On Memorial Day

These are letters written in response to Bob Herbert’s column on the ravages that are wrecking our returning soldier’s lives. It is clear that we need to “Support Our Troops” and not in the way we have in the past. It is time to step up to the plate and really honor their sacrifices on behalf of the U.S.A. Platitudes and one day a year are an insult to our Veterans without actual action on their behalf.

May 25, 2009

Letters

When the Mind Is a Casualty of War

To the Editor:

I applaud Bob Herbert’s insightful column “War’s Psychic Toll” (May 19).

Having served as a Navy psychiatrist during another unpopular war, Vietnam, I want to underline that much of the political and mental health fallout that we are seeing from this war is the unintended consequence of an all-volunteer military.

Because there is no draft, the sons and daughters of most of our citizens are not being pressed into danger. Our leaders are largely insulated from the political consequences of having involved this country in a pointless and unending war.

The small size of our forces and the length of the war make repeated deployments inevitable. It has been clearly documented that two tours is the limit that most of our soldiers can take without serious psychic damage. With each tour after that, serious mental health problems increase exponentially.

In addition, the very real stigma regarding mental health issues prevent many from seeking treatment. In a professional army, one visit to a psychiatrist, or one prescription for Prozac, can ruin a career.

We have put our people in an impossible situation. Voices like that of Bob Herbert will push our leaders to take this seriously.

Robert L. Pyles
Wellesley, Mass., May 20, 2009

The writer is chairman of the American Psychoanalytic Association’s Committee on Government Relations.

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To the Editor:

We at Veterans Across America have watched with dismay as the Iraq and Afghanistan conflicts have dragged on, knowing the grim result: that thousands of badly scarred (physically and psychologically) young veterans will struggle to readjust to civilian life, wrestling with depression, homelessness, suicide — or murderous rage.

Bob Herbert mentions the “psychic stress of the wars,” which he rightly links to multiple tours of service. We would add that a significant portion of “psychic stress” is often economic stress — which can be overwhelming for returning veterans. The Army sergeant accused of five killings at a counseling center in Iraq, John Russell, had fallen into debt on a $1,500-a-month-mortgage, and feared losing his paycheck and pension.

In our experiences with returning veterans, the stresses of remaking life after military service — in the face of unemployment, lost jobs, crumbling marriages, home foreclosures, long delays in psychological treatment, and the psychic ravages of post-traumatic stress disorder — can make life on the home front just as terrifying as life in a battle zone.

We have conducted research on the need for business mentors as an economic lifeline for returning veterans. As a nation, we owe it to service members to ensure that the overwhelming stresses on them are substantially reduced.

Wes Poriotis
Ray Healey
New York, May 20, 2009

The writers co-founded Veterans Across America in 2002.

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To the Editor:

Bob Herbert’s assessment of the psychic toll of the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan should open the eyes not only of the military in its handling of these cases, but also those of the public.

Unfortunately, the stigma of psychological illness and diagnosis plagues our troops. Mental illness is still treated differently than a physical illness. A number of men and women in the military do not get treatment because post-traumatic stress disorder and depression that develop in war have no quick fixes, and they cannot be seen like an amputated limb and so go undiagnosed (or not believed).

Until there is parity in treatments for all disabilities, both physical and psychological, we will continue to see terrible incidents like the one at the counseling center in Iraq.

Gail T. Waters
Durham, N.C., May 19, 2009

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To the Editor:

In psychoanalysis, a good interpretation can have the effect of shaking an analysand out of his defensive slumber. Bob Herbert’s column did just that. Mr. Herbert courageously directed our attention beyond the body count of war to the often hidden psychological effects that can persist long after peace treaties have been signed.

The need for mental health services for our veterans and their families is crucial. Mental health providers must understand the hidden impacts of trauma on families, particularly on developing children, and the potential for the intergenerational transmission of trauma.

One of the difficulties with post-traumatic stress disorder is that the readiness or need for treatment may emerge years after the trauma. Therefore, veterans and their families need long-term treatment options and long-term access to treatment, even if symptoms are not present at their time of discharge.

William H. Braun
New York, May 19, 2009

The writer is a psychoanalyst.

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To the Editor:

Bob Herbert says a lot of correct things in “War’s Psychic Toll,” but none more accurate than that “we should all be engaging in some form of serious sacrifice, and many more of us should be serving.” After decades of “volunteer service,” producing the psychological morass we find many of our troops in, it’s past time to reconsider the draft.

Like solving the future of Social Security and Medicare, the draft has been a third rail our leaders will not touch. I believe that if they addressed these problems, they would find, instead of a resentful electorate, one thankful that the veil of doubt and fear of an unknown future is lifted.

Eric Mihan
Oxford, Md., May 19, 2009

What exactly are we as a Nation waiting for? If we can bailout AIG and the Banksters why not our Troops?