PTSD is real.
(MOLALLA, Ore.) - Battle/Combat is certainly one of the most psychologically stressful activities of mankind but it is certainly not the only one.
Terror fatigue is part of PTSD. Being fearful in an artillery or mortar barrage is routine. Repeated exposure results in “is my turn (for death or injury) next”. Any battle veteran will tell you “it just gets to you”. Even killing of ones enemies is stressful. The pilot of the plane bombing Hiroshima never got over it.
A close friend was a Portland Police Detective. Brutal murders and torn apart bodies from auto accidents got to him and he started using heroin and coke. As far as I know nobody ever shot at him. Policemen and Firemen get PTSD.
ER personnel taking care of these severe auto accident victims or gunshot victims get PTSD burnout. Trauma surgeons also get PTSD.
Victims of rape, attempted rape and incest get PTSD. Even psychological harassment can cause PTSD. “Going Postal” was a coined term for Postal workers going berserk. That’s PTSD.
Mental Health workers and especially psychiatrists listening to PTSD victims relating their gory, horrible stories, has got to be psychologically stressful. I have heard that these repeated horror stories are psychologically stressful and eventually cause “burnout” which may be another name for PTSD.
What I’m trying to point out is that one doesn’t have to be shot at or in an artillery barrage to get PTSD.
My wife was a holocaust survivor. She was chased out of Germany to Russia then back to Germany and then to England where at 14 she was considered an enemy alien. She said her psychological treatment in England was almost as bad as the physical harassment by the Gestapo or Russian Secret Police.
Driving on our super highways at traffic peaks is stressful. We’ve all heard of “road rage” which must be a sign/symptom of PTSD. Many people will not drive at peak traffic times. There are too many kamikaze idiots on the road then.
How many victims of Coal Mine Collapses get PTSD? I’ll bet survivors are rather nervous.
The 9/11 destruction of the World Trade Centers, the Pentagon, and dead passengers of the destroyed air planes produced thousands of PTSD Victims and their families.
Yes, there are many causes of PTSD. Combat Veterans may not even be the most numerous or the most visible. PTSD is NOT a certain thing. It is graded from one to ten, just like any disease or injury. Ten is probably the worst and the source of murders, assaults and suicides.
Dr. Phillip Leveque has degrees in chemistry, biochemistry, pharmacology, toxicology and minors in physiology and biochemistry. He was a Professor of Pharmacology, employed by the University of London for 20 years, during which time he trained the first doctors in Tanzania. After training doctors, he became an Osteopathic Physician, as well as a Forensic Toxicologist.
Before any of that, Phil Leveque was a Combat Infantryman in the U.S. Army in WWII. He suffers from Post Traumatic Stress Disorder more than 60 years after the war, and specialized in treating Veterans with PTSD during his years as a doctor in Molalla, Oregon.
Do you have a a question, comment, or story to share with Dr. Leveque?Email him: Ask Dr. Leveque
More information on the history of Dr. Leveque can be found in his book, General Patton's Dogface Soldier of WWII about his own experiences "from a foxhole".Order the book by mail by following this link: Dogface Soldier
If you are a World War II history buff, you don't want to miss it.
PTSD: Misinformation & MisunderstandingsSalem-News.com