War Takes Heavy Psychological Toll

May 7, 2005, 01:31 AM report by Mary McDermott Wish TV

Hoosiers (that’s folks from Indiana) who served in Iraq or Afghanistan are in the Roudebush Veterans Administration Medical Center in Indianapolis getting treatment for Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD)
PTSD is a term and a medical condition that originated in the Vietnam War. Soldiers brought home more than physical injuries, symptoms include flashbacks, anxiety, lack of sleep and uncontrolled anger.

"They're 19 or 20 and maybe they've never even been to their grandfather's funeral. And now they're seeing their friends die. They're seeing things they never had to deal with before,” says VA Combat Vets co-ordianator Cheryl Proper to Wish TV .

USMC Sergeant NB was badly hurt in a rocket attack, but he's seeking more than just physical healing. "Last Wednesday I was sitting there at the table eating breakfast and you don't know what brings it on but you just sit there and I just envisioned rockets coming through my kitchen window,” he said.

Physical therapy has helped Sgt. NB who wounded his leg and arm. To heal his spirit, he takes a different path. He visits local schools and talks to kids about Iraq. Bennett shows the captivated children his Purple Heart and explains what American soldiers are doing in Iraq.
NBennett also gets mental health counselling at the VA Medical Center.

From poetry, to therapy, to talking to school kids about the war, every veteran has a different path to emotional recovery. Their recovery may be aided by a public that has welcomed them home with open arms. ... after their lives have been destroyed by the lying bastards like Bush, Blair, Straw, Hoon, Rumsfeld, Bolton, Feith, Rice, Powell, .......

"Everybody knows that the dice are loaded
Everybody rolls with their fingers crossed
Everybody knows the war is over.
Everybody knows the good guys lost."
Leonard Cohen – “Everybody Knows”