Military Families and PTSD

Table of Contents

Introduction3

Thesis Statement3

Discussion3

Family Life and PTSD4

Challenges in professional and personal life5

Diagnose and Treat PTSD5

Better informed forces6

The good news7

What is Posttraumatic Stress Disorder?7

Post-traumatic stress syndrome in the Canadian Forces8

Post-traumatic stress disorder in soldiers and their rehabilitation9

Methods of psychological rehabilitation of combatants9

Methods of psychological rehabilitation11

Conclusion13

References14

Military Families and PTSD

Introduction

Wars and conflicts all over the world not only result in the killing and injuring of millions of people, but they also leave mental and physical scars on the participants of these bloody conflicts. The soldiers and the service men and women who are part of wars have to deal with the after effects of war, which continue to haunt them even after they return home to be with their families. Families of military personnel all over the world are faced with the common problem of PSTD or Post Traumatic Stress Disorder. It is imperative to deal with people suffering from this disorder, and the brunt of the abnormal behavior has to be borne by the families of these military personnel. Since the members of a family are the closest to an individual, they should be well aware of this order, and any counseling or treatment should involve the family members, in addition to the individual diagnosed with PTSD. Post Traumatic Stress Disorder is one of many problems faced by soldiers after they return from military service. It is an anxiety disorder which may develop upon exposure to a terrifying event or ordeal, which may have resulted in physical loss or death. When people come across such a frightening occurrence, their minds and bodies experience enormous shock and stress. A person with PTSD has trouble understanding the situation and the due to the unforgettable nature of the horrific event, an individual's mind is unable to forget about it, causing a state of shock. PTSD may cause a person to think that he or she may never be able to get back to his/her normal self, which in turn causes frustration and helplessness (Birmes et al, 2003).

Thesis Statement

This paper is aimed at discussing PSTD and the way it affects military personnel and their families, and the ways to overcome this disorder and to minimize its impact on military families, by analyzing individual cases.

Discussion

The family of military personnel must overcome their absence, while preparing for a change of environment; which is not always easy, because it is a social network that must be rebuilt. Especially since it will be difficult for the wife (or husband) of the soldier to find a job in the new city where her husband was posted. For the case of solitude spouses, there is always the fear for those who remain at home never to see their loved ones back. However, a preliminary study has highlighted Canadian military children that do not come entirely free of external operations to which their parents participated. Thus, according to Deborah Harrison, professor of sociology at the University of New Brunswick and co-author of the study, adolescents whose father suffers from ...