Military individuals represents one in ten adult civilian population. Any military individual can develop mental disorders despite age, social status and gender (Sommer, 1988). In the year 2015, a research done in the United States showed that 9.8 million adults were suffering from mental disorders; this equates to almost five percent of the adult population. One of the United States military operation was the war in Afghanistan and Iraq, where 2.2 million people military persons went to battle which resulted to death of 6,600 individuals and 48,000 injured, this experience left the military team in shock and most of them as a result developed PTSD. Veterans account for 1 in 4 homeless people; the disproportionate rate of mental disorders among them is alarming. This research paper sheds light on Military persons struggling with post - traumatic stress disorder.
Post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD)
This is a mental disorder developed by an individual who was exposed to traumatic situations or events. The individual might have experienced or gone through frightening, shocking for instance losing a loved one or horrifying situations (This does not mean every traumatized person develops PTSD or that every individual with this disorder has gone through a frightening event. Notably, such persons tend to think that they are in danger and possess no power or control over their lives; this can occur even when not in danger. The victims develop fight or flight response as a result of fear thus try to avoid danger or defend themselves. Many individuals recover from initial trauma naturally but some might continue to experience the symptoms thus developing PTSD (Blake et al., 2015). An individual might develop symptoms within few months or years after traumatic event occurrence. Some individual recover from this condition within six months while in others it might last longer end eventually develop in chronic condition. The person might experience re-experiencing symptoms like frightening thoughts, bad dreams and flashbacks.
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Post-traumatic Stress Disorder in Military Persons
The Rand Centre for military health policy conducted a research which suggested that twenty percent of veterans who worked in Iraq or Afghanistan experienced PTSD. Veterans going back home from services to their countries most of the time have to cope with PTSD condition. The service men and women experience hard time adjusting back to their normal life in the community and families. The heroes experience panic attacks, emotional numbness and always feel on edge thus eventually isolate and distant themselves from people. The military person experiences many shocking, life threatening and horrifying evens because of the nature of their jobs (Herman, 1992). Their nervous system can get stuck and refuse to adjust to normality because of the combat stress degree. The nervous system has two reflex response, including; mobilization also referred to as flight or fight where the military person needs to defend himself/herself or survive the combat threat. Their heart rate races faster, the blood pressure goes up and their reaction speed increases. Once the danger has been eliminated the body resumes back to normal balance. The other reflex is immobilization where the individual goes through too much stress in an event and despite the danger passing they get stuck in the event and the nervous system does not readjust to normal balance thus development of PTSD. The individual is required to get out of the mental war zone they live in for the nervous system to function as expected. Veterans with this disorder mainly have the survivors quit after witnessing their friends and comrades getting killed or injured, at that moment because of time and the situation at hand, they do not process the events fully but when they get home or to another space memories haunting them; they tend to feel guilty. The victims tend to think that they could have done more or died instead since the comrades deserved to live. The military persons can overcome this by assessing their roles and duties honestly, focusing on honoring the fallen comrades and finding other ways to keep their memories. Some of the veterans experience suicidal feelings, which does not mean they are crazy but implies the need for immediate help. The military has a hotline where veterans can call when facing such thoughts.
PTSD in the Military history
Early 1800s soldiers were diagnosed with exhaustion as a result of the stressful battles (Parrish, 2008). The individual’s trauma led to memory shutting down. In England a syndrome referred to as railway hysteria which was a reaction to railway accidents was discovered; it was almost similar to PTSD. During the time of World War 1, soldier’s mental health issue o was diagnosed as the effort syndrome or the soldiers’ heart, terms which expressed the anxiety and stress experienced in combat. PSTD came to light in 1980s when Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM) made their third edition, in DSM-IV (1994) edition, PTSD is listed under the stress response as an anxiety disorder.
The military service Delivery System
The big number of veterans suffering from PTSD has led to emergent of veterans’ service systems which are important to their recovery. The United States Government Accountability Office has proved that 2.1 million military individuals have received mental health services from the year 2006 to 2010.
Overview of relevant policies that directly affect this population’s ability to access effective mental health services
The American Public Health Association (APHA) supports t improvement of access to mental care and have thus put in place some policy statements. Such include policy statements on suicide prevention, mental health- an Essential Part of Comprehensive Health Care Programs, Accountability in the Provision of Health and Welfare Services to Persons with Mental Illness and For Nondiscriminatory Coverage of All Mental Health Treatment. The stipulations aim to expand access to quality services among military persons.
A policy was passed stating that for an individual to be eligible for VA medical health benefits, a military personnel must have been released or discharged honorably. Apart from this he or she must have served in the air service, active military, served as National Guard member or the naval. The individual must have been in duty for at least twenty four continuous months or the full contract period. This policy does not apply to individuals discharged because of hardship reasons or as a result of disabilities in line of their work. The VA has eligibility criteria because of inadequate resources thus some military personnel get locked out of the services.
A discussion of effectiveness in providing mental health services
The United States Veterans Affairs makes available evidence based treatment, counselling programs and specialized intensive programs to veterans who suffer from PTSD. A study conducted by the Mental Health Service Administration and Substance Abuse has revealed that only fifty percent of the returning military persons receive the services. Despite this, the military persons also face mental health treatment barriers. Statistics have showed that the military personnel’s are not receiving enough services that they should. The United States Government Accountability Office (USGAO) listed the following issues as the barriers; waiting for a long time before receiving the treatment, stigma in relation to the treatment, lack of treatment awareness, logistics and transport problem since the services are only available at specific points and concerns raised over the treatment offered.
The American Psychological Association stated that veterans prefer seeking treatment in private hospitals than from the government provided services. The funding allocated to the vets are not enough, their funding needs to be increased to improve on the service access. The vets are used as political items in the spending war and waiting time at the community; VA facilities should also be reduced. The current service system is not as effective as it should be.
Conclusion
The National Center for PTSD did a survey which indicated that seven in every one hundred individuals experience this disorder at some period in their lives. Women in the military are more prone to PTSD then men; some genes are associated with this disorder (Frueh et all, 1997). Nearly 0.5 vets are homeless and more than 300,000 live on the streets at night. Military personnel’s need to seek help from family and friends, both physical and emotional support. A support group can also be effective immediately after the trauma. The veteran individuals need to learn positivity about their actions when faced by danger and have a laid down coping strategy.
References
Blake, D. D., Weathers, F. W., Nagy, L. M., Kaloupek, D. G., Gusman, F. D., Charney, D. S., & Keane, T. M. (2015). The development of a clinician-administered PTSD scale. Journal of traumatic stress , 8 (1), 75-90.
Frueh, B. C., Gold, P. B., de Arellano, M. A., & Brady, K. L. (1997). A racial comparison of combat veterans evaluated for PTSD. Journal of Personality Assessment , 68 (3), 692-702.
Herman, J. L. (1992). Complex PTSD: A syndrome in survivors of prolonged and repeated trauma. Journal of traumatic stress , 5 (3), 377-391.
Parrish, I. S. (2008). Military veterans PTSD reference manual. Bryn Mawr, PA: Infinity.
Sommer JR, J. F. (1988). Social and Behavioral Consequences of the Vietnam Experience among American Legionnaires.
