Dealing With Veterans Struggling With Depression

By Martha Perry


A lot goes on in a battlefield with soldiers who are always on a mission. It can be tough going into a situation like this. Sometimes you have to block all of your emotions out. However, when you get back home, it can be very difficult to deal with. A lot of veterans suffer emotionally and mentally. It is not uncommon to find veterans struggling with depression or other psychological symptoms.

In the past, there was little support available for people who came back from the war. This was obviously a problem because there are times when a veteran needs a lot of emotional support. It can be difficult for the family because they won't know what they are going through. They may not recognize them anymore because of the way they will be trying to cope.

Of course, in the past it was much more difficult for a soldier to cope in this type of situation. There was little information on PTSD or panic attacks. They often thought that they needed time to adjust to their old way of life. They thought that they had to get a job and get on with life. However, these experiences stay with you for a lifetime.

Besides depression and anxiety, people will also be stressed much of the time. They will prefer not to go out, thinking that something might happen. A loud noise may just set them off. Flashbacks are common occurrences with veterans. They may look up and see a helicopter, thinking they are back in combat, and of course this is very frightening.

A lot of war vets can't cope in this type of a situation and turn to other methods as a form of escape. A lot of the time, you may want to have a drink, which could lead up to an addiction. Drugs can be problematic as well. There are war vets who have many family problems, which leads them to becoming abusive. They may end up divorcing their spouse in a case like this.

Many war vets would have suffered from a traumatic brain injury. Although they are protected, there are exposed to physical conditions and there are times when they have fallen and rolled on their heads. You may not even be aware of this. Depression can set in here along with other mental disorders. A person like this will not be the same, and learns to cope in various way which are not always healthy.

Most soldiers who try and adapt to this new way of life will find that they are scarred psychologically. You don't think of what you are doing on the battlefield. It is a case of following orders. You begin to take it all in when you are sitting on your sofa watching the television or before you are going to sleep. This is where the trauma begins to take place.

Besides actually just being there, you would have found that depression can be caused when you have lost a friend in the battlefield. So many soldiers die every year. You may be wondering more about survivor's guilt. This can make you more and more depressed. This is why specialized therapy is encouraged before it becomes worse, which is so often the case.




About the Author: