NEWPORT NEWS, Va. –
The Joint Base Langley-Eustis Unit Ministry Team recently hosted a symposium on spiritual care for combat stress and the family at the Point Plaza Suites in Newport News.
The symposium brought more than 60 chaplains, clergy members, mental health providers, social workers and community members together to discuss post-traumatic stress disorder and how to provide spiritual care for Service members and their families affected by the debilitating condition, prevalent among recently redeployed troops.
Guests listened to studies and presentations from guest speakers, including Frank Ochberg, M.D., a renowned psychiatrist regarded as a founding father of modern pyschotraumatology, and Harold G. Koenig, M.D., the director of the Center for Spirituality, Theology and Health at Duke University Medical Center in Durham, N.C.
The event allowed guests to participate in small working groups to discuss a variety of subjects relating to providing outreach to personnel before, during and after deployments. Afterward, the working groups brought their findings to large group discussion for interface with the experts on hand.
Koenig's presentation included troubling statistics about PTSD and suicide trends among U.S. military personnel. For example:
- In 2011, the military experienced the highest suicide rate in 25 years
- 11-17 percent of Service members returning from deployment suffer from diagnosable mental health disorders
- 15 percent of returning personnel suffer from PTSD; 42 percent of which experienced an amputation, serious limb or spinal injuries
- 14 percent of returning personnel experience major depression
- 38 percent of married personnel file for divorce within six months of return, A marked increase in the amount of sexual indiscretions and spousal abuse
"In 2009, 1,868 veterans attempted suicide. That's one every 80 minutes," Koenig said. "This is especially common among young men, ages 18-29."
The doctors weighed in with suggestions on ways to help providers better care for Service members who need assistance, and offered theories on the reasons these personnel experience trauma while deployed.
Most importantly, Koenig bridged the gap between healthcare and spiritual wellness, calling on chaplains to help.
"Religion is related to every one of the emotional and social challenges our Soldiers face. There is a key issue I think we need to address regarding the purpose and meaning the Soldiers have for fighting in a war," he said. "The fact is that, in war, many soldiers cannot cope with the trauma and loss that they inflict and that is inflicted on them it it is just to survive, for their country, even if just for their family.
"The only way they can cope with this kind of psychological and spiritual trauma is if they are deeply connected to God and see this war and their actions in this war ... as serving a Godly purpose," Koenig continued. "You are the ones responsible for helping our Soldiers develop their relationship with God, and for helping them understand why they are fighting."
Ochberg built on the momentum of a growing national trend to change the way society thinks of PTSD, calling for the removal of the term "disorder" from the name of the condition.
"I want to see a campaign to end the negative stigma of dealing with this terrible condition," he said, garnering impassioned agreement from audience members.
"Providing spiritual care is important for the entire category of post-traumatic stress within the community," added Chap. (Maj.) Raymond Folsom, the Ft. Eustis Pastoral Coordinator. "Trauma is not just a combat thing, but it is our focus here today."
EDITOR'S NOTE: Are you are in crisis? If you are experiencing PTSD symptoms, to include thoughts of suicide, there is help available: