1990 Readjustment Study Essay

Decent Essays
The NVVRS found that thirty-one percent of soldiers who fought in Vietnam succumbed to the disorder after their return home. Moreover, during the years of the most intense fighting in Vietnam, 1968-69, psychiatrists reported that psychiatric casualties numbered between twelve and fifteen soldiers per thousand, or a little more than one percent. If the 1990 readjustment study is correct, the number afflicted with diagnosable war stress multiplied vastly in the years after the war.

Related Documents

  • Superior Essays

    In a study on Special Operations in the military, it was discovered that over twenty eight percent of soldiers had mild or severe symptoms of PTSD (Shanker and Oppel, Jr.). Post Traumatic Stress Disorder…

    • 1063 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Superior Essays
  • Superior Essays

    Veterans Returning Home “Sixty-one percent of men and 51% of women in the general population report having experienced at least one traumatic experience that qualifies to be considered for PTSD”(Kilic 409).Soldiers go to war to fight for America’s freedom and protect the citizens of America; however, many of their lives change while at war, and they are seeking treatment. Many soldiers get psychological help and many professionals are trying to find different ways to treat the soldiers’ suffering. Upon returning home, soldiers have a hard time assimilating back into civilian life. In Homer’s epic poem…

    • 1004 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Superior Essays
  • Improved Essays

    Before reading The Sorrow of War, I assumed that the only reason the Vietnam War was so rejected was because in America the public were absorbed in a hippie phase. I always thought that Victims of PTSD only transpired from the most global and gruesome wars, such as WW1 and WW2. It wasn’t until a fellow classmate recited a section from the novel where a fellow veteran named Vuong fell into a cycle of drinking, and sleeping. He was used as the example of what many soldiers became postwar when they didn’t know what to do with their lives. The alcohol was most likely implemented as a coping mechanism for the horrific flashbacks they experienced.…

    • 397 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Improved Essays

    ”The Vietnam War affected the soldiers who fought in it by causing long-term injuries, addiction, and P.T.S.D. The Vietnam War caused many soldiers long-term injuries. “This eighteen year old G.I. came into my recovery ward. He had been through surgery. He had been in a APC that ran over a mine, and I think he was the only survivor.”…

    • 643 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Superior Essays

    Over a few centuries, post-traumatic stress syndrome (PTSD) has been known by plenty of names: at first, it stood as “irritable heart” during the American Civil War; later during the First World War, the symptoms were called “shell shock” or “hysteria”. When the Second World War and the War in Korea occurred, the symptoms were labeled as “war neurosis”, “battle fatigue”, and “exhaustion.” Lastly, during the War in Vietnam, “Post Vietnam Syndrome” remained as the last occurrence of names given before PTSD was officially branded and categorized as a war mental illness. (Coleman 19) Although Hollywood has created numerous of films regarding WWII, Spielberg’s film, Saving Private Ryan, a war film praised for the realism of violence and battles—most…

    • 1685 Words
    • 7 Pages
    Superior Essays
  • Improved Essays

    When one thinks about the Vietnam War one thing that might come to mind are the psychological effects it had on many soldiers. The most prevalent of those being PTSD, which at the time wasn’t a recognized as a mental disorder. Not to mention it often takes roughly a year for symptoms to set in so it was written off even easier which undoubtedly left many of those suffering discouraged and made to feel alone in their disorder. Psychological disorders aren’t the only problems that arose for hundreds of soldiers after the war.…

    • 1236 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Improved Essays

    osttraumatic stress disorder, also known as PTSD or Posttraumatic syndrome, is a disease that affects individuals who have been exposed to different types of trauma, and more specifically, soldiers and veterans who have been exposed to war. According to the Wounded Warrior Project, “as of September 1, 2015, 400,000 military personnel are dealing with posttraumatic stress disorder, and unfortunately, more women will be exposed than men”, (woundedwarriorproject.org). Many of today’s veterans and current soldiers experience the disorder. “ About 52% of American soldiers from the war in Vietnam, Desert Storm, and the war in Afghanistan”, (National Institutes of Health Plus magazine), combined, suffer from PTSD. Symptoms of PTSD include, flash…

    • 788 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Improved Essays

    Many of the men who fought in Vietnam would never be the same after these experiences. (Fighting tactics of the Viet Cong) Finally, many soldiers suffered PTSD and had to continue fighting that battle long after they returned home from the war. PTSD, or post-traumatic stress disorder, is a condition in which a person has severe depression brought on by events of the past; usually that of war and death.…

    • 1116 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Improved Essays

    In recent events in history we have seen that there has been lack of care for our soldiers coming home but now with these government studies based on P.T.S.D. We have now realize that this disorder need much more attention. The Vietnam war had started when the the rise of Ho Chi Minh was rising into communist power in the northern Vietnam, which caused the United States to go into a cold war with the Soivent Union. When these soldiers went into war they didn't see the consequences when they came home many of them felt alienated…

