Iraq's Mental Cost

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July 2008
- UK Hostage in Iraq Kills Himself: Kidnappers
  
  newser | Times (UK) | Jul 20, 08 3:03 PM CDT
  
  One of five British hostages seized in Baghdad last year has killed himself, according to a video made by his Shi'ite captors. Seeking the release of comrades in US captivity, they blame the British government for failing to negotiate: "Foot-dragging" has hastened the captives' "psychological deterioration, pushing one of them, Jason, to commit suicide," the videotaped statement says. More »
- Did Iconic Photo Drive Soldier's Death?
  
  newser | Washington Post | Jul 13, 08 9:48 AM CDT
  
  A photo turned an American medic in Iraq into a hero, showing him carrying an Iraqi child to safety. But the photographer, Warren Zinn, wonders whether it also contributed to his suicide. Joseph Dwyer suffered post-traumatic stress disorder after returning from Iraq; Zinn worries, in the Washington Post , whether his fame exacerbated his pain. More »
- Vets Slipping Into the Bottle
  
  newser | New York Times | Jul 8, 08 5:36 AM CDT
  
  A rise in alcohol abuse among Iraq and Afghanistan veterans is worrying military officials, the New York Times reports. Counseling services for vets suffering post-traumatic stress disorder are stretched to the limit and many tormented former soldiers are turning instