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Post Traumatic Stress Disorder

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Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder
And our duty as Americans
By: David Beach

Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) is something that you and your friends may not know much about. The truth is unless you have direct experience with soldiers who have participated in combat, or a situation of great tragedy, you may not have even heard of PTSD. Unfortunately PTSD is something that is overlooked by more than just the general population. The problem lies in the government and those responsible for the care of PTSD victims, specifically soldiers, because the funding and care needed simply isn’t there. PTSD is a fairly recent mental disease. Diagnosed and accepted officially in 1980s, it’s known that PTSD has been around for centuries. PTSD is an emotional illness that develops when a person is exposed to a highly dangerous, very terrifying, possibly life-threatening event. Obviously this disease tends to affect soldiers much more than the general population. Before recognized as a disease PTSD was looked down upon and soldiers were shunned for showing symptoms. This brought about a negative stereotype to PTSD that is still seen today. As Americans, shouldn’t we know better than that? Seriously, are we shunning the defenders of our country that are willing to make the ultimate sacrifice everyday they wake up? The American people can do better than that, and we owe it to our soldiers to eliminate this public negative stereotype. It will not be acceptable to see a similar Post-Vietnam welcoming of our soldiers today. The weight and punishment that Vietnam veterans dealt with from the public was a disgrace to the millions of young men who sacrificed everything during that war. Veterans of Vietnam would come back from the war with severe cases of PTSD, only to be laughed at and turned away when trying to find help. This can’t happen with the soldiers of today’s America. While there have been significant steps in the aid and acceptance of PTSD, there is still major work to be done.
With the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan being the largest since PTSD was accepted as a legitimate disease, soldiers deserve to have better care and help dealing with PTSD. One may ask what does this have to do with me? Why should I care? Well if supporting the men and women fighting to make sure that freedom endures isn’t enough then take for account your own everyday safety. Events that result a direct relation to PTSD may be rare stateside, yet they still happen. There have been shootings, fights, attacks, and suicide involving soldiers with PTSD. Not to mention the divorce rates and what PTSD can do to families. To not care about PTSD or those who suffer from it at all would be a shame and disgrace to the honor of America. People today fail to realize what PTSD really is. This can easily lead to PTSD being overlooked. PTSD is more than just the sporadic nightmare or flashback. This disorder can lead a victim to such extremes as depression, severe anger, a lack in any emotional connection, and even violence. PTSD can’t just be shoved under the rug; it is a real problem with real consequences and needs to be continually seen as one. The saddest part of this story seems to be the work of recent years. Lack of military participation causes multiple tours of duty for soldiers, greatly increasing the risk of developing PTSD. The Bush administration cut funding for PTSD. Most soldiers feel too stigmatized to seek help, and for those that do veteran hospitals and clinics are unable to cover the numbers needing help. Promises by the government are not being kept and it seems no one in America wants to make an effort to help those that give and pay the most for the country.

As Obama enters office, promises have been made for increasing the benefits and aid for soldiers experiencing PTSD. We as the public voice have to make sure that these promises are kept and that the steps being taken to fight the PTSD epidemic are continued steadfast. If we can’t do this for our soldiers, then I really don’t think we as Americans deserve the sacrifice that the soldiers give to us every single day. PTSD has developed at an increasing rate over these last few decades. Soldiers in today’s wars are at a much higher stress level than in recent wars. The consequences that PTSD causes have been felt by hundreds of thousands of Americans. Anyone thinking that PTSD won’t be something of importance in years to come is dead wrong. PTSD will continue to affect thousands even if America cut its participation in wars completely. This disorder is a serious matter and it is our duty as Americans to make sure it is continually seen in this way. ▪
References:
"Obama, Shinseki Cite Post Traumatic Stress as Priority." Military Medicine (2009): 5-6. Academic Search Complete. EBSCO. Web. 22 Nov. 2010.
“History of PTSD.” Psychiatric Disorders (2009). Retrieved November 22, 2010, from http://www.psychiatric-disorders.com/articles/ptsd/causes-and-history/history-of-ptsd.php Institute of Medicine (U.S.).Committee on Treatment of Posttraumatic Stress Disorder, and Inc ebrary. Treatment of Posttraumatic Stress Disorder. Washington, D.C.: National Academies Press, 2008. Print.

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