PTSD and Force Readiness

By  THOMAS C. HALL, CHAIR, Vietnam Veterans of America, PTSD/SUBSTANCE ABUSE COMMITTEE

Suicide rates in the active military and among veterans are on the rise. Military Sexual Trauma (MST) continues at epidemic proportions, and under-diagnosed traumatic brain injury (TBI) ensures a future of pain for veterans and their families. Homelessness and incarceration await too many of our returning troops.

Posted By: Robert L. Hanafin, Major, U.S. Air Force-Retired, Staff Writer, VT Military Veterans and Foreign Affairs Journal.

The Department of Defense assures us that new research initiatives will be funded to find out how to address the rising suicide rates in the military. Studies continue to investigate the causes and treatment of MST, TBI, PTSD, and all the substances used to self-medicate the many symptoms that come with each.

To quote Tom Berger: “In today’s military, Force Readiness always trumps medical command, regardless of the mental health of the troops.” But Force Readiness requires maintenance. Consider the maintenance of all the components sent to the battlefield: Tanks, rifles, battleships, and planes are operated by humans, either remotely or in the theater of operation. The need for operational responsiveness requires that all human and mechanical components be in tip-top shape. Mental health also is mission critical, especially in this era of multiple deployments.

Our young men and women are dying for want of knowing. Consider the rising suicide rate among our soldiers as the “canary in the coal mine”—a warning of imminent disaster. Data from the Army suggest that the most sophisticated assets on the field (our soldiers) find themselves compelled to kill themselves to stop a pain they don’t understand, either while deployed or upon returning home.

There were 177 reported active-duty Army suicides from January 1-September 30, 2009. Of these, 116 have been confirmed, and 61 are pending determination of manner of death. For all of 2008, there were 129 confirmed suicides.

This rising suicide rate, coupled with an under-reported incidence of substance abuse (a by-product of self-medicating the symptoms of PTSD), is indicative of a culture that discourages ongoing and effective utilization of mental health services. There is a culture within the military that continues to harass and marginalize our brothers- and sisters-in-arms who take advantage of mental health services.

The solution, in the military, and often in our larger society, is to blame the person exhibiting symptoms. Currently we are counting and studying them when they are found dead. The time has come to carefully consider how to restructure the perception of those in command toward those who would benefit from using mental health services. Utilization of mental health services should be seen as a normal part of training, on the same level as ensuring that equipment is clean and operational.

Get involved. Reach out to others and start the conversation. Talk to your friends and family. Talk to returning veterans, to other members of the military, and to other veterans.

Leadership in the military can and must make this cultural change. The soldier who seeks mental health must be seen as a soldier taking the mission seriously and contributing to Force Readiness. Seeking mental health services early must be seen as a sign of responsible maintenance, not a career-ender.

Written by Tom C. Hall

Posted by Robert L. Hanafin

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Robert L. Hanafin

Readers are more than welcome to use the articles I’ve posted on Veterans Today, I’ve had to take a break from VT as Veterans Issues and Peace Activism Editor and staff writer due to personal medical reasons in our military family that take away too much time needed to properly express future stories or respond to readers in a timely manner.

My association with VT since its founding in 2004 has been a very rewarding experience for me.

Retired from both the Air Force and Civil Service. Went in the regular Army at 17 during Vietnam (1968), stayed in the Army Reserve to complete my eight year commitment in 1976. Served in Air Defense Artillery, and a Mechanized Infantry Division (4MID) at Fort Carson, Co. Used the GI Bill to go to college, worked full time at the VA, and non-scholarship Air Force 2-Year ROTC program for prior service military. Commissioned in the Air Force in 1977. Served as a Military Intelligence Officer from 1977 to 1994. Upon retirement I entered retail drugstore management training with Safeway Drugs Stores in California. Retail Sales Management was not my cup of tea, so I applied my former U.S. Civil Service status with the VA to get my foot in the door at the Justice Department, and later Department of the Navy retiring with disability from the Civil Service in 2000.

I’ve been with Veterans Today since the site originated. I’m now on the Editorial Board. I was also on the Editorial Board of Our Troops News Ladder another progressive leaning Veterans and Military Family news clearing house.

I remain married for over 45 years. I am both a Vietnam Era and Gulf War Veteran. I served on Okinawa and Fort Carson, Colorado during Vietnam and in the Office of the Air Force Inspector General at Norton AFB, CA during Desert Storm. I retired from the Air Force in 1994 having worked on the Air Staff and Defense Intelligence Agency at the Pentagon.