PTS no D

I am going to address a sensitive subject. Which is hard, because I'm not a sensitive person. So I'm going to bury this in a lot of gallows humor, and ask that you take it with the whole salt shaker.

PTS

I wont call it a disorder. A disorder is defined as:

A disturbance or derangement that affects the function of mind or body

Basically, that your mind is broken somehow, and not working right. Except that with PTS, it is, really. The brain has, over the endless millennia that man has walked the earth developed this mechanism to cope with “too much bad stuff” when it happens, compartmentalizing it away until you are in a safe place and able to deal with it. From the days when Ugh the cave man was trying not to become Saber-tooth kitty chow to the Romans hanging people on trees for fun and profit, to today's modern battlefields with "point and click" killing, this “shell shock”, battle fatigue, whatever you want to call it, has been known by soldiers in war.

And its not just in war; we recognize that police, EMTs and Fire-fighters max out their stress meter pretty easily in their job. Rape victims are also recognized and treated. What most people dont seem to understand is that its not just danger that triggers this response. Vehicle incidents that cause injury; death of loved ones; even childbirth is a traumatic event, and the brain will try and protect you by blocking out and “forgetting” the worst parts.

We even have a word for this event, this forgetting of pain, stress, and the general unpleasantness of life. “Nostalgia” was invented by a Medical student in the 1600s to describe the Swiss mercenaries who were suffering a mix of home-sickness and battle fatigue. He observed that the Mercs talked of how great things were back home, as if anywhere was that good in the 1600s.

Its this same sentiment that lets Grandma (or Great Grandma for some of you young pups) talk about how “wonderful” it was to work in a factory during WWII. 12 hour work days; No A/C, no heat, no tools to help lift; fearing the letter informing you your loved one was dead; having your kids raised by the one woman on the block who didnt have to work (because her husband was already KIA) all while living on rationed food, gas, and other necessities only seems good in hind-sight. We have thousands of sources telling us honestly just how bad it sucked by any reasonable standard. Or we can just look at North Korea.

Many cultures have a similar word that expresses this same sentiment; the remembering of the good of the past while forgetting the bad. And we can read through history of that soldiers have always dealt with PTS; when you see in old writings that someone “returned funny”, that “the war soured them” and similar such terms, you are seeing the phrases of their times to explain what we today call a disorder.

Diagnosing

PTS has a problem in that it is “the invisible wound”. You can see an amputated limb, from the bloody hamburger freshly removed and still bleeding to the bandaged stump after the medics work their mojo. You can measure healing, from the newly stitched stump after the doctors have performed surgery to the tanned scarred tissue that the artificial limb connects to.

You cant do that with PTS. You cant see if a person is injured. Have they started healing? Are they healed? You dont know without prying, and that very prying can be the trigger for another episode if they arent ready.

Second is the fact that different people respond differently to the events that can cause PTS, and so have different wounds. If you shoot a man with a .45ACP, he has a bullet hole in him. (unless he's Superman) Training, strength, natural toughness; none of these matter. You shoot him, he gets shot, he gets a hole in him. But with PTS... What injures one man, another doesnt even notice. Im told my driver the night I was injured spent quite some time in therapy for PTS over my injury. Me? It didnt bother me at all; all my issues came from other incidents. One of the men in my platoon (a former cook reclassed to Infantry) was traumatized by our Section Sergeant continually joking how he wanted to win a Purple Heart. I gather quite a few of the young'uns were. Us old crusties laughed in public, since we were supposed to support the incompetent moron in his stupidity. Behind the scenes, we tried to quiet fears and keep moral up, and remind the guys how good we were and how that would keep us safe.

But it goes to show, what one man considers a joke, another will consider trauma.

