mTBI, PTSD and Stress (Catch All)

[Red Rat]

We now think that we will have an issue - how big it is we do not yet know.

We know that boys coming back from a demanding op tour with money in their pocket want to drive fast, drink lots and have a good time; it was ever thus. We have a major campaign on at the moment to remind soldiers that while they may have survived the tour, they are not invincible and that fast cars and alcohol kill, especially when combined.

In terms of PTSD we know it will be an issue but how big we do not know. We have seen a huge rise in referrals of WW2 and Korea veterans for Mental Health issues. Anecdotally I would say it is because warfare affects all people but that previously a stoic attitude of 'suck it up' applied for those who had real issues. Now there is a recogntion that not all injuries are physical but that all injuries are treatable and do not have to be suffered ad infinitum. Accordingly more veterans are coming forward for help.

What this means for the modern day service personnel is that we think that what we see now in termsof PTSD and psychological truama may be the tip of what we will see 10-20 years downline. Of great concern is the following which was reported extensively in the UK in August of this year:

A report by probation officers' trade union NAPO found that more than nine per cent of the country's prisoners were former armed forces personnel, often suffering from post-traumatic stress.

Initial data suggested as many as 8,500 members of the UK's 93,574-strong prison population were ex-servicemen, and it is thought the number could be even higher.

Many ex-servicemen in jail show evidence of untreated post traumatic stress disorder (PTSD)
A Home Office survey found in 2004 that only about five per cent of prisoners being released from jails were ex-servicemen. Many were jailed for violent offences.

NAPO cited excess alcohol or drug taking as a common factor leading to former soldiers committing a violent offence and being sent to prison.

In the vast majority of the 70-plus case studies it collected, the ex-serviceman had served in either the Gulf or Afghanistan and was showing evidence of untreated post traumatic stress disorder (PTSD). One 23-year-old soldier referred to in the report described the difficulty of readjusting to civilian life after witnessing the horrors of the frontline. The soldier, who previously served with the Parachute Regiment on two tours in active war zones, has received five custodial sentences since leaving the military in late 2005.

He said he found it hard to 'reconcile the devastation, horror and distress of the war zone, with the comfortable life' he found himself and others taking for granted.

He self-medicated over a number of years using alcohol, became aggressive towards partners and others, and is currently serving four months for assault.

NAPO suggested there may be a lack of relevant stress counselling either on site or the point of discharge.

Does any country collate statistics on whether veterans are more or less likely to end up in gaol?