Pentagon Channel: 'The Wounds Within' Video on PTSD Now Online

Look for this month's edition of Recon on the Pentagon Channel for The Wounds Within, the latest installment in the military series. Check your local station's broadcast listings (the program is set to run a number of times throughout the month) or view the entire video online.

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From the American Forces Press Service:

The half-hour show, called "The Wounds Within," explores how the understanding of PTSD has evolved from the Civil War to World Wars I and II to Vietnam and now to operations Enduring Freedom and Iraqi Freedom.
It also demonstrates how the Department of Defense is aggressively treating servicemembers returning from battle today, Pentagon Channel officials said. "It's not a small problem," said Air Force Master Sgt. Daniela Marchus, who hosts the show. "Seeking help is such an important thing." ...

"In the Civil War it was called 'nostalgia'; following World War I it was called 'shell shock'; following World War II it was called 'combat fatigue'," Dr. Robert Ursano of the Uniformed Services University of the Health Sciences told "Recon" producers. "There's always been a name, but never as much focus and trying to understand and intervene."

But even with today's understanding and treatment, "The Wounds Within" shows why many servicemembers refuse to seek help. "There's a stigmatization of mental health," said Army Lt. Gen. Kevin Kiley, the service's surgeon general. "It's a challenge to break through the stigma."

Many other wounded servicemembers share very personal stories of how they survived, how they were able to seek treatment and how they are coping today in this emotionally charged "Recon."

Marchus said she hopes "The Wounds Within" will spark discussion about PTSD and prompt servicemembers who are suffering in silence to ask for help. "They are suffering emotionally," she said. "They are not alone."

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• ptsd
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