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Family Safety: A Significant Concern for Returning Veterans and Their Families
Issue Overview
Approximately 1.6 million soldiers have served in Afghanistan and Iraq since October 20011. According to a recent study by the RAND Corporation, of this population, about 20%, or 300,000, showed the signs of post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) or major depression, yet just over half of them sought treatment. According to RAND researchers, of the 53% who sought treatment only half received, "minimally adequate" treatment. In other words, of the 300,000 who displayed signs of PTSD or major depression, only a quarter received a modicum of help. While this number reflects those with PTSD, there are still many more returning veterans that have less severe, but still significant trauma wounds from combat that affect their lives, relationships, and future. And in the bigger picture of who is affected, there are also hundreds of thousands of family members and loved ones who may also need support while their loved one is deployed and after reintegration.
While the recognition of PTSD has been a major step forward, war conditions that create responses like startle response, flashbacks, aggression, and high levels of adrenaline have all played an important role in the struggle to maintain safety at home. The public and political view on trauma-related responses and reactions at home have so far been viewed as domestic violence that requires anger management and other treatments. These responses, however, may have much more to do with the trauma experienced and condition created in war, and much less to do with directed interpersonal violence. In order to prevent these incidents that are so detrimental to family connection and safety, this briefing will focus on the need to educate veterans and their families regarding the impact of prolonged combat trauma and the repeated exposure to violence and how this can change the personal and family dynamic after returning home.
This briefing brings together experts and interest groups representing veterans, military families, crime victim and domestic violence providers, and mental health and substance abuse recovery providers to begin addressing the unique needs of this population in an effort to foster healing while promoting family safety and connection.
1Invisible Wounds of War: Psychological and Cognitive Injuries, Their Consequences, and Services to Assist Recovery (2008). Tanielian, Terry, and Lisa H. Jaycox, eds. The RAND Corporation. Available http://veterans.rand.org.
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