Julia Farnan

PSYCHOLOGICAL EFFECTS ON VIETNAM

SOLDERS

I believe that the psychological cost is the greatest loss

Soldiers suffer from mental casualties much more then physical casualties

The impact of fear, physiological arousal, horror, and physical deprivation in combat should never be underestimated

Other factors are responsible for psychiatric casualties among combatants. One of those factors is the impact of close-range, interpersonal, aggressive confrontation.

THESIS--PSYCHIATRIC CASUALTIES OF WAR

Contrary to popular belief, money is not the greatest lost of war. The greatest loss, is the psychological eff ects on surviving soldiers returning home.

Actual casualties manifest in diff erent ways. Anything from aff ective disorders to somatoform disorders. Aff ective Disorder: any mental disorder not caused by detectable organic

abnormalities of the brain and in which a major disturbance of emotions is predominant.

Somatoform Disorder: any of a group of psychological disorders (as body dysmorphic disorder or hypochondriasis) marked by physical complaints for which no organic or physiological explanation is found and for which there is a strong likelihood that psychological factors are involved

These disorders began in World War II, when soldiers started to fi ght 24hrs a day

Fear is a just a symptom and NOT the disease

(Dave Grossman and Bruce K. SiddleAcademic Press, 2000)

PARAPHRASE--PSYCHIATRIC CASUALTIES OF WAR

“I hate war as only a soldier who has lived it can, only as one who has seen its brutality, its futility, its stupidity..” -- Dwight D. Eisenhower Dwight D. Eisenhower was a general in WWII, and actually led

the Allied Army in D-Day; he later became President of the US years later

This quote is on the same basis as my thesis, that soldiers truly experience the worst of war

Soldiers experience the brutality on a personal level, especially in Vietnam. Soldiers came up close and personal with dismembered bodies of natives

The soldiers also know the stupidity of war. In Vietnam, soldiers weren't even fi ghting for themselves.. The consensus of a lot of soldiers was that the war was purposeless

QUOTE-- PSYCHIATRIC CASUALTIES OF WAR

Soldiers, naturally have a timeline of usefulness It makes sense, that at fi rst they are unskilled

These soldiers have not yet experience actual combat This is when soldiers are lest useful

As their time in War progress, they become more experienced and more useful

Though, eventually a soldier will have spent too much time in war and begin to suff er from PTSD, therefore lessens their usefulness

THESIS- USEFULNESS OF SOLDIERS

In WWII, a study of US Army combatants was conducted in Normandy. After 60 days of continuous combat, 98% of the surviving soldiers had become psychiatric casualties. And the remaining 2% were identified as "aggressive psychopathic personalities." This meant that 98% of all men would go insane, and the other 2% were crazy when they got there. Greenson, R.R. (1947). Combat Neuroses: Development of

Combat Exhaustion. Psychoanal. Q., 16:287-287

PARAPHRASE– USEFULNESS OF SOLDIERS

SOLDIERS EFFICACY IN WAR (PRIMARY SOURCE)

THESIS– CHEMICAL CAUSES OF PTSD

The body must maintain homeostasisSince PTSD eff ects the mind, it would be assumed

that this is the only place where eff ects arise from. But the eff ects of war are also seen in the body else where.

Though

The sympathetic nervous system (SNS) mobi l izes and directs the body’s energy resources for action. SNS is responsible for the body’s digestive and recuperative process

Body must maintain a balance, homeostasis. “fi ght of fl ight” kicks in and SNS mobilizes all available energy for survival

This process of energy transfer is very intense Some soldiers often suff er from stress diarrhea Others in WWII have admitted to either urinating or defecating in combat

The price of this process is intense and can create a powerful backlash Backlash occurs as soon as the danger and excitement is over

After this process, the body’s usual , natural and useful response to danger becomes extremely counterproductive

I t has become increasingly clear that there are two key, core stressors causing the psychological tol l associated with combat. These stressors are: the trauma associated with being the vict im of close-range, interpersonal aggression; and the trauma associated with the responsibi l i ty to ki l l a fel low human being at close range

(Dave Grossman and Bruce K. SiddleAcademic Press, 2000)

PARAPHRASE-- PSYCHOLOGICAL CASUALTIES IN WAR (CONT.)

