Sgt Bales case echoes loudly for ex-soldiers on hotline for vets

Afghan massacre: Sgt Bales case echoes loudly for ex-soldiers on hotline for vets
By Kari Huus, msnbc.com

LOS ANGELES – The young men who answer the phones at the National Veterans Foundation's hotline for troubled veterans speak with an authority that comes from having faced down the same demons that plague their callers.

All are combat veterans, having served up to four tours of duty in Iraq and Afghanistan, and all have struggled with either PTSD or traumatic brain injury – the signature wounds of these conflicts – or both.

For them, the story of Army Staff Sgt. Robert Bales, accused of murdering 17 Afghan civilians during his fourth combat deployment, triggers mixed emotions – horror over the senseless rampage but also empathy for a soldier who, in their view, apparently was pushed beyond the breaking point. But their more immediate concern is the impact it may have on the troubled voices on the other end of the phone lines they answer each day.
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Combat veterans of the Iraq and Afghanistan conflicts share their experiences with PTSD, and their reaction to reports that Army Staff Sgt. Robert Bales allegedly gunned down 17 Afghan civilians. Msnbc.com's Kari Huus reports.

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Every day, it seems, news breaks about returning Vets from the current wars, struggling with their transition to civilian life. Unemployment, homelessness, Traumatic Brain Injury, post-traumatic stress, and drug and alcohol abuse are issues that too many of our returning Veterans face after serving in Iraq and Afghanistan. Moreover, they are dealing with these problems without proper support from their government and their communities.
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Iraq, Afghan Vet Drug Problems Could Surpass Those of Vietnam Era

Iraq, Afghan Vet Drug Problems Could Surpass Those of Vietnam Era
Published August 31st, 2009
A report from the recent Wounds of War Conference at Columbia University focused on the issue of Veterans coming home from Iraq and Afghanistan with a host of issues, including drug and alcohol abuse and untreated PTSD. Experts projected that drug problems for young Veterans will exceed those of the Vietnam era.

Today's soldiers have spent more time deployed in combat than their Vietnam era counterparts, according to experts at the conference, which is contributing to more soldiers suffering from PTSD. The drugs on which service men and women become dependent are frequently pharmaceutical painkillers issued to them for combat injuries. They often do not realize how reliant they have become on the drugs to help them cope with the anxiety of their war experiences until they return home. Illicit drug and alcohol abuse then often take the place of painkillers and other prescribed drugs

Presenters at the conference addressed the fact that many returning soldiers are just out of their teens, have transitioned from the structure of high school, to the structure of the military, and have witnessed and been a part of extreme acts of violence while deployed. Former soldiers are then are sent home as civilians and left to figure out how to live their lives while coping with the aftereffects of war.

Only a third of returning Veterans seek out help from the VA after leaving the services, and many former soldiers are uncomfortable getting counseling from a government organization. In particular, female Veterans, who report high rates of sexual abuse and rape while in the military report feeling unsafe in VA buildings full of “men in uniforms.”
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