Veterans’ struggles with PTSD
By Kate Shelton
In an average week for Chris Shupert, ten hours of sleep is normal. He finds himself tossing and turning and thinking until almost 6 a.m. He also becomes anxious in large crowds and doesn’t speak to a lot of people he doesn’t know.
Shupert is a former United States Army Staff Sergeant and Iraq War and War in Afghanistan veteran. By the time Shupert left the Army at age 26, he had been deployed three times to Iraq and once to Afghanistan in his eight years of service. During that time, Shupert was a paratrooper with the 82nd and 173rd Airborne divisions.
Shupert doesn’t sleep and gets anxious in large crowds because like other veterans, he is suffering from Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder.
Over 300,000 of 1.7 million veterans returning from Iraq and Afghanistan have post-traumatic stress or major depression, according to a study done by the Rand Corporation, Center for Military Health Policy Research.
There are three types of symptoms for PTSD: avoiding stimuli related to the traumatic event, hyperarousal such as difficulty falling or staying asleep, and re-experiencing the event.
Shupert says he experiences most of these symptoms but difficulty falling and staying asleep is the main one.
“My mind just runs at night,” Shupert said. “I think about everything on the Earth from movie quotes, to complex math problems, to my future.”
Among Iraq War Army veterans who were deployed for about a year, 18 percent suffered from PTSD and 15 percent also suffered from depression, according to the Rand Corporation study.
Only about one third of Iraq War soldiers reported receiving mental health care while deployed. Not everyone who tested positive for a mental health disorder wants help because of negative attitudes by peers or commanders, according to the Rand Corporation study.
Another study done by Joint Mental Health Advisory Team 7 reported that 49 percent of soldiers screening positive for a mental health disorder don’t seek help because they would be seen as weak. The next biggest concern that 48 percent reported was the fear that unit leadership might treat them differently.
When Shupert returned from his service in 2011, he found himself struggling with PTSD and sought help through the Veteran’s Administration.
“A lot of guys think seeking help while you’re serving is a coward’s way out because it’s drilled in your mind that way,” Shupert said. “But I was done and realized I needed it.”
After returning home, the need for help is even greater. PTSD’s symptoms may take months or even years to show. Only about 23-40 percent receive professional help after deployment.
Shupert currently lives in Spring Hill, Kan. and has to drive 37 miles to Leavenworth, Kan. or 27 miles Kansas City, Mo. to see a doctor. When he finally gets to one of the VA hospitals, he experiences long wait times. Shupert received treatment in the form of therapy and prescriptions and is trying to get a routine together.
Shupert says that in the past six months he has not been to the VA because of previous bad experiences but says he is doing a lot better mentally. He still gets nervous in large crowds and doesn’t sleep much, but the treatment he received helped tremendously to get him back to living in the civilian world.
Shupert’s dialogue on his struggle with PTSD
Photo Courtesy of Chris Shupert
Kate Shelton 