Sapper said:
Hey thanks for all the replies to this thread.. really enlightening thoughts.
Hey Sapper -
Right on brother.
Being a history buff especially about WWII I've read a good deal about how the other combatants viewed PTSD and what they called at the time combat fatigue. The German, Japanese and Soviet military took a similar stance in that it didn't exist and that if someone acted in the way someone would if the broke down with severe combat fatigue which is what they called PTS (Post Traumatic Stress) the shorter term version of PTSD (Post Traumatic Stress Disorder) they were cowards and were shot. Interestingly, the German army did recognize it as a problem during WWI.
From what I understand, clarity of mission is critical in the development of PTSD. The last war I can recall that there was real clarity was WWII as you point out. It was not hard for the allied GI, sailor or airman to know who was the enemy. If one saw an enemy formation which was usually plainly marked one shot at it and tried to kill it.
Civilians got involved very little especially in Germany 'cause the allies had the habit on totally demolishing a town if anyone shot out from it. Like totally leveled. By that time I think most of the allies had seen enough of what the Axis armies had done so they had little sympathy for the Axis countries and civilian population that might have got in the way.
To digress briefly, if you are interested there is a public television documentary by a director last name Burns, called The War, I think. About 12 hours long. Lots of war stories. But to the point, a pilot of a P-47 developed a reaction where the arm he used to fly the plane and shoot the eight .50 cal machine guns would become paralyzed. He developed this after a few month of cutting down German troops . . . horrible for him. Worse for the troops by a good margin though. He told of seeing the troops fly into the air from the hits from the bullets, body parts coming off, the whole thing . . . Anyway, that's called a conversion disorder . . . a severe form of PTS. He said, He didn't want to kill anyone any more, but it was his job so he did it. After the war, he'd have the nightmares, and wake up in the morning and his right arm would be paralyzed. He'd get his coffee from his wife go to work and it'd go away after a bit.
From my understanding, the insurgencies and the regional wars really messed that clarity up because now the soldiers do not know who the enemy is. Could be a little boy with 10 lbs of C4 strapped around his waist that blows up a market or an army outpost. So now the potential enemy is any national walking down the street. Anyone from an old man, to a woman holding a baby, to a cute little girl running up to ya asking for candy. I read a report about a GI in Iraq who was a psychological train wreck 'cause he went and shot an Iraqi boy who was carrying an AK-47. The kid made the wrong move and got himself killed. But the foot-slogger in Iraq never knows . . . I guess the insurgence have the habit of giving their weapons to some handy child when the allies showed up so they wouldn't get shot. Bloody cowards.
Then there is as you say Official Policy, a complicated set of rules made up by bloody pencil-necks who never came within 1000 km of a battle field.
The Peacekeeper who is told not to intervene in murder . . . who can, and could intervene, and who morally feels he should . . . ya, that and similar situations would really have the potential for a lot of nightmares, and the whole PTSD bit.
I had a patient in the hospital I worked at once who was with the Peacekeeper's in Somalia. He probably had PTSD but was in for depression. Real nice good kid. In the special forces I think. He told me the story about how commanders could not be trusted . . . He knew of incidents where say a buddy got killed in a firefight, but it would be reported as a motor vehicle accident death to keep the KIA down.
From what I've read, one key to keeping PTS, and PTSD down in troops is trust . . . trust in the men and officers above and in your men below. Report a KIA as a bloody ****ing MV accident . . . bloody hell. That's a ****ing lie and disgracing the name of the soldier who put down his life helping the friendlies and doing his duty. And his family back home think he got killed in a MV accident? And he was killed doing his duty? Damn.
I remember the name of the concept that psychologist I saw on public tv used to describe how combat divisions should be trained, deployed and rested. He gave a presentation to a bunch of military brass about how to keep their men from getting PTS or PTSD. Do they do it. Hell no.
But the concept is cohort. A unit of men, a cohort, be it a squad, a company, battalion or division is trained together, sent to fight together and taken out of combat for replenishment and retrained together. In this way everyone from the top to the bottom bond, develop trust, teamwork and confidence. According to this psychologist anyway . . . and it makes perfect sense when I relate it to everything I've studied over the years all the way through my MA in psychology and with all the stories I've read of and heard of from my brother's and sister's in arms.
Well, did the ****ing bastards listen to him. Hell no. US divisions have been in Iraq, a stupid ****ing balled up thing if I ever saw one, for up to 16 months. Length of exposure to combat is one important variable in PTSD as I understand it. And 16 months of constant insurgent warfare. Piecemeal replacements . . . a no no the US learned in Viet Nam, is being repeated. Once again the pencil-pushers ball it up, the military brass protected their asses and their careers and the guys/gals on the sharp point get it up the ass.
I hear 33% of the forces coming back from Iraq have PTSD and am not surprised one bit. I hate politicians, most of them anyway.
