Soldiers who come home with Posttraumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) from the War on Terror say, "War is easy, but coming home is Hell." The most frequently encountered problems at home for these Soldiers include sleep disturbances, highly exaggerated startle reflex, fear of crowds, anger and rage, the loss of trust, relationship failures, loss of the capacity and interest in emotional and sexual intimacy, and depression that may lead to suicide. Neither at peace with themselves nor with those around them, these Soldiers resort to avoidant behavior and attempt to escape into the use of mind-altering drugs, and especially alcohol. The commonality of these problems points to a single source-- combat catastrophe from which they learned they are profound, if not permanently, vulnerable. Taken from this perspective, combat PTSD is a learned behavior. These affected Soldiers are most like those who have no faith. If combat PTSD symptoms come from learning vulnerability or helplessness, and if this lesson damages or destroys faith, then it can be unlearned or replaced by learning the truth. Truth can restore faith. The PTSD Survival Manual aspires to help Soldiers understand that erroneous complex human learning can cause the symptoms of PTSD. The learned behavior called PTSD is highly resistant to change because survival depended on it. However, it is no match for learning the truth of the situation in which the learning occurred. Therefore, learning is a primary theme. Soldiers know the life-saving importance of their battle-buddy, fellow Soldiers who stood next to them in the fighting. Psychologically, this bond between Soldiers in combat is an intense, security-giving attachment. Attachment, our second theme, is as essential to learning the truth about combat PTSD as it was to survival in the fighting. A good understanding of attachment will be an expected reward of our undertaking. Your journey back to faith, or for some Soldiers your discovery of faith for the first time is our third theme or objective. The author acknowledges that Jesus Christ is the Son of God who came to the world to save us from the destruction that our human nature. Being left without the spirit of God will obliterate us. At strategic points, scripture citations give biblical authority and wisdom to the text, and these Bible readings have proven helpful to me, my family and to Soldiers. The method of instruction is the case history method. For teaching materials, I selected clinical case histories of Soldiers treated between 2005-2016 at an Army Post in Virginia. PTSD is defined-presenting problem is delineated, and the course of treated is summarized. Readers are challenged to consider what helped to resolve the problems of other Soldiers and successfully concentrate on what was helpful.
About the Author: As a retired United States Army Reserves Medical Corps Colonel and a psychiatrist, Dr. Robert S. Brown served his country as a Soldier, doctor, and university professor. He graduated from the University of Virginia Medical School and holds a PhD in education. He has forty-six years of experience in private psychiatric practice and university professorship. He's the author of Textbook for Mental Health, Sacred Ground, and PTSD and Me. He's won numerous awards, including the Army's Legion of Merit and the Distinguished Life Fellowship of the American Psychiatric Association. Perhaps Dr. Gagon's words, (Former Chief, Behavioral Health, Military Treatment Facility) recounts Dr. Brown's successes best: "You are a wise and caring healer with unbending dedication to the people you serve. I know because each time I hear laughter come from your group room I know someone has let go of their pain and suffering long enough to experience the healing benefits of human connectedness."