DAMAGED BODIES, SHATTERED MINDS, BROKEN HEARTS

DAMAGED BODIES, SHATTERED MINDS, BROKEN HEARTS

By Frances Harris

  

I have reposted this article as I find that currently the Department of Veterans Affairs is not treating our Veterans in Australia with due respect or allowing them the care they deserve within reasonable time limits. This is coming from the grass roots. In addition to my previous post below, the latest is: There are return soldiers who have left the armed forces with a recorded diagnosis of Post -Traumatic Stress Disorder, and in their most fragile condition, have to jump through hoops to reprove it to DVA.

In the meantime it is this government department with its foot dragging that could be the last straw for our struggling heroes. These people are hurting now, they can’t wait for the paper to be shuffled, and the coffee cups to be washed and dried. I also heard it is not uncommon to grant a veteran in these circumstances a pension about near-equal to New Start Allowance which is barely enough to survive on. Poverty is not the burden our veterans should to be carrying while they try to recover from the trauma of war. They have given their all, and we have given them no more than a pittance and a thank you.

Previous Post:

This is about men and women in uniform who willingly go to war to defend their country, and who come home to experience shattered lives, faltering relationships, divorce, mental health issues and perhaps unwanted alienation from the own family. This is also about the shabby way they are treated by governments after sometimes sacrificing everything for the cause.

On their return home, sometimes comes the torturous realization that they may not be ableto reclaim their previous sense of dignity, peace of mind, or have certainty about any foreseeable, reliable or viable future. While still dealing with physical and psychological injuries of war, they may find slowly they are being reinjured by the pressure of their civilian circumstances.

 

Sometimes, when our veterans are feeling marginalized, and ground down by the heavy expectations of normal society, it is not surprising to find that anger and dysfunction become their regular companions. Homelessness, depression, mental illness and even jail are predictable symptoms of this desperation. And worst of all, when feeling totally alone, with no trusted place to turn, suicide can seem an acceptable option. It happened after Vietnam, and it’s happening now!

Real treatment and care is often given lip service by authorities, sometimes rocketing into the headlines for a day or two, only to fizzle out shortly after. Whenever a military person succumbs to suicide, I feel gutted and wonder- why didn't anyone care enough to see it coming? Talk of safety nets and adequate care regimes is not good enough! In the absence of viable and consistent social and mental health facilities, it is a damning indictment on governments that in order to stay alive, many of our war heroes would be better off in jail.

Psychotropic types are dangerous drugs. With high doses to keep the patient docile, rational thinking is compromised and blunted, so deviant thinking and behavioural problems can become a greater reality. Would anyone be surprised when there is uninhibited violence and antisocial behaviour? We shouldn't blame the victim. I have seen it firsthand. They need more than pills.

Surely it is unreasonable to expect inexperienced families to fully take care of veterans’ needs. Governments only scratch the surface of real care and are reluctant to invest. The act of returning home, either voluntary or enforced, can be more traumatising than battle for the legions of our returning military personnel.

All that any returning service person would ask if feeling a little lost, - could some kind person show me the way home? Sadly many of them never make it and are lost forever.