless. Things that would normally disturb civilians wouldn’t bother the troops. The military builds the soldiers to handle great amounts of stress—stress that is inconceivably imaginable to civilians. A solider/Marine is expected to handle the issues that war brings. They are trained to suppress their emotions and as a consequence some crack—hard. A friend once told me while in Iraq one of his friends committed suicide by putting a riffle in his mouth. The solider was not able to handle the pressures of war. Maybe if he wasn’t so ashamed he could have sought out a therapist instead of taking his own life.
Today, the military is seeing an increase of Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) cases from Marines returning from war. In some scenarios the military orders therapy, depending on how bad the case is and other times people ignore the signs. I must admit that treatment for PTSD is much better today compared to Vietnam days. However, I know some people still fear telling their Commanding Officer they need help. I think it is interesting that the military does not mind giving physical therapy in order to rehabilitate their soldiers, but mental therapy they shy away from. Sometimes what cannot be seen is more life threatening. Can you really expect a 19 year old to be totally alright later after seeing people being blown up into pieces? This is not natural for the human mind to comprehend.
I know first hand that one of my friends was put on pills for his PTSD symptoms. He took them in secret for a while because he was embarrassed. I do not believe someone who has gone to hell and back should be embarrassed to take pills to help ease symptoms. But then again, as some people may say the military was not founded by women—real men can handle anything.
The Troop's Advocator
1 comment:
This topic is highly disturbing to me. Everyone has emotions. Even if you are trained to somehow cut off all emotional feelings, there is no way especially when you are at war. I think this issue needs to be dealt with asap
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