How Does War Affect Soldiers?

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War is something that has been prevalent throughout the world for many centuries. Soldiers are deployed somewhere and are expected to fight for a cause that they may not believe in. It is something that some today feel is a necessary evil in order to organize change. Some do not take into consideration the effect that war has on the people who fought in them. War is able to completely change a person, due to the brutality and mental strain put on a soldier every day. War now has become pointless and is fought by rich nations who are looking for a profit. War institutes a physiological, mental, and emotional burden on the soldier. Furthermore, war has the ability to physically change someone into an entirely different person. O’Brien states, …show more content…

Pyle describes how war can affect soldiers when he says, “They were gone forever now. And yet we could afford it” (Pyle). The only way for soldiers to overcome tragedy is to block out memories that may have been hard to deal with. Emotional stress can cause soldiers to act differently and do things that are not in their nature. Soldiers begin to change into devices of war that are only used to serve a purpose. Slowly, due to the effects of war, soldiers begin to distance themselves from people and society. Emotional stress leaves the soldier with a constant nagging of memories that are traumatizing to them. The U.S.D.V.A. explains how war can affect soldiers emotionally when they write, “A body of research shows a strong link between level of combat stress and PTSD” (U.S.D.V.A). PTSD can cause soldiers to experience flashbacks and numbing of memories of the events they experienced. It is hard for soldiers to emotionally connect with others after wartime because PTSD can cause soldiers to become disconnected from society. Soldiers are unable to assimilate back into everyday civilian life due to not being able to talk with others that truly understand them and what they went through when they were at

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