The Effects of Shell Shock on Veterans

Today, many veterans of war are still experiencing the horrific events that they encountered during combat. This is not just a case of veterans remembering a specific event, rather it is a far more serious case of them actually reliving the event, or having a “flashback” of them being in a certain situation. When service-members started showing signs of this, it was called in the early stages of research, “Shell shock.” Many veterans from World War II were diagnosed with “Shell Shock.” Their symptoms would include, but weren’t limited to: Being over startled when loud noises occur, having extreme mood and rage issues, Being generally confused, Sleep disturbances, cold sweats, increased risk for alcoholism as well as drug use, difficulty remembering short term memories, and the list goes on and on. There was no treatment for this illness, therefore many veterans from this era never saw any type of relief.

In the 1970’s when service-members were returning home from Vietnam, they too suffered from similar issues, many healthcare professionals chalked this up to the use of Agent Orange in the war, Still nothing was really done to help these veterans who were suffering from what some call the invisible scar, or as we know it today; Combat Stress Disorder or PTSD. Many Service members suffered in silence with this disorder. Many speculate to say that the reason they suffered was because there was no treatment for such a disease, others speculate to say that it was a stigma with the military, which was if a servicemember were to complain of having disturbing thoughts from their combat experience, they were thought of as weak. That particular stigma still remains today in the military.

Today, many of the service members ...

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...pport service members who seek help. The military is also campaigning to help those service members realize that it takes a stronger person to be able to ask for help when they need it. The military spends 100’s of thousands of dollars every year trying to tackle this issue. Still many Veterans suffer in silence. Many veterans feel that when they initially seek treatment, they are cured. This is not the case, as stated earlier, PTSD has long term consequences, and many of them are triggered by things that the servicemember or veteran may not even be aware of as an issue. That is why people need to understand that healing from this disease is a life-long journey, not a quick fix.

So why is this an important matter to address? The answer is simple, servicemembers who need help must seek it, before it is too late, and they take their own life or someone elses.