PTS and the VA

How the VA determines if you have PTS: (only slightly tongue in cheek)

1. Have you been kicked in the nuts or punched in the bewbies?
2. Do you try to avoid remembering being kicked in the nuts or punched in the bewbies?
3. Do you have nightmares, even ones that dont involve being kicked in the nuts or punched in the bewbies?
4. Are you very unhappy/upset/angry when reminded about the time(s) you were kicked in the nuts or punched in the bewbies?
5. Do you have strong physical reaction when discussing being kicked in the nuts or punched in the bewbies? (you sweat, grip the chair, pound the table, etc)
6. Do you have flashbacks of being kicked in the nuts or punched in the bewbies?
7. Do you avoid people, places or things that remind you of being kicked in the nuts or punched in the bewbies?
8. Do you avoid people, places or things where you are likely to be kicked in the nuts or punched in the bewbies?
9. Do you thing you are a bad person? Or that you have done bad things?
10. Do you blame yourself, at least partially, for being kicked in the nuts or punched in the bewbies?
11. Have your interests changes since you were kicked in the nuts or punched in the bewbies?
12. Do you feel disinterested or detached from others?
13. Are you irritable or short-tempered?
14. Do you enjoy activities others would call “risky”?
15. Do you have a strong flinch reflex?
16. Do you have trouble concentrating?
17. Do you have trouble sleeping?

These are the 17 questions that the VA will ask you, disguised in various forms, to see if you have PTS. If you answer yes to 5-7 of them, you are diagnosed with mild PTS; 8-14 is moderate; any more and you are considered severe. You probably noticed that many of these questions tend to have a positive answer, even from completely normal, healthy people. Thats kinda my point; outside of goths and emos, most people, especially soldiers, are going to test mild to moderate on this scale normally.

Treatment

The VA is big on group therapy. So, having decided that you have PTS from being kicked in the nuts or punched in the bewbies, they send you to the PTS group therapy session. There, you're told that your wounds have equal merit, validity, and honor as everyone else's. Then you look around the room: to your left is a guy, poisoned by the chemicals democrats still wont admit were there, who has been told the chemo didnt work, and he's got months left. On your right is a guy missing a limb. Across from you is a lady who was raped by one of the interpreters, who wasnt punished because “mission dictates we need him.” Another is a guy that had his guts turned to jelly by an AK; the body armor didn't stop all the rounds. He's trying to cope with the fact that he “coded” (died) three times on the operating table, and he has another surgery in a few weeks that only has 50/50 odd of survival. And you have to tell them that the VA sent you here because they diagnosed you PTS because of a kick in the nuts or a punch in the bewbies. And the VA doesnt understand why you feel out of place among these people.

Many of the Veterans I talk to have mild PTS from their time in uniform, no matter the hell they endured, compared to what the VA did to “help” them.

Avoiding The 23 Club

We service member have a warped sense of gallows humor. With 22 veterans a day committing suicide, you hear jokes about joining (or avoiding) the “23 Club”, rather than the chest-thumping and crying that is so normal among civilians. But it seems very few outside of the Vets and support organizations are asking “why are there so many suicides?” I have a theory.

At its most basic level, my job was to be a self-propelled bullet magnet. All I had to do was go out and die for my country. Any lump of meat with a pulse that can convert oxygen to carbon dioxide without mechanical assistance should be capable of that. You dont have to be smart; Forest Gump was a great infantryman. You dont have to be brave; its not the bullet with your name on it, but the one addressed “To Whom it May Concern” thats gonna give you a bad day. You dont have to be tough; Superman is the only guy tough enough that bullets dont ruin the day, and Superman never enlisted. You don't even have to be human; there's the youtube video of the chimp with the AK, proving that my job can literally be done by a monkey. A dog could go out and take a bullet just as easily as I could, but the terrorists are less likely to shoot dogs.

So, then they told me I was too crippled to do my job; that I wasnt even fit to die right. How do you think that felt? What was I supposed to think when they said I was too useless to be a sandbag, a bullet magnet, a target on the rifle range; unfit to be dead weight; I couldnt even “die gloriously for the regiment” properly.

Thats not what hurt the most, though. My unit, where I had served for 17 years, with men I considered family.... No, better than family; I refuse to speak to many my blood relations as I consider them dishonorable scum. These men that I had called brothers for so many years booted me out the back door without a goodby, no thank you, no “you'll be missed”, nothing. They were glad to see me go, it seemed. And I lost several hundred men that had been family in just a few hours.

