The Thing To Do With Post Traumatic Stress

Good news for me! Today I found out that George W. Bush agrees with me!

I watch for the mountain bike ride that Former President George W. Bush hosts in Crawford, Texas in honor of wounded veterans. I know I could not do the 100K, three day ride but it gives me great joy to to see the successes at this awesome event!

This year, Stars and Stripes  highlighted the participation of U.S. Army Master Sgt. Chris Demars, who was wounded in two separate attacks in Afghanistan in the space of just 10 days in 2011. The attacks left him with traumatic brain injuries, two broken legs and multiple shrapnel wounds. He also suffered a back injury and both his eardrums were blown out.

Demars, 45, has since fought to overcome post traumatic stress along with his physical ailments and he agrees with Bush's efforts to reduce the stigma of the condition. Earlier this year Bush boldly suggested that "disorder" should be removed from the condition's name as it is a treatable condition. 

I could not agree more with George W. Bush and had mentioned it in a blog last year.  You can read it at the following link,  GHC blog, May 30, 2013. 

Chris Demars suffered trauma that instantly placed him into hero status. I can't begin to imagine the trauma and I certainly can not imagine any bit of his recovery being a disorder. Though I have never met him I am proud of Chris. I know that he's a hero just by knowing the injuries he has overcome. Post Traumatic Stress? Yep, there are things that happen that just knock a person into another state of mind. Referring to that as a disorder is just putting another stupid obstacle in the way.  Referring to this diagnosable, treatable problem as Post Traumatic Stress is the thing to do.  

The Thing To Do

I happened across an article by Leo Shane III of Stars and Stripes which refered to PTSD. (Ref. link that follows for article in question.)

http://www.stripes.com/what-do-we-need-to-know-about-veterans-1.223351

I have never served in the military but my dad served during the Korean Conflict. I was an adult when Dad was diagnosed with Post Traumatic Stress yet it was more than 25 years after he had served.  He didn't romanticize about his time spent in the military and never suggested that he questioned his choices, actually he said that joining the military at that time was just the thing to do.

I recall him telling me the story of arriving home. He was walking down the street and saw his former boss. The man told him that it was nice to see that he was back and said, “I'll see you at work Monday morning.” Years later he laughed about that and told me, “So on Monday morning I went to work.”  I had a ton of questions.  Did you know what you would be doing for work, did you still want to work there, what were they planning on paying you?  He shrugged his shoulders and said, “I went to work on Monday because it was the thing to do.”

When Dad was diagnosed with Post Traumatic Stress he was shocked.  He couldn't believe that he had been living with PTSD all of those years and never knew it was a condition that could be diagnosed.  From the time that he arrived home he had kept busy leading his life and suddenly PTSD was demanding his attention.  Recognizing PTSD and acknowledging it was the thing to do.

The article in Stars and Stripes refers to Post Traumatic Stress Disorder but my dad nor his doctor ever referred to it this way. They referred to it as Post Traumatic Stress.  Perhaps these men were just wise l beyond their years and refused to give it a negative connotation.  Reading the article from Stars and Stripes only gives civilians a glimpse of what it is like to come home. We need to welcome these men and women home and treat them well because it's the thing to do.