PTSD becomes a For Dummies book

Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder For Dummies
By Mark Goulston
ISBN: 978-0-470-04922-8
Format: PaperPages: 384 PagesPub. Date: October 22, 2007
A plain-English resource for people suffering from the aftereffects of a traumatic experienceAn estimated five percent of Americans-over 13 million people-suffer from Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) at any given time, and approximately eight percent will develop it at some time in their lives. Written for PTSD sufferers and their loved ones, this practical guide gives people the lowdown on symptoms, details today's various treatment options, offers practical coping strategies for day-to-day life, and even shows how to help children with PTSD. For the 12 to 20 percent of returning combat veterans who suffer from PTSD, the book offers real-world strategies for dealing with flashbacks, nightmares, and disruptive thoughts.
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Dealing with this for over half my life, it does not surprise me one bit this became a FOR DUMMIES book. I think it's great that a book has come out in plain, simple terms because this wound is very complicated. It's been very hard for the general public to understand.

I think back to when I was trying to explain this to my family and friends. Most of the time their eyes would glaze over and the subject was changed. Just when I thought they understood it, they would say something totally off the mark. These are smart people we're talking about and not "dummies" unable to understand the science of it.

While veterans are a reflection of the general population, having all sorts of characters among them, they are far from the general population. Combat is not part of normal daily life. They come in all shapes, sizes, colors, religious beliefs and yes, even attitudes. There are some alcoholics serving today, just as there are some alcoholic veterans. There are some drug addicts. There are some criminals, abusers and rapists among them. There should be no doubt that they are just as human as the rest of us. What sets them apart is their service to this country and the fact they are expected to be willing to lay down their lives for the sake of this nation.

When we read news reports about a combat veteran on trail, some point to that as evidence only criminals use PTSD as an excuse for what they did. When we read reports about homeless veterans, we tend to think they want to be that way. As if being homeless is a choice.

Although I do know of one case of a veteran with PTSD who decided to live in his car, even that was not really a choice when you look deeper into what was behind his choice. He felt as if he didn't deserve to live in a home with his family. PTSD made that choice for him. Imagine feeling unworthy of living with your family, unworthy of having a roof over your head, and then maybe you can understand how even this was not really a choice.

The vast majority of combat veterans are not criminals, not drug addicts, not alcoholics, abusers, or even violent. The vast majority of veterans with PTSD are drained emotionally along with the host of other issues they have to deal with. They just want to be what they were before they went into combat. The earlier the wound is treated, the better the chances are of restoring them to the lives they had before the trauma hit them, just as surely as a bullet hits others. It can be done with early intervention. Why wouldn't this be a top priority for all nations involved in combat?

Think of the aftermath of this. Taking care of them now will save money in the long run, which realistically has to be a motivation for the governments. It will save their own financial futures as they are restored to being capable of working or returning to their duty in the military. It saves marriages and it saves the relationships with children. It can, will and already does save them from turning to self-medications like alcohol and drugs, which usually adds in drunk driving and illegal drug activity. This will also reduce the veterans being incarcerated for related crimes which include domestic abuse. All this can be accomplished with a war attitude of defeating PTSD before it claims more of their lives.

As for the older generations of PTSD combat veterans, they need to seek treatment even after all these years of suffering in silence. My husband came home from Vietnam in 1971, was not diagnosed until 1990, not treated by the VA until 1993 and his claim was not approved until 1999. Even after all those years lost, when treatment began he stopped getting worse. It was too late to restore his life to where he was before and he is chronic, but he is living a life again and we have adapted to what is "normal" for us in this marriage that has lasted 23 years. It is never too late to seek treatment but the sooner the better the recovery.

For this new generation there is a great deal of hope because of the attention paid to this finally. There will be a refocus on treatments and studies. There is also greater understanding toward PTSD that never happened before. Sadly there is still a lot of bad attitudes directed toward those who have PTSD even though we already know PTSD strikes humans of all walks of life.

There are many web sites still dismissing PTSD as if there is something to be ashamed of. They deny the release of data and figures of those coming back with PTSD and even go so far as to suggest that it is not as bad as reported. The problem is, it is in fact a lot worse than is reported. We need only to look back at the Vietnam veterans to see this is only the beginning of their wounded minds. 148,000 Vietnam veterans recently sought treatment for PTSD from the VA. The biggest barrier preventing them from seeking treatment before was the lack of knowledge, not the lack of suffering. Many of the new wounded will not acknowledge their wounds are getting worse until much later on in life. The lack of knowledge also allows the stigma to prevent them from seeking treatment. It allows the stigma to live in the minds of society. There is a saying that knowledge is power. In this case, knowledge is healing a life.

For some, PTSD effects will be mild. For others it will be sent into overdrive when a "secondary" stressor strikes. For others they show signs early enough that the changes are obvious and cannot be overlooked. It cannot be stressed enough that the re-deployments of the men and women in the military increases the risk of developing PTSD by 50% and this is based on an Army study that vanished from the media's reporting on PTSD.

PTSD can be defeated but only after the dummies get out of the way.

Kathie Costos
Namguardianangel@aol.com
www.Namguardianangel.org
www.Namguardianangel.blogspot.com
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