CBS: Troops With Stress Disorders Being Redeployed

[Robbien]

(CBS News) Army Staff Sgt. Bryce Syverson spent 15 months in Iraq before he was diagnosed by military doctors with post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) and sent to the psychiatric unit at Walter Reed Medical Center, CBS News correspondent Sharyn Alfonsi reports.

"It ended up they just took his weapon away from him and said he was non-deployable and couldn't have a weapon," says his father, Larry Syverson. "He was on suicide watch in a lockdown."

That was last August. This August, he was deployed to Ramadi, in the heart of the Sunni triangle -- and he had a weapon. He's still there. Under pressure to maintain troop levels, military doctors tell CBS News it's become a "common practice" to recycle soldiers with mental disorders back into combat.

edit

Meanwhile, Bryce Syverson is still in Iraq. He sent this e-mail home:

"Head about to explode from the blood swelling inside, the lightning storm that happened inside my head."

He wrote that it was the anti-depressants that were making him feel bad, so he told his father he may stop taking them. "Who knows what could happen? There are soldiers depending on him, and other soldiers are expecting Bryce to react," his father says. "Who knows how he will react under live combat fire."

http://cbs13.com/topstories/topstories_story_292222927.html

[grytpype]

1. Every day brings worse news than the last.

[saigon68]

9. The Fragging will "Begin Shortly"

That's why they WON'T HAVE A DRAFT

Too any lifers will bite the dust.

[DemoTex]

15. Fraggings, suicides, and atrocities.

Look for this ticking time-bomb to explode in Rummy's face. This is so totally FUBAR that I am speechless.

[saigon68]

26. Afraid so

That's why a draft would be the down fall of this.


Average mommies would be forced to protect Jr. from the guy who says "Turn your head and cough"

[DemoTex]

27. US Army coming off its wheels .. redux.

In the early days on the 1970s, as the Viet Nam fiasco finished US forces in that region, the US Army's Seventh Army ("Born at Sea, Baptized in Blood, Bound for Glory" - Patton) in Germany was in anarchy. Barracks life in garrison was so bad, so dangerous, that military courts were acquitting AWOL defendants who used the defense that they left the barracks in fear of their lives. That is exactly where we are headed again with this shit. Mark my word.


Does not play well with others.

[barb162]

47. horror stories, all of them

[Divernan]

51. Encountered a returning Sgt. at airport yesterday

I flew into Chicago/O'Hare and was standing in line at the Hertz rental office with a Sgt. wearing desert camo fatigues. I don't know his age. He was shaved bald but had a snow white moustache. He finished first and when I went outside to wait for my car to be brought up, he had loaded stuff into his trunk and was about to pull out when a reservation person stopped him and pointed out the car's license plate meant it was the one I would get, and his was farther down the line. So I hauled my bag over, gave him a smile and waited for him to unload his stuff. He had trouble getting the trunk to open, and looked up at me and kept apologizing. "I'm sorry. I'm sorry"(at this point he looked like he was about to cry). I said, "Hey, no problem". He said "I've been traveling for three days." I put my hand on his arm and just said "Well, welcome back." I wanted to say something more eloquent - but it's very difficult to know what to say when you don't know what they've been through, what their current state of mind is, or what future deployments they may be facing.

One thing I do know, is that that poor man was in no emotional state to handle weapons, or make life and death decisions for his troops or the civilian population. And what an overwhelming culture shock to switch from a war-ravaged land of car and bicycle bombs to the big city, business & partying-as-usual atmosphere in the States.

[mediaman007]

2. So if he survives this mess, what kind of father or grandfather will he

be? This country is messed up in so many ways.

[MADem]

3. Say, remember all that bullshit about pre and post deployment screening???

The military SWORE they were gonna implement it. They actually DID do it for a cyle or too. But gosh, at the end of the day...it really was....

bullshit!!!!

One study estimates that about 16 percent of soldiers returning from Iraq have PTSD. But military officials say they don't keep tabs on how many troops still fighting have been diagnosed. Most soldiers are never screened, a GAO report finds.

[Binka]

12. The Marines Are Pushing Ben To Redeploy OMG!

We had a massive argument last night and I didn't sleep because I'm out of my mind. I'm so far away and I can't talk sense to him on the phone he is full of Marine propaganda and rage over V's death. If he goes back I am going to immolate myself on the steps of the WH.

When he started dating Danielle he promised her that he would never go back but their relationship isn't working because she is in WI and he is in CA, a long distance relationship is difficult for people that age. Shit shit shit shit shit!

On edit: Do any of you vets have any advice how to help me get through to him? I am beside myself.

God Fucking Damnit Ben Wake Up!

[katinmn]

14. oh! I researched some sources recently.

I'll look for the list and pm you.

I don't want Ben to go back and tempt fate either. Things are getting so much worse.

[Binka]

16. Kat I'm So Very Worried & Sick

I had such bad feelings about Ben going the first time and I know that he was spared because of the tent and fans etc we provided for Cindy in 2005. That was a one time gift from the Goddess if he goes back who the hell knows what will happen. He is just not listening to me now. Iraq did something awful to him. :cry:

[meganmonkey]

18. You guys are in my thoughts

I can't imagine what he is going through, nor what you are going through. I am so sorry Binka.

:hug:

I recently witnessed an encounter with an Iraq vet at our daily anti-war protest.
so this subject has been on my mind a lot lately. I know your guy doesn't hate the anti-war protests, and that his drive to go back is out of loyalty to his fellow soldiers, so it is a different situation. But this encounter turned into a positive one, so I will share it here.

Here is what I wrote about it elsewhere, cut-n-pasted:

-------------------------------------------------------

An Iraq vet showed up at our protest today

It's always heartbreaking. Once in a great while we get someone who is grateful for what we are trying to do out there, but usually it is like it was today.

Traumatized and indoctrinated.

Called us faggots - must have used that word 10 times in the first minute he was there. Ugh. Stared ranting about how we hate the soldiers and we spit on them and all that...

Fortunately we had four middle aged and older men there today, some of whom had been in the military, who were patient enough to talk him down.

They asked him about his service. He has done 2 tours of duty. Finally, one guy asked him a simple question and it was like he became a different person when he heard it:

Do you really want to go back there again?

That's what did it. His demeanor changed. He apologized for yelling and calling us names. He walked away calmly.

Wow.

I am convinced that they are told over and over by their military leaders that the anti-war activists hate them and blame them and hate America. They are told this enough times that they believe it. Part of me thinks - how stupid must you be to believe that? but another part of me can imagine, especially for the young ones, how important it is to believe that. How important it is to believe that they are doing the right thing.

-----------------------------------------------

[classof56]

38. And how important that the families of those who die believe

that they died for some good reason, false as that may be.

God, I hate this war and what it's done to us. I was a Woman in Black standing on a street corner in silent protest to the war in early 2003, before the whole disaster started. I cannot tell you how many people said it was going to be fine, buying into all the lies as to why this ugly, pointless war had to be fought. Trusting Bush to mean what he was saying. Hard as I tried, I could not deter the supporters from their convictions that it was a righteous war and our troops would be greeted with flowers and candy and it would be "over in two weeks, tops."

Blessings to you for your continued commitment to the anti-war protest. And for speaking truth to those who most need to hear.

Tired Old Cynic

[Kurovski]

55. Are there any combat veterans here at DU who might wish to help?

Maybe contact Binka through a PM to get the full story, and then perhaps decide if they have anything to say directly to Ben that might make him change his mind, or at least think about it more?

Good soldiers are loyal, and with that in mind his desire to rejoin them actually makes sense, so I think the only person he's going to listen to is someone who has been there.

It's the only thing I can think of right now.

I'm sorry Binka. :hug: It's all I've got, and really, it comes from meganmonkey's story here.

[LeahMira]

53. Because of their friends...

... they want to go back. They don't want to "desert" their friends.

[MADem]

22. Oh good grief, Binka...that's horrific. Jeez, look at that handsome

young kid with a purple heart on his doggone chest.

What are the brass telling him? The same crap that these other kids are getting? Has he fully recovered from his injuries? If he can possibly opt out and claim he needs more treatment, he should. Iraq is NOT working...it's only a matter of time, no matter what horseshit the Dunce spouts.

You might want to ask him, as a personal favor to you, to stall his deployment if possible until after the holidays. I'm thinking that once the midterm elections are over, the Monkey will cut the crap and we'll start to see a soupcon of reality associated with his lousy Iraq policy. The Monkey can't say he's cutting and running NOW because that's what he's accusing US of wanting to do--the whole GOP platform for this election cycle is based on NOT cutting and running (yet). He can cut and run after the GOP takes big hits in the elections, though....

Anyway, if, in my youth, my Mom called me from far away and begged me to do something like that, and it was in my power to so do, I'd do it.

Kids love their Moms, even though they don't always show it.

Hang in there, Binka. You're one fine and tough Mama!!

[Joey Liberal]

37. Hey Binka

Sadly, Marine and Army commanders have been telling their troops to ignore the media. I hear the commanders say this all of the time at Ft. Sill (which has Marines too). It's hard to reason with a Soldier or Marine that is hearing propaganda from his officers and NCO's on a daily basis. And, I'm sure that like the Army, the Marines keep the TV's in their squad bays and day rooms on one channel - Fox News. My heart goes out to you and your son.
Joey Liberal
Army Veteran

[tblue37]

45. My sister's son did re-up--and I suspect it is a result of PTSD.

AND he just got married last spring and they had a baby a month ago! I just keep hoping we will be out of there before he has to go back, but there are only 2 months left before the unit he is with redeploys.

[katinmn]

41. PTSD often doesn't show itself until after a year

[AnneD]

56. Not so.......

It can happen immediatly after an event. Sounds etc can cause flash backs-but PTSS or PTSD can happen anytime. Been there, got the mental post card.

[Ken Burch]

46. And in the military culture, it is still considered a sign of "weakness"

to seek counselling for what you went through on the battlefields.

So they come home and try to "suck it up" just so they won't look like wimps, or worse, like they're "gay"(or the other euphemisms the military and Macho American cultures use for gay).

Then they start drinking and abusing their families. Some kill their wives.

[TomInTib]

4. God. As an aging combat vet, this makes me ill.. and pissed off.

"The Army sent us an e-mail saying they recognized Jason was suffering from PTSD, but was 'in his best interest' if he 'faced his fears' and went back to the front," says Pat Gunn, his mother.

Bastards.

[Robbien]

5. yeah that got me too

Facing fears only apply in situations such as when one needs to get up on a horse after falling off.

Facing fears, when that fear is you or your buddies may be dead or maimed every other second, is just plain stupidity.

[TomInTib]

6. Can you just imagine..

being on the ground with a guy who was at that edge?

I am dying a little bit every day for these kids.

[Tellurian]

7. A new directive is calling for the Army

to start shooting the troops up with new Anthrax vaccine.

This will be the final straw, for these poor guys..
I wouldn't even know how to tell them to hang on...
until we can get them out of there. This is nothing more
than wholesale slaughter of America's sons & daughters.

[ClintonTyree]

39. And then, if they're lucky enough TO come home for good.......

they'll find that Veterans' programs have been cut to the bone so 'Little Boots' can give permanent tax breaks to himself and his rich pals. "Support the Troops" is a LOT more than a catchy phrase on a ribbon magnet or bumper sticker, but you can't convince the Reich-Wing nuts of that. "Support the Troops" to them means using them to further their goal of world domination and then casting them off like an old shoe, no longer needed, no longer useful to them, no longer wanted.

I hope that one day Bush the murderer's conscience catches up with him and unmercifully torments him until his dying day.