“One is left with the horrible feeling now that war settles nothing; that to win a war is as disastrous as to lose one.” (Christie, Agatha. Autobiography of Agatha

Christie. 1977. p.68. Print. )This quote speaks of the guilty and horrible

feelings left after warThese feelings (whether one has won or lost

the war) are caused my the chemical remains of the transitioning of power in the SNS sympathetic system

QUOTE--

Other factors are responsible for psychiatric casualties among combatants. One of those factors is the impact of close-range, interpersonal, aggressive confrontation.

Close-range killing is the killing of a human being, up and close. Rather then firing a machine gun from a helicopter, or other

distance killsAggressive confrontation was unavoidable in war, if

you wanted to live. In Vietnam specifically, battles could have gotten grotesque. Soldiers were dismembered from clam more mines, and were transformed into piles of flesh from demonic weapons.

THESIS– CLOSE-RANGE, INTERPERSONAL, AGGRESSIVE

CONFRONTATION

Bruce K. Siddle's landmark research at PPCT involved monitoring the heart rate responses of law enforcement offi cers in interpersonal confl ict simulations using paintball-type simulation weapons. This research has consistently recorded heart rate increases to well over 200 beats per minute, with some peak heart rates of up to 300 beats per minute.

QUOTE BRUCE SIDDLE

PARAPHRASE- CLOSE-RANGE, INTERPERSONAL, AGGRESSIVE

CONFRONTATION

“They wrote in the old days that it is sweet and fi tting to die for one's country. But in modern war, there is nothing sweet nor fi tting in your dying. You will die like a dog for no good reason..” (Hemmingway, Ernest. Notes on the Next War. Esquire,

1935. Print.) This quote fi ts the mindset of soldiers that deal with

close-range killing. They would not die a glorified death, and therefore they must do anything in their power to stay alive.

These soldiers that went day to day, having to kill men with their own hands

Along with trying to stay alive, they watched their fellow soldiers die, along with innocent native people

QUOTE—CLOSE-RANGE, INTERPERSONAL, AGGRESSIVE

CONFRONTATION

This data for hormonal or fear induced heart rate increase result ing from sympathet ic nervous system arousal . Exerc ise induced increase wi l l not have the same eff ect

Hormonal induced performance and strength increase can achieve 100% of potent ial max with in 10 seconds, but drop 55% after 30 seconds, 35% after 60 seconds, and 31% after 90 seconds. I t takes a minimum of 3 minutes of rest to “recharge” the system

Any extended per iod of re laxat ion after intense sympathetic nervous system arousal can result in a parasympathetic backlash, with s ignifi cant drops in energy level , heart rate and blood pressure. This can manifest i tse l f as normal shock symptoms (d izz iness, nausea and/or vomit ing. Clammy skin)

and/or profound exhaust ion Lt. Col. Dave Grossman’s book, ON COMBAT, (page 31)

HEART RATE IN COMBAT

THESIS

PARAPHRASE

QUOTE--

Primary Christie, Agatha. Autobiography of Agatha Christie. 1977.

p.68. Print. Grossman, Dave. Psychological Effects of Combat. Volume

3. Academic Press, 1999. p.159. Web. <http://www.killology.com/art_psych_arousal.htm>.

Eisenhower, Dwight. "Farewell Address." U.S. White House, Washington D.C.. January 17, 1961. Address.

Secondary wordnetweb.princeton.edu/perl/webwn Greenson, R.R. (1947). Combat Neuroses: Development of

Combat Exhaustion. Psychoanal. Q., 16:287-287 Hemmingway, Ernest. Notes on the Next War. Esquire,

1935. Print.

WORKS CITED