Luckily, Im too arrogant, egotistical, and full of myself for that to bother me for much longer than it took to order a beer. But not everyone is as shallow a jerk as I am. Think about that, and look at those veterans leaving service. Think what they are losing, and how; that boot in the seat of the pant followed with a string of rude words. No more platoon of family crowding in constantly. No constant support structure, whether they want it or not. Just their lonely little selves, trying to figure out how someone can be too broken to die “properly” but still be able to have a life. At times like these, the two songs “Suicide is Painless” and “Paint it Black” take on special meaning.

I wont advocate it. Personally, I want to keep living just because it pisses a few liberals I know off. We each find our own reasons. But we must do more to reach these vets, to build the family. As I say so often, “We have to care for each other. No one else will.” Some days, thats the only reason I push, the hope that tomorrow I may find another brother to help. And thats the best reason in the world to me.

The Silver lining

And right out of the gate comes one without hard data or links. Sorry.
This is based on purely anecdotal evidence, but its more about why I feel inspired for our future, rather than a response to any current issues.

As much as I hate to say it, I think obama actually might have been good for our country these last 6 years. I try hard to ignore what people say, biting my lip to avoid foolish reactionism, and watch what they do, to understand them. (I dont always succeed, but I try) And I generally like what Ive seen, even if I dont like the motivators.

GenX, Y and Millenials have largely moved away from materialism and consumerism, it seems. Then again, it makes sense; you cant rush out to buy the latest stuff, just to own stuff, if you have no money. And its hard to have any money when most have spent the better part of a decade un- or under-employed. Gardening, homesteading, and "artisan" crafts (woodworking, metalwork, pottery, canning, etc) are on the rise, as people decide to make what they cant afford to buy, and are amazed at how over-priced (and unhealthy) so many  things are. Recycling isnt a fashion anymore, but an actual consideration in purchases, where people judge if its worth the cost of repairing, recycling and/or reusing. Plastic is slowly being replaced by metal, glass, and cardboard when available, because they are safer in reuse and cheaper to recycle. 

On the one side, you could say the hippies won, as we're moving to the drug-hazed dream of a "greener" lifestyle that they had. On the other, its clear they lost, as expenses, profits, practicality, and standard-of-life are the major deciders of what goes green and what doesnt, rather than the New Age stuff their delusional psyches hoped would rule. The homesteader, prepper, and survivalist movements (really all variants of the same critter, really) are growing because they have to. We have to re-learn to live like grandma and grandpa, re-using everything we can, because we sure as hell cant afford to live like mom and dad, treating the entire world as disposable, and we probably never will again. And thats not entirely a bad thing. Unless you're talking about diapers. :D

Im also seeing these age groups voting with their feet for churches. The giant mega churches of the prior decades are suffering. Those that want to “new age” The Word and try to be multi-media stage events seem to fail far more often that the simple country churches, where its “God and Bible and you and thats it”. The younger generation doesnt seem to want "Rock & Roll Jesus" or "Buddy Christ", (and you win an internet cookie if you know that reference) but rather seeks a close personal relationship. Its natural for man to turn to God when times get hard. Even the great atheist philosophers admitted that, though they saw it as reason to mourn for humanity. But what gets me is that I see young men digging deep into the Bible, or other holy books by choice, attacking it (them) with the same intellect and questioning attitude applied to science, engineering, philosophy, and everything else we study today, so that what truths they find, they know to be truths. When they come to accept these truths, by their own choice, instead of "because mom said so", or “my family always has”, or “thats what the preacher-man said”, it is with a deeper level of faith and commitment. They find their own truth, and their own application, making it relevant by themselves, and for themselves.