There was a right way and a wrong way to avenge the attacks of 9/11/01. Bush, as always, made the worst possible choice that could be made. He took his eye off Afghanistan and leveled his stare and the one place we knew Bin Laden WASN'T, Iraq. Iraq has remained his focus from then on while the Taliban rejoins and flourishes in Afghanistan. He's losing his "war on terra'" on ALL fronts, and STILL he says, "stay the course". :banghead:

A more stupid man, President or other, has never set foot inside the White House. :grr:

[Tellurian]

43. Your assessment is accurate but if I may be so presumptuous,

The focus for all of us has been the WRONG focal point.

The Iraq War is nothing more than a smokescreen for the War Mongers like Cheney
and Rumsfeld filling their pockets with blood money and of course sharing the spoils
with jr.

The real Prize is and always was the dismantling of the Constitution of the USA..

The real Prize is and always has been the ethnic/cultural cleansing of the US.

The real Prize is and always has been the subjugation/dissolution of the Middle Class.

The Prize never was truly revealed in the PNAC Agreement because it was a goal
unrelated to Global Trade. This is a personal goal of the Republican Party.

You wonder why Bush never had a plan? The longer the people believe what he's saying. The longer
he has free reign to continue the stripping of the Constitution, the Judiciary and the Legislative Branches..

This never could have been achieved WITHOUT the threat of War!

This IS his original and primary goal, A DICTATORSHIP! This IS THE Prize !



I was sent a dvd by a Herb Meyer, who served as Special Assistant to the Director
of Central Intelligence, and Vice Chairman of the CiA's National Council, during
Reagan's term..entitled: "The Siege of Western Civilazation"..(which was written and produced by him)

..I could knock you over with a feather after you've seen the dvd..he outlined the planned
ethnic cleansing of the cultural environment of America and I'm sure he's instrumental in the
creation of the internment camps throughout the country..waiting to warehouse the disqualified.

His video is lunacy personified..inappropriate comments suggesting chaos and violence to
produce the right sort of socially acceptable order, because the white race is in a minority
and it must be protected. He is advocating feeding this line of hatred to our children and grandchildren.

Bush could care less how many die in this war. Rumy needs pharmaceutical money collections. (anthrax shots)

Needless to say, scary, sickening, stuff!

[Tellurian]

44. This post is for Binka..

Binka..do whatever you have to do or say to get your son home.
Tell him you're dying if you have to..Whatever it takes..Keep trying.

My son was able to get out just before the war started..It was a bit easier then.
but talk to him and tell him exactly whats happening..see if it helps..

Good Luck, Binka..our prayers and hopes are with you!

:cry:

[acmavm]

8. These guys need to start refusing to go back. Yes, they may face

some retribution from the bush** admin but the draft 'dodgers' had an impact on the position of the military during Viet Nam war all those years ago.

We no longer have the 'few, proud and brave'. We have the recycled multiple times, those with mental illness and physical infirmaties, and the less than desirables.

The civilian population cannot do it all (although they seem to be doing nothing). The men/women in the military are going to have to start becoming very vocal and protest themselves. They were used by a gang of criminals to overthrow a legitimate government of a country that did nothing to us (with lies about WMDs being the justification), they are caught in a trap where they just keep being sent back into that cluster fuck over and over, and they've spent all their time there without adequate gear and supplies. All so a few greedy bastards could get their hands on the last of the world's oil/gas supplies. They need to start getting very vocal.

[katinmn]

40. Yesterday I heard of a young guy being sent back a 4th time!

I was at a meeting and as we were leaving I asked about their relative who just got back. I cannot believe someone would willingly go back but their heads are turned by war, by the loss of friends.

Families need to support their soldiers and say NO to serving for a failed leader.

Hard to believe, but things are even worse in Iraq today than they were last week.

[Cobalt Violet]

10. I so glad we live in a country that supposrts our troops.

:sarcasm:

[elehhhhna]

11. Met an old Reep once who ragged about "We didn't have PSTD in MY DAY!"

I said "Sure y'all did, it just had a different name."

"Yeah? What was that?"

"Shell shock."

"oh."

[MADem]

23. They used to call it "combat fatigue" too...like a long nap on the couch

would solve the problem!

