What Did The Vietnam War Do To You Soldier?

762 Words2 Pages

Left, left, left, right, left, these soldiers marched into combat for their country in the Vietnam war. The soldiers did not know that their lives would change so dramatically.They thought that they would be appreciated when they got home but they got a unexpected surprise. These soldiers were spit on, screamed at and also called names. The Vietnam war gave the soldiers Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD), rejection and depression.
The veterans were majorly affected by Post Traumatic Stress Disorder because they watched their comrades die right in front of them and had flashbacks of when their comrades fell. PTSD affects the brain of the soldiers that witnessed traumatic events(The VVA Veterans, web). They can have invasive memories. They can also end up with seizures. The seizures will come with a lot of anxiety or stress related from war memories. The seizures would come into play when they are having an anxiety attack or the memories. The doctors did not know how to stop the seizures at first till a year later from the soldiers being home or the doctors wouldnt diagnose the soldiers with them.
When these soldiers came home the did not know what to expect from everyone that they left before the war. The war was not popular at home so the soldiers were rejected when they got home( Effect on the Vietnam War). They were also rejected by the government and their towns people. They hated that the soldiers fought for their country they thought that it was for selfish reasons. The people did not want any of the veterans near them and also did not care for their welfare.
The rejection from their own town and government made it hard for the veterans to make a new life with their family. Some family even rejected them because...

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...themselves expected. That is what happened to the American soldiers in the Vietnam war

Work Cited
Bentley Steve, The VVA Veteran, www.vva.org, The Official Voice Of The Vietnam
Veterans, March 2005.
Boyer Paul, Holt American Nation, A Harcourt Education Company Vietnam
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Cromie. J.William, Mental Casual Ties Of Vietnam War Persist,www.news.harvard.edu, The
Causes Of PTSD, Harvard University, 17 August 2006.
Hochgesang Josh , Lawyer Tracye, Stevenson Toby, War And Peace: Media And War www.stanford.edu, Effect of the Vietnam war, Stanford University, 12 July 1999.
Martin .L. Lisa, War And Military Mental Health, www.nc6i.nlm.nih.gov, American Journal Of
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Pillar .R. Paul, The Visible and Invisible Effects Of War, www.nationalintrest.org,
The National Interest, 2 January 2012

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