    • 471 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Superior Essays

    This ethnic divide allowed for the evidence that shows more Vietnam Veterans are victims of PTSD than others. The National Vietnam Veterans Readjustment Study, is one of many that showed these factors between the different minority groups after they leave the service (Loo, PhD, 2016). This study was performed in the 0’s and at that time the rates for PTSD Hispanic victims was 28%, while the rates were 21% for the African Americans and 14% for the White American veterans (Loo, PhD, 2016). These survivors of war tend to develop various medical problems that stem from the PTSD, like drug addictions, alcoholism, along with depression and possible suicide. They drink and use drugs to temporary relieve themselves of the symptoms of PTSD.…

    • 1505 Words
    • 7 Pages
    Superior Essays
  • Improved Essays

    Essay On Shell Shock

    • 1007 Words
    • 5 Pages

    During the 20th Century, war became a condition of existence for both soldiers and civilians partly because, this condition, PTSD/Shell Shock was spreading. What was thought to be a physical and mental issue and is now known as a psychological condition. Although society today has come much farther than when in World War One or Two, it was a slow road getting to how society views it now. The social stigma against PTSD makes it arduous to treat and slowed the progression of how it’s viewed. The transitions from viewing PTSD as a disciplinary issue and the harsh of types of treatment that followed suit, as well as the failure to recognize this as a psychological malady are some of the causes of this.…

    • 1007 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Superior Essays

    War On Veterans

    • 2034 Words
    • 9 Pages

    The Effects of War on Veterans in Afghanistan and Iraq More than half of the 2.6 million Americans dispatched to fight the wars in Afghanistan and Iraq struggle with physical or mental health problems and often begin to feel disconnected from civilian life, deriving from deployment. As stated in the article “After the Wars: A legacy of pain and pride”, written by Rajiv Chandrasekaran and published by The Washington Post. The conditions of being deployed and serving for our country can conclude in widespread consequences within soldiers in which if no help is provided, could become permanently detrimental. Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD), Military Sexual Trauma (MST), and an increase in suicides are some of…

    • 2034 Words
    • 9 Pages
    Superior Essays
  • Improved Essays

    Petrakis, MD, Robert Rosenheck, MD, Rani Desai, PhD 2010 185). Many Veterans Battle Substance Abuse” and drawn attention to associated violence and legal problems among returning troops (Ismene L. Petrakis, MD, Robert Rosenheck, MD, Rani Desai, PhD 2010 185). They also suggest that substance use disorders may disproportionally affect veterans from the current conflicts, and especially those veterans who also have psychological problems (Ismene L. Petrakis, MD, Robert Rosenheck, MD, Rani Desai, PhD 2010 185). However, actual rates of substance use disorders among veterans with PTSD and other mental illnesses are not well documented and there are limited data comparing veterans of recent conflicts with those of earlier wars (Ismene L. Petrakis, MD, Robert Rosenheck, MD, Rani Desai, PhD 2010 185). (1) there are high rates of substance use disorders among those with mental illness, ranging from 21–35% across major diagnostic groups; (2) the highest rates of comorbidity occur among those with bipolar disorder and schizophrenia; and (3) there are differences in rates of comorbidity in veterans of different war eras (Ismene L. Petrakis, MD, Robert Rosenheck, MD, Rani Desai, PhD 2010 188).…

    • 779 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Superior Essays

    Essay On PTSD In Veterans

    • 1362 Words
    • 6 Pages

    Despite this relatively recent acceptance by the psychiatric community, the notion of traumatic stress has been discussed in the context of military service as far back as the writings of the Ancient Greeks (Shay, 2002). PTSD is still in the process of becoming more appropriately diagnosed and discussed as a serious problem among all military personnel and veterans. The term “post-traumatic sress disorder” was coined in the late 1970’s after the Vietnam War. Another form of PTSD that is frequently experienced by veterans is known as “survivals guilt” (Smith, 2015). This occurs when a veteran returns from active duty and feels guilty that that they had survived while others did…

    • 1362 Words
    • 6 Pages
    Superior Essays
  • Improved Essays

    Therapy of the Vietnam War In the book “The Things They Carried,” Tim O’Brien describes his and others experiences during and after the Vietnam War. (1) O’Brien tells this story to explain the different ways that troops were able to cope with the killing, death, and changes that went on during the war so that they could continue fighting. (2) O’Brien included many first hand accounts of the different ways the troops coped with the experiences they had during the war and when they returned to life back home in America after their time of duty. (3) Some people in the war were able to cope or were not able to cope depending on how you look at it.…

    • 1092 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Improved Essays