[midnight]

13. Our troops are being asked to work without the basic resources,

and now they are being asked to fight without critical thinking skills to help protect themselves from faulty decision making.

[Felinity]

17. So we're sending troops

on psychoactive drugs into combat. I'm sure they'll receive excellent medical supervision there.

Should I be surprised that, when the Commander in Chief is receiving daily cocktails of feel-good, feel better, feel nothing "helpers" (just my assumption, crazy I know), we are now sending troops into combat who were rendered non-functional from the first tour of duty?

Yeah, actually I am surprised. I am surprised that military doctors have given up on their primary directive, "First, do no harm." I am surprised that physicians in the military now walk the wards of our underfunded veterans hospitals with blood on their hands. "Hi, Joe, how are you feeling today? Suicidal? What you need is a gun and a free plan ticket to Baghdad. Take a couple of these pills a day and you'll think you're in Monaco."

I want to know: How low can we go? How long until another black day in American History, The Fall of Baghdad? Will we wait until our soldiers are killing each other, killing themselves, while armed insurgents chase them to the stronghold that no longer holds, to be slaughtered while they wait for transport vehicles?

DOES ANYBODY HAVE ANY IDEA HOW LONG IT WILL TAKE TO GET THE HELL OUT OF THERE IF WE WAIT UNTIL WE CAN NO LONGER RETREAT IN AN ORDERLY FASHION?

We can't save Iraq from the mess we created there. We are powerless to stop the chaos that we created. Victory? The jaws of Victory are drooling with the blood of defeat.



:cry:

[54anickel]

48. You brought on a vivid mental picture that's got me bawling now.

How the hell DO we get all them out of there? Chopper on the roof ain't gonna cut it. If it comes down to a quick evac, just think what the ones lucky enough to make it home through that shitstorm will have to deal with.

With these new pow-wows Dimson is having with the commanders, I wonder how bad things really are. How close are we to your scenario of being too late?

Damn I hate this mal-admin!

[OneBlueSky]

19. "troops with stress disorders" . . . how long until that includes . . .

virtually everyone serving in this illegal and immoral "war?" . . .

[puffthemagicdragon]

20. this whole thing has to end

sending guys that are compromised with PTSD is only putting the others at risk and the ones with PTSD should be at home being given the best treatment possible. This is getting out of control and I smell the draft coming after the elections unless we pull out now. :(

[Megahurtz]

24. This is Freakin' Way Out of Control.

All this shit that the BFEE is pulling and it's all happening so fast.
Something tells me they might even become more desperate before election time.

[Dangerously Amused]

28. And Bush will justify the draft

... with an incident of manufactured "terrorism."


"When ah said ah would not reinstitute the draft, ah had no idea there was gonna be another terraist attack! Ah mean, no one could anticipate such a thing!

Now go on out there and get me some more oil, boys. There's still a little money left in the treasury."

[David__77]

21. Many a family will be destroyed years down the line.

Mine was destroyed in part by father's deployment in Vietnam. It's all too bad.

[elehhhhna]

25. My dad died at 42 from lung cancer he probably "got" from working on asbes

tos brake linings on US Mil trucks in Korea.

...she types as she puffs on a G-D cig

[janetle]

29. My son's childhood buddy...

...is practically curled up in the fetal position in confinement at Camp Pendleton as I type this. He is only 22. He went to Iraq the first time at 19. The third time in Iraq, he gets plucked out of Iraq and thrown into solitary confinement accused of murder of an Iraqi citizen. Twice he saw his best buddies get blown up right next to him and he's expected to be thinking and acting normally???? This bright attractive kid did have a great future a couple of years ago. Now it is ruined by Bush's war.

Great family values.

[tlsmith1963]

30. This is Disgusting

No wonder there are atrocities going on over there, & there will be more. These soldiers who have PTSD shouldn't be over there at all. They need help. God, how I despise Bush.:mad:

[Faygo Kid]

32. I'm with you. Beyond outrage at this point. Time for the draft?

I can't believe this is still happening, and still supported by so many. The only thing that may stop this insanity is, I hate to say, reinstituting the draft, so that the outrage is felt. I have two extremely wealthy Bush-backing friends who support the war, but between them have six sons of draft age or almost draft age. Put their privileged butts on the line and watch Mom and Dad all of a sudden see the light about this insane, immoral war. Otherwise, we can expect more of this kind of horror.

