Army Psychologist: "I Am Under A Lot Of Pressure Not To Diagnose Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder"

Salon:

A secret recording reveals the Army may be pushing its medical staff not to diagnose post-traumatic stress disorder. The Army and Senate have ignored the implications.

Read the whole story: Salon

Comments

[Cunningham]

This should be a CRIMINAL offense! It infuriates me to no end that those who selflessly serve(d) our nation are treated in such a despicable, underhanded, dishonest way.

Please, people, write/call your congress-critters and tell them this is UNACCEPTABLE! We owe our veterans so much yet we turn our backs on them when they need us most.

[kareemachan]

Unfortunately, this is not new. I believe it was about a year ago that an email was sent out by Norma Perez advising psychiatrists to diagnose Adjustment Disorder instead of PTSD to save money.

http://www.citizensforethics.org/node/31690

Evidently, not much has changed at the VA, and it's damned time it did.

[sloreader]

The good doctor may be one of the world's first known victims of Pre-Diagnostic Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PDPTSD). On a serious note, I am not surprised by the pressure to minimize psychological injuries during war time because it is consistent with our military history. For example, during the Battle of the Bulge there were numerous accounts of our soldiers being released from psychological care even though they looked like "dead men walking" and "zombies" on their way back to the front lines. Talk about time for a change.

[pauldununfola]

I'm ex-Army ( 6/3 ADA, 1AD '86-89) and it makes me very angry and disapointed that the United States would treat its soldiers this way, esp. after what happened in Vietnam. I cant stand the thought of another generation of untreated veterans.

Barack: where is the change I can believe in?

[Aranxa]

This is one of those things my country is doing that disgusts me.

[OYea]

The VA is going to REALLY have a difficult time with the research that I am now in the process of conducting. What is being diagnosed as a psychiatric condition is in fact a form of an Acquired Brain Injury. Sadly... vets have been shuffled through the "mental health care" system... that is IF they are receiving this diagnosis... and often diagnosed right out of the VA system and denied coverage when vets are eventually given additional psychiatric diagnoses... including a Personality Disorder which is considered a pre-existing... making it exempt from coverage. The psycho-pharmaceuticals are not adequately addressing the problem... not to mention causing a plethora of side effects... because the underlying metabolic cause and consequential brain damage is not being dealt with. Once this underlying cause is addressed and a person receives adequate physical and cognitive rehabilitation along with appropriate supportive psychotherapy if desired... the recovery rates improve very significantly. Furthermore... this greatly reduces the chances of later developing any of the growing number of medical conditions that are now highly correlated with a diagnosis of PTSD... diabetes, hypertension, heart disease, epilepsy, migraines and even cancer!

[OYea]

For further information... read the comments at the following link...

http://www.youtube.com/user/OJulienLA

You can also assist in my efforts in completing and publishing this research by casting a vote for my project entry in a contest that is awarding grants for small businesses. This may require that you register with the website... but can then unsubscribe if you wish. 40% of the judges decision is based on the number of votes for each entry. I will be gathering the final pieces of data within the next few weeks... but thus far I have had confirmation that my theory regarding the underlying cause of PTSD is absolutely correct!

http://community.intuit.com/contests/aNrExKAn4qllvkab8P4pmk

I am also in the process of putting a treatment protocol together for safely and naturally addressing the metabolic disfunction and will eventually receive additional training in a highly promising treatment for the subsequent brain damage that results when this is not properly addressed. This condition requires a shift in the paradigm of medicine and a truly integrated mind-body approach in order to be successfully dealt with. This is not something that the VA is currently prepared to offer... but with the hope of this research and similar advances... they will come to realize that this is not only safer and more effective... but in the long run infinitely more cost-efficient!

[OYea]

It should also be noted that twice as many woman as men are diagnosed with PTSD... and the statistics regarding TBI are greatly underestimated for all segments of the population. This is an extremely serious problem and producing a tremendous strain on the health care system!

The good news is that advances such as these along with the long overdue paradigm shift regarding safe and natural mind-body approaches to medicine are very promising and will bring much needed relief and healing to a great many people!

Thanks for your assistance with supporting these efforts!

[getalong]

War definitely has an effect on soldier's minds.
It puts them into a different state, and coming home to a peaceful atmosphere can be jarring.

Some people have a problem with diagnosing these soldiers with a "mental syndrome" because it insinuates that there is something wrong with them -- as in they are inferior to "normal people" who have not gone to war. But the truth of the matter is there is something wrong with them, though this does NOT mean they are inferior to "normal people."

They are simply not in the "proper" state of mind to live in peace. One must be in a proper mindset to survive war, and so one must also be in a proper mindset to survive in peace.

They need time, and help, to readjust themselves to civilian life.

If you want to change the terminology cause some psych doctors have a problem with it, I could give a crap... but these people do need help adjusting, and if they aren't getting it, then that is a crime.

[indyleftist]

They couldn't have been too emotionally stable to want to join the military in the first place

Kind of a chicken or egg thing

[Badfickle]

Wow. What a hurtful and ignorant statement. So the military is not your cup of tea. Fine it wasn't mine either but most of those people joined the military for love of country.

[Rog49Thomas]

Prescription: Take two yellow ribbons, wear one flag lapel pin and deal with the mental anguish caused by serving your country on your own.

Yep, you betcha!

That's supporting the troops!

[Elizabeth]

as a psychologist, i'm willing to bet EVERYONE that has been in this war has PTSD, a little or a lot.

[Rog49Thomas]

The dirty secret that governments and politicians keep..

War not only maims bodies but also minds.

[harriettubman]

And it fits right in with their past history of denying Gulf War Syndrome, Agent Orange, Anthrax disorders and so many other things they've caused. Who is willing to give their life for an agency who will not protect them????? No wonder enlistment numbers are not being met.

[cobraxus]

most of these commanding officers achieved the rank of colonel without ever serving in combat.they consider themselves supeior to the troops and treat them like peons(pronounced PEE-ONS).

[RhetoricalHippo]

Why does Obama hate our troops?

[Merckx]

snore.

[albanianmomforobama]

He love our Troops and our troops love him back!. Obama hates FAKE wars!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

[Badfickle]

I hate to break it to you but I've seen reports like this for several years. Now. I hope that Obama does something about it. Bush definitely help the troops. Two years from now if there are still reports like this then I'll stand with you to chastise Obama.

[BachelorJohnnyCool]

A friend of mine, whose son did three tours in Iraq, told me a few months ago that the Army is doing everything it can to keep soldiers from seeing psychiatrists about PTSD. Her son tried numerous times and was always refused. The good news is that he's finally out, but it took a back injury to get him discharged. They were going to send him back again if it hadn't been for that, and some of his superiors deliberately made his last few months miserable with undesirable duties solely because he was leaving. Way to support the troops.

[sloreader]

Three tours voluntarily or by the dreaded back door draft? Either way, can you imagine how difficult it would be to return home after so many years?

[AnnArky]

Maybe we could take this a step further and diagnose the dead soldiers as not-really-dead.

[Rog49Thomas]

Then we wouldn't have to pay death benefits.

And think how the casualty rates would drop.

Ann ,you've got a golden future in the party of national security.