Sergeant Joseph Huiet is on his sixth tour of duty

Fatal shooting shows stress risk facing U.S. troops
Sun May 31, 2009
By Tim Cocks

COMBAT OUTPOST COBRA, Iraq (Reuters) - Experts say the risk of soldiers suffering Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) goes up substantially on their third tour of duty. Sergeant Joseph Huiet is on his sixth.

The killing of five U.S. soldiers at a clinic in Iraq two weeks ago by a comrade on his third tour, possibly suffering a stress disorder, has led to soul-searching in the U.S. military about the effects of serial deployments.

Huiet, 28, from Modesto, California, took part in the U.S. invasion of Iraq in 2003, just a week after completing basic training. More than six years later, he's still here and on his second marriage.

"Dealing with the stress has been real hard," he said inside combat outpost "Cobra," on the edge of Iraq's violent Diyala province.

"I've had times when I'm extremely angry, when I'm stressed out and so pent up I wanted to shoot or punch something. But I didn't," said Huiet, whose brigade is based in Alaska. A recent hardship: his daughter was born the day he started this tour.

Stress suffered by U.S. soldiers during multiple deployments came under the spotlight when a U.S. soldier shot dead five others at a clinic on May 14. Admiral Mike Mullen, chairman of the U.S. Joint Chiefs of Staff, suggested stress was a factor.
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Fatal shooting shows stress risk facing US troops
Reuters - USA