Counseling Veterans

Your Name Course and Section Professor’s Name August 23, 2024 IntroductionSignificant military incursions have characterized the last two decades, thereby shaping the global scene and having a deep impact on the lives of those who served. Among such undertakings include the Iraq War and Afghanistan War which required long-term deployments, intense combat experiences, and extensive exposure to traumatic situations. This has resulted in large numbers of veterans coming home with physical injuries as well as lasting psychological wounds. Veterans’ experience of these wars is substantial and extends beyond the battlegrounds to affect their return to civilian life. The media portrayal of military experiences such as the HBO miniseries Generation Kill, gives a sobering and engaging insight into what happens during wars. This is a series that shows the chaos, the strong bond, and the mental anguish that soldiers undergo; it also provides an unembellished description of war. Furthermore, Myers & Lane's Counseling Veterans: A Practical Guide (2020) complements this picture by becoming essential material when approaching and caring for veterans using counseling methods. Equally important, there are scholarly frameworks like Taxonomy of Trauma and Trauma Assessment which provide useful input in classifying and tackling different forms of trauma amongst veterans. The book “Principles of Trauma Therapy” by John Briere describes various therapy approaches specific to trauma thus adding more insight on how to effectively support veterans. The effect of over two decades of fighting has been extensive physical and emotional suffering necessitating comprehensive counseling services or support mechanisms for servicemen who have been affected by it. This reflection aims to examine the consequences experienced by veterans after prolonged warfare, discussing their struggles within the context related to mental health disorders, as well as stressing the public obligation to provide practical assistance. This paper discusses these matters. The Effects of War on the Veterans War is a very private thing, and it can be post-traumatic in the deepest sense of the word. Generation Kill, which has been inspired by the true events of some of the U. S. Marines who fought in Iraq, presents a thrilling and at the same time harrowing look at the physical and mental consequences of the armed conflict. The series is the depiction of the real side of the wars, including the savage side, but at the same time shows the internal turmoil of the soldiers. It reminds us that those young people, depicted in the series many of them so young that they are still teenagers, have a rather heavy load on their shoulders. Hence, watching Generation Kill, I noticed the considerable amount of pressure on the participating soldiers, whether in combat or after coming back home. It also portrays part of the warrior’s ethos, the sense of brotherhood and fellowship that is born of conflict. But, in the same breath, it reveals the struggle that most of those who are still alive continue to live with long after the dust has settled on the war front. This trauma often manifests in conditions such as post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), depression, and anxiety, all of which are explored in-depth in Counseling Veterans: Some of the sample publications include A Practical Guide (Myers & Lane, 2020). As for the psychological consequences of combat, the literature is abundant with accounts of their effects. Hoge et al. (2004) showed that 35% up to 50% of the soldiers deployed in Iraq and Afghanistan displayed a set of symptoms that correspond to PTSD or major depression. The aforementioned claims are well echoed in other studies conducted in later years since the publication of this book through research done by Veterans Affairs and other similar organizations that have presented cross-sectional surveys showing that veterans have high proportions of mental disorders. These are problems familiar to many of the countries’ citizens that can be summarized by high rates of unemployment, conflicts in intimate relationships, and general social isolation during the process of reintegration. These impacts are not limited to those veterans who experienced combat for years but it also impacts...