RHS Retreat: Talking to Veterans

Todd Fredricks, DO (1993)COL MC FS WVARNG

Assistant Professor of Family MedicineOUHCOM

Disclaimer

I have no financial interest in any element of my discussion. I have no interests that would represent any personal gain other than perhaps helping you to better understand American veterans and one of the signature injuries of the current war. Ultimately my gain is that you understand your veterans better and help them for if you do, all veterans benefit. All information presented here is used under provisions of the Fair Use Doctrine for Educational Purposes. I speak bluntly at times, please forgive my candor, I am a veteran.

Veteran Mind

Sheep and Sheepdogs• Doctors are part of the Sheep• Veterans are Sheepdogs• The two groups speak different languages• The Sheepdogs have been busy for 12 years, the Sheep have

gone to the mall. http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1831776/posts (accessed 7 March 2013)

• 'Global War On Terror' Is Given New Name By Scott Wilson and Al Kamen,March 25, 2009 http://articles.washingtonpost.com/2009-03- 25/politics/36918330_1_congressional-testimony-obama-administration- memo (accessed 7 March 2013)

• DHS Report in 2009 Rightwing Extremism: Current Economic and Political Climate Fueling Resurgence in Radicalization and Recruitment http://www.fas.org/irp/eprint/rightwing.pdf (accessed 7 March 2013)

Sheepdogs• Swore an oath on their life• Lives by values (LDRSHIP)• At war for 12 years• Weapons are survival• Lives to protect the sheep• Creates order from chaos• Squared away• Naturally seeks leadership• Values experience over

paper• Sic vis pacem para bellum

Sheep• Allegiant to everything and

nothing• “We are still in Germany?”• Weapons are to be feared• Sheepdogs look like wolves• Creates chaos from order• Whatever makes you happy• Question authority• What degree do you have?

• “I’m a pacifist”

Bottom Line

• Unless you are a veteran, communication takes a long time to establish

• If you are veteran but didn’t go “outside the wire” you are at a disadvantage

• You don’t know what you don’t know• Veterans don’t expect you to be an expert, just

professional• A veteran will talk to you once you have their

trust.

It is my personal opinion that the nation failed to understand the psychological impact on veterans of the Vietnam Conflict. The term “Love the soldier but hate the war.” is one of the most destructive things that a civilian can say to a veteran.

It presumptively insults the veteran by suggesting that they don’t understand the impact of armed combat and at the same time takes that which the veteran has sworn their life to do successfully and detaches it from them personally. In essence it devalues (by dismembering) the soldier in a manner that could not be more perfect.

Veterans are servants. They didn’t make the policy. They didn’t choose the conflict. That is the role of civilians. All they did was do their job when their civilian leadership asked them to do so and tried to make order from chaos. Any civilian dealing with a veteran would do very well to simply listen and presume nothing around a veteran if they truly want to love the soldier.

Perhaps the hallmark term of the Global War on Terrorism should have been “I love the soldiers but I don’t understand the war.”

Resources

• Defense and Veterans Brain Injury Center• Brain Trauma Foundation• Center for Deployment Psychology• US Army Traumatic Brain Injury Page• Military.com TBI Overview and Benefits • Deployment Health Clinical Center TBI page• "Studying Injured Minds"- The Vietnam Head I

njury Study and 40 Years of Brain Injury Research

Questions