Chaplains replacing therapists in combat

In most cases, I do believe the chaplains have crossed the line when it comes to evangelizing, but in this case I think it's a good idea to fill in the gaps. Normally I agree with Veterans For Common Sense and would take issue with this, but it is something I have been pushing for in the communities when they come back and cannot get into the VA for help.

Veterans For Common Sense reported it this way.

Military Improperly Uses Chaplains as Mental Health Counselors
http://www.veteransforcommonsense.org/articleid/8656

The reason is a simple one. When trauma strikes, some will thank God they survived but others will feel abandoned by God. (There were two cases in my family alone. You can read about them in my book, For The Love Of Jack for free on the link to the right.) They feel as if God wants nothing to do with them when they go through traumatic events, especially combat and even the police suffer from this. They are not very different from other humans exposed to trauma, but in their case, when trauma strikes, they were also participants in it.

They are forced to kill doing their duty. This leaves a double wound of mind and spirit. Feeling as if God has turned His back on you is one of the most heart wrenching experiences a person of faith can bear.

There have been reports that when the psychological and spiritual wounds are addressed simultaneously the results are remarkable. This should not be a surprising result considering when people go to AA to stop drinking, they recover a lot more than sobriety. We've all heard the expression of "dry drunk" when people stop drinking but become nasty. This happens with the absence of the spiritual healing. Yet when they reconnect with the spiritual they become whole. They do not allow guilt to eat away at them, but use it to remember how much they have changed and healed as they try to rebuild their lives, their families and relationships.

What needs to be honestly addressed is that while the men and women in the military, and to a lesser degree, the police force, have nothing to feel guilty over while doing their duty in order to protect other people, they do in fact feel guilty. They feel guilty they shot someone and wonder what they could have done differently. They feel guilty they survived when a comrade did not. They also feel guilty when an innocent person dies because they feel they did not do enough to save them.

The wounds they carry are not just psychological but spiritual. The combination of healing is the best, however in the absence of psychological, the chaplains in the military and the clergy back home are the next best thing to being healing. With the military unprepared for after trauma wounds, time will be wasted while the soldiers have to wait to talk to someone. As the Veterans Administration was equally unprepared, the clergy in the communities are vital in assisting the wounded veterans to being healing.

I come to this debate as the administrator of Christian Education at a local church and of abundant faith from a lifetime of living it. I am not a casual observer of this. With first hand experience with my own husband, the absence of God, the judgement of God, during traumatic events is the feeder of trauma. It is hell for those who have held the hand of God and even those who have limited faith in God. This is not limited to Christians, but to Muslims, Jewish people along with every other belief base.

Back in the communities, the religious leaders need to step up to address the wounded and begin the healing process as soon as possible. The veteran is not the only one hurting. In most cases there is also a family hurting, trying to understand what is happening. It is a spiritual tug of war in which as time is wasted, the aggressor (PTSD) claims more and more territory. The clergy need to pay attention to this and stop letting their eyes glaze over as PTSD is explained to them. It is not that hard to understand. They need to stop ignoring this if they are truly of the "cloth" and in the business of taking care of the spiritual lives of their congregations and communities.

Kathie Costos
Namguardianangel@aol.com
http://www.namguardianangel.org/
http://www.namguardianangel.blogspot.com/
http://www.woundedtimes.blogspot.com/
"The willingness with which our young people are likely to serve in any war, no matter how justified, shall be directly proportional to how they perceive veterans of early wars were treated and appreciated by our nation." - George Washington




This is how Air Force Times reported it.

DoD, services ramp up mental health support

By Karen Jowers - Staff writer
Posted : Monday Oct 22, 2007 6:46:38 EDT

When military chaplains look into the faces of military family members, they are beginning to see “the same 100-mile stare that we’re seeing with soldiers with [post-traumatic stress disorder],” the Army chief of chaplains said at a recent family forum. “This is a tough war, a long war.”

There are resources inside the gate and outside, “but sometimes it’s an issue of an individual who is so tired, we must walk them to the help they need,” said Maj. Gen. Doug Carter.

Military chaplains are a central element in the confidential assistance provided to families. They offer counseling as well as education on issues such as maintaining strong relationships during and after deployments.

But with multiple deployments compounding stress on families, defense and service officials have recently ramped up some other confidential counseling options for military families.

As of Sept. 15, active-duty members, mobilized reservists and their families can get free nonmedical professional consultations over the phone, said Mike Hoskins, special assistant in the Pentagon’s office of military community and family policy.

“We asked Military One Source to expand counseling to include telephonic consultation,” he said. “Some can’t make it to face-to-face sessions.”

The call to Military One Source, at (800) 342-9647, is toll-free. Overseas military and family members can call toll-free (800) 3429-6477, or overseas collect 1-484-530-5908. Phones are staffed 24 hours a day, 365 days a year.

Each person can receive up to six phone consultations per issue, he said. Sessions are confidential and anonymous, unless a counselor has reason to believe the caller could harm himself or others.
go here for the rest
http://www.airforcetimes.com/news/2007/10/military_mentalhealth_071019w/