And the more I talk to other “arm-chair theologians”, friends more interested in understanding “God”, both mine and yours, and the drive of the human soul to fill this special void, and even the few atheists that are willing to acknowledge the philosophical need of most humans, rather than just mock; we see this in other religions as well. Islam is suffering a painful period of introspection; as extremist fundamentalists try to hold to the ancient bloody teachings of the First Millennium, willing to kill even their own who seek tolerance and moderation, the “average” Muslim simply tries to reconcile ancient teachings to modern life, much as modern Christians and Jews do. “Liberal” Muslims (perhaps too strong a term, but it will suffice for the moment) read deep into the Koran and its supporting holy books, studying to see if some of the teachings are “too out-dated”, much the same way modern Jews and Christians found some of the commandments of Leviticus to be …. unimportant if not impossible to follow in today's society. (like that whole “not wearing fabrics of mixed fibers”. Good luck finding something that isnt a mix of natural and man-made fabric today) My Sihk friend says he sees more youths getting involved at the temple; Buddhists I correspond with say there is not much increase in foot-traffic, (admittedly, their temple is off the beaten path) but interest and requests for knowledge and teaching has increased.

The polls show that conservatives are “losing”, that people are more tolerant of social immorality and the ideals of liberals. Instead, when we actually talk to these young people, we find a deep appreciation for personal freedom. Its not that these people accept and share these beliefs of liberals, the idea that you can choose to be a man or woman, that abortion is right, that gays should marry, that I should pay for all my neighbor's wants, and so on; but rather that they believe each person is accountable for his or her own life choices. They support the two greatest freedoms of America: the right to be left alone, and the right to be foolish without being punished for it.

That's not to say the whole nation is going for this trend. Its getting to be a clear separation. And these younger generations seem more dedicated to their convictions; no “lesser of two evils” anymore, but “right” or “wrong”. It is an age bracket that is learning it can survive far worse than anything our corrupt government, greedy unions, greedy corporations, and dedicated agitators can throw at us. That all the stories those who profit from discord use to accuse us of “oppressing” them, and “enslaving” them, and “killing” them, really arent bothering anyone, beyond noise and the chance for a silly law-suit to make some lawyer rich. And two clicks of the mouse takes us to world news, where we see people really being oppressed, enslaved, and killed, just to further drive home the ridiculousness of the rhetoric our media regularly uses.

I look at all this, and the compassion that even those with very little are trying to offer out to anyone they see with less, and I see a better America in spirit, even though it has less toys. I may not approve of obama's style or philosophy; that is my right as an American, and only the ignorant would assume that philosophical differences are explained by “bigotry”. But this has made America stronger in spirit, and many of her peoples are now more self-reliant. The end result may just have been worth the means to get here, and as Grandpa used to say, “your not supposed to enjoy the medicine. Just as long as it cures ya.”

So, I decided to start a new blog for fun. I want to give ideas, viewpoints and thought.
I have education in psychology, sociology, political science, and criminal justice, as well as both civil and electrical engineering, and 20 years service as an enlisted combat soldier in the Army.

I feel that this gives me special insights to many of today's issues, looking from a holistic approach, with an understanding of both how policy is formed and then how it is implemented. My focus has always been on finding practical approaches to solve problems, with the understanding that compromise is a necessity in politics and diplomacy, but that certain ideals and beliefs must be maintained regardless.

I shall endeavor to use actual facts; they will be real and inarguable, however much one side or another wishes to deny the truth of those facts. I will also try to remember to provide links to the proof. If I forget, feel free to ask, as I admit to a poor memory.

When I say "Tactical", I dont mean that I will be encouraging violence or advising how to fight. While not a pacifist, I do not encourage civil disobedience or rebellion. I will instead provide information that seems to be lacking from discussions on current topics to aid those who wish to be able to discuss from a more informed position, and suggest possible additions to solutions for these issues. Some will be rather simple and straight-forward, as several of these supposed issues are making "mountains of mole-hills", or trying to complicate non-issues with opinions instead of facts.

I will be covering everything from medical issues of veterans (like myself), to political issues, and adding hobbies of mine for those that enjoy the pleasure of self-sufficiency and self-created goods. I hope that some will find this blog useful and entertaining.