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SATURDAY, NOVEMBER 21, 2009
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 FORT HOOD SHOOTING 
25

Blame 'Vicarious' PTSD

Trauma is infectious, Essig writes, and therapists can catch it

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(Newser) – When Todd Essig learned the Fort Hood shooter “was an Army psychiatrist who treats post traumatic stress disorder, himself on the cusp of deployment, I thought, ‘I’m not surprised.’” Why? Because there is a documented transfer of trauma disorders from sufferers to caregivers, dubbed “vicarious traumatization.” For some who provide care to soldiers, “the line between their experience and yours starts to blur until, well, something like what happened at Fort Hood” happens.

Nidal Malik Hasan felt like he had already been deployed, Essig writes on True/Slant, and when confronted with the fact of actual deployment overseas, he snapped. “The shooter was himself wounded by war, perhaps fatally so, well before he first pulled a trigger.” And let’s not mince words: “Those killed and wounded by his actions at Fort Hood are as much casualties of war as are all our other neighbors, friends, and family so far killed and wounded in Iraq and Afghanistan.”

Nidal Malik Hasan.
Nidal Malik Hasan.   (AP Photo)
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Understanding what happened is not to excuse anything that was done, far from it, but understanding may help prevent subsequent and possibly preventable tragedies. - Todd Essig

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25 comments
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Jojo
Nov 6, 09 10:15 AM CST
The only thing worse than PTSD is someone rushing to judge and label what just happened, as if it's "oh! of course!" a clear cut case. Don't pretend you know the reason why. Just because this particular (or any) man was able to complete med school and get a degree as a psychiatrist does not mean he wasn't bat shit crazy to begin with. After working at a hospital for over 10 years, I knew several psychiatrists that gave me the creeps. I think that sometimes people drawn to the study of mental disorders have their own personal reasons for choosing that field. What this man did was cowardly, his own relatives reported he was terrified about going to Iraq. He was a scared coward that was not sane. Stop trying to slap a label on it. Reply
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davjc09
Nov 6, 09 10:24 AM CST
I think certain people are definitely drawn to the profession, but I also think that it does take a mental toll. This is not your run of the mill psych guy though. He was strictly Army, which means that his patients had more traumatic experiences than the normal patient population. So it's not necessarily surprising. But I don't think Todd Essing was having an "of of course" moment, more noticing the links between the nature of the profession, especially in an Army setting.
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Jojo
Nov 6, 09 10:33 AM CST
So you think a sane man that is SO opposed to war would decide to spend his career in the ARMY?
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cochiserocks
Nov 6, 09 10:39 AM CST
I agree - the only one even vaguely qualified to make that kind of judgement is whoever his clinical supervisor was. All shrinks are meant to go and see another shrink on a regular basis to untangle themselves and prevent getting to sucked in or screwed up by their jobs. Jamerican - your deductive reasoning cracks me up. You've created a logical fallacy. When the IRA were bombing the crap out of London, were you quoting the the bible (Exodus 21:24) as a call to dismiss all Catholics as warmongering terrorists too? My thoughts and prayers go out to the families of the fallen. Of course I agree that extremists and anti-Western nut cases are using Islam as a weapon to further their own agendas - but to write off 1.66 billion people is a bit of a knee jerk reaction don't you think? When you say "us" by the way - who do you mean?
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davjc09
Nov 6, 09 10:45 AM CST
I don't say that he was sane. I'm not qualified to make that judgement. He was definitely troubled. But the root of that could be in a number of places. He could have entered young and impressionable, while been changed over the years. Or he could have been 'bat shit crazy' when he entered. Not everyone joins the Army because they believe in 'the cause.' Some do because of financial reasons. That's why we've seen such an increase in recruits to the Army, with unemployment so bad. And before you write that off as saying "he's a doctor," every branch of the military will pay for a medical students tuition and give them a stipend and signing bonus. Considering the average debt of a graduating medical student is six digits, this can be quite appealing in exchange for a few years of service.
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