[The Wizard]

31. We're turning that corner

Bush is wont to speak of, and it's called mutiny.

[Dangerously Amused]

33. I think we should give those troops another chance to serve their country

...by assigning them to Bush's personal safety detail.


I do believe they would appreciate the opportunity, and conduct themselves in a manner most fitting.

[MAX 1]

34. Did anyone see the Chris Mathews Show

Did anyone see the Chris Mathews Show the other day with Sen. Suicide, err McCain. Even Collage students fear the draft. They want to help the war but not join the fight.

[Up2Late]

35. Nice to see CBS reporting something FRONTLINE reported March 2005

Here's the link: <http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/pages/frontline/shows/heart/>

<http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/pages/frontline/programs/2005.html>

You can watch it at the link above, but be warned, it very sad. If you don't at least come close to tearing up, there is something seriously wrong with you.

[bluerum]

36. MUST READ - a soldier speaks. nt

[joeygirl]

42. The problem I see with this is more complex than what the

media is reporting. If they are being given anti-depressants without some sort of medical follow-up, then I would be extremely concerned. I take anti-depressants and I absolutely have to see my doctor every 6-8 weeks because I'm new to the medication and she wants to make sure that it's doing what it's supposed to do. In the time that I've been seeing her, I've switched meds and increased dosages to find something that will work in my situation-and I haven't been seeing her that long.

I'm really concerned that they aren't getting the care that they need in order to move beyond their initial problem.

I can see where the military wants to keep its numbers up, but I don't think this is the best way to go about it. As much as I loathe the idea of a draft, it might be the only answer left if we are going to be "committed" to all of these "wars".

Sorry for stringing together a bunch of different thoughts, but this bothers me in so many ways.

[BlueIris]

49. This is always the first thing I think about when I think about the war.

The mental damage done to those who've been to it, that is. And that's all I can say about that except...y'all are actually making time to volunteer for the campaigns, correct? 'Cause if not, you should get on that.

[Swede Atlanta]

50. And hence the reason for the Draft

I am not a big fan of the draft in peacetime but it is the only way to justly distribute the human cost of war across all racial, religious, economic and geographic boundaries. It is ludicrous that a soldier diagnosed with PTSD is redeployed to a war zone. If he is capable he could serve in non-combat roles and still be making a meaningful contribution to the nation's defense.

This is like the stop-loss orders and the like, signs of an increasinbly desparate military. The services recently announced they had all met their recruiting goals. If they had then there should be no problem with terminating the stop-loss program and schemes likes this to put weapons back in the hands of someone suffering from PTSD. So clearly their recruiting goals are not real. Their goals should take into account stop-loss numbers and numbers of those certified to be incapable of serving in a war zone. Not to mention they have lowered standards.

I pray every night for a Democratic Congress, at least the House. It's a start. If we can't take both then I suggest we start with the House where all funding begins. The Senate gives us the ability to block judges and justices. But if we are going to stop the war machine we need to control the purse strings.

[illinoisprogressive]

52. Criminal neglect

Isn't this a crime? You are putting many people at risk as well as compounding the depression, anxiety and everything else. What would have been a disorder that could have been controlled with meds and counseling will now be something these young people will never recover enough to live normally.
And how many crimes committed in Iraq has been caused by guys who are not thinking okay?
I know depression is something that is really hard to deal with and can be lifelong. You compound it and it will definitely turn suicidal or worse, like taking a few along with.

[LeahMira]

54. More than two years ago

some were saying this kind of thing... even saying that anyone reporting PTSD type problems was more likely to be sent back into combat than those not reporting them. I fear for what this country will be if and when these guys do come home.

[Kurovski]

57. Kick

:kick: