Posted on 07/01/2004 5:58:38 PM PDT by neverdem
About one in six soldiers returning from the war in Iraq shows signs of post-traumatic stress disorder or other emotional difficulties, researchers are reporting today.
Lower levels of psychiatric problems were found among troops who served in Afghanistan.
The study, published today in The New England Journal of Medicine, is the first to examine the mental health of troops returning from Iraq.
The researchers surveyed more than 6,000 soldiers in the months before and after service in Iraq or Afghanistan. Almost 17 percent of those who fought in Iraq reported symptoms of major depression, severe anxiety or post-traumatic stress disorder, compared with about 11 percent of the troops who served in Afghanistan.
The rates were slightly higher than those found among soldiers in the 1991 Persian Gulf war, and lower than the rates in Vietnam veterans. But mental health studies of soldiers in those earlier conflicts were carried out years — in the case of Vietnam, decades — after the troops returned home. The new study examined soldiers before deployment and within three to four months after they returned.
"In the Vietnam era, post-traumatic stress disorder hadn't even been recognized as a disorder," said Dr. Charles W. Hoge, lead author of the study and chief of the department of psychiatry and behavioral sciences at the Walter Reed Army Institute of Research. "It wasn't until 10 or 15 years later that many of the experiences the soldiers were having were recognized as P.T.S.D. Because of those lessons, we're now trying to take a more proactive approach to mental health."
He and other experts said that every war imposed unique pressures. Soldiers in Iraq have more contact with the enemy and more exposure to terrorist attacks than did troops in the earlier Iraq war.
National Guardsmen and Reserve troops are playing a larger role. At the same time, soldiers in Iraq have more public support than did the veterans returning from Vietnam.
The finding that rates of psychiatric problems among the soldiers returning from Iraq were higher in the new study than those among troops who were in Afghanistan reflects their greater exposure to combat, the researchers said. More than 90 percent of the Iraq troops reported having been shot at, while among those returning from Afghanistan, 66 percent said they had been attacked.
In each group, those who had the largest number of symptoms were also the ones least likely to seek help, the study found. More than half the soldiers who met the criteria for a psychiatric disorder reported that they had not sought help out of fear that they would be stigmatized or their careers would be harmed.
Whether the percentage of troops experiencing post-traumatic stress will change over time is unclear, but most experts say that the figures are likely to increase.
Dr. Robert Rosenheck, a professor of psychiatry and public health at Yale and director of the Department of Veterans Affairs Northeast Program Evaluation Center, said it was possible that some soldiers were experiencing symptoms but had not yet recognized them.
In the late 1990's, a long-term study of veterans of the Persian Gulf war found that the prevalence of post-traumatic symptoms more than doubled between an initial survey and a second one two years later. Based on those findings, and the continued fighting in Iraq, the percentage of returning soldiers with post-traumatic symptoms could still go up, said Dr. Matthew J. Friedman, director of the Department of Veterans Affairs at the National Center for Post-traumatic Stress Disorder.
"We know from research on soldiers deployed to Somalia in the early 90's that as the nature of the mission changed from peacekeeping to the capture of warlords, the prevalence of P.T.S.D. went up," he said. "The current study was conducted back when the war was one of liberation."
Another variable is the increasing numbers of National Guard and Army Reserves troops that are being sent overseas. Because they receive relatively little warning before deployment and are often less prepared for combat than soldiers in regular units, Dr. Friedman said, Guard and Reserves troops are more prone to post-traumatic stress.
"This study was only about those who were exposed to things that, in essence, were part of their jobs," he said. "There is a major concern about how Guard and Reserve troops are going to fare, particularly now that their tours are being extended."
Keep an eye on it. Things like this have a way of coming back on you when you least expect them.
In my case, I didn't start having "issues" until years after I got out. Fortunately for me, it's relatively mild stuff. I don't live under a bridge, have done well in my career (I'm happily retired in my early '40s) and am quite satisfied with life in general.
But happiness and success in life doesn't necessarily mean "symptom-free". As an example, my mom has a friend (an awesome guy who retired very well off) who was a navigator on a B-17 in WWII. He's fine, quite happy and not doing bad for an old codger in his '80s.
But one winter a few years back, he was driving down a snowy road, and some kids threw a snowball at his car (he later assumed, he didn't see them). The sound of the snowball hitting his car sounded exactly (to him) like the sound of a flak burst hitting the fuselage on a B-17.
It was such a surprise and shock to him that he had to pull the car over and sit there for a few minutes before he could continue. Aside from the shock, it brought back a lot of memories of his days in the "Army Air Forces".
As others have pointed out, it's not just veterans who can have symptoms of PTSD -- which, by the way, is only a "disorder" if it interferes with your ability to enjoy your life and interact with loved ones, family, friends and society. Lots of people show signs, a much smaller percentage are subject to having it wreck their lives.
All that aside, THANK YOU FOR SERVING IN IRAQ. There are many who lack the vision to see just how extremely important the mission there is. But in time, even the dimmest among them will see the truth. THANK YOU!
I think it's probably more than 1 in 6, frankly.
What distinguishes combat/military PTSD is the group that gets it, the common factors that cause it and the fact that so many veterans can relate both to the symptoms and their underlying triggers. Of course, everyone is different, but there is a definite commonality factor for vets, even of different services.
As for non-military, I grew up in some pretty bad parts of town, but nothing like "the projects". I have to imagine that just about everyone in a crime-infested inner city will show symptoms.
I was also in various elements of the computer biz. If you want to talk about psychological "color", look there. I've seen it all.
No problem. I am sorry for the trials you have been through with your friend.
Footnote on that: He's now quite happily married (12th aniversary this year), has a son, nice house, a good income, and we're still best friends.
All's well that ends well.
"As the mother of a soldier who has been in Iraq..."
That is the reason why I wrote my message about you. If anyone has a right to an opinion it is someone who has seen off a loved one.
I'll never forget my mother and father crying when I said good-bye and left for Vietnam. It was one of the few times I had ever seen my dad cry.
My hat is off to you dear lady and thank you for raising such a son as yours.
I have found a fellowship with other parents of those who have in the past gone off to war. We share the same grief mingled with great pride.
The difference now is that my son has been welcomed back with open arms and great love from practically everyone, and it was not so with you brave men who served in Viet Nam.
Our country may never be able to pay the debt we owe for your pain and sacrifice.
Thank you, sir, and welcome home!
My friend is home 3 months now and is showing signs. Not sleeping at night, etc. He would do it again in a heartbeat, in fact, looking forward to his next deployment. I would have him do it again, although what he is suffering and unable to deal with breaks my heart.
He will not admit that anything is going on, missing the first part of getting better, as far as I am concerned. And that behavior is definitely a result of his not wanting to be perceived as "weak."
I am seeing my friend do the exact opposite. He is getting more on edge, easier to upset.
All I can say is when our soldiers went into Iraq, I felt like each one was one of my heroes.
The years have passed quickly and now a new generation is fighting instead of me.
IF there was any debt, it was settled long ago.
Thanks for your posts.
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