Pentagon adds 40,000 to PTSD count

Pentagon counts 40,000 with post-traumatic stress disorder but thinks many more keep it secret

PAULINE JELINEK
AP News

May 27, 2008 12:42 EST

Pentagon figures show 40,000 U.S. troops have been diagnosed with post-traumatic stress disorder since 2003. But officials believe many more are keeping their illness secret.

Army Surgeon General Eric Schoomaker says officials have no reliable figures on how many troops have PTSD or how many have sought treatment for it after serving in the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan.

That's because officials are encouraging troops to get help — even if they go to civilian therapists and don't report it to the military. The 40,000 cases are only those the military knows of.

Many troops don't report getting treatment — or don't get help — because they're embarrassed or fear it will hurt their careers. Marines and Army soldiers have been the hardest hit.
http://www.rawstory.com/news/mochila/At_least_40_000_have_post_traumatic_05272008.html


The differnce is, the DOD counts their's and the VA counts their's.


This is from the Army alone. It's a stunning indictment of the policy of serial redeployments. The Army had warned against redeploying troops over and over again because it increased the risk of PTSD by 50%, but Bush and his top generals decided to do it anyway, over and over again. Now they wonder why the figures are as high as they are.

Army data show that in 2006, about 4,000 soldiers were diagnosed with post-traumatic stress disorder.

During 2007, when the Bush administration ordered a "surge" of about 28,000 troops to Iraq, 10,049 new cases of PTSD were diagnosed.

Army surgeon general says mental health services 'not adequate'
More than 28,000 soldiers suffer from post-traumatic stress disorder
By David Wood Sun reporter
12:17 PM EDT, May 27, 2008
WASHINGTON - The number of Army troops suffering from severe combat stress is skyrocketing, rising from just over 1,000 new cases in 2003 to more than 28,000 soldiers today diagnosed with post-traumatic stress disorder, the Army surgeon general said today.

Lt. Gen. Eric B. Schoomaker, the Army's top medical officer, said that he does not know how many additional soldiers suffer from lesser symptoms of combat stress, such as hyper-vigilance, sleeplessness and irrational anger, and does not know how many of these soldiers are receiving treatment.

Schoomaker also said that the Army has inadequate facilities and too few mental health care providers.

"As a nation, our mental health capability is not adequate to the need," and the Army suffers from the same problem, Schoomaker told defense reporters this morning. He said the Army recognizes it needs 300 more top mental health professionals to care for the growing numbers of soldiers suffering from severe stress. It has filled only 180 of those positions, he said.
go here for more
http://www.baltimoresun.com/news/nation/bal-stress0527,0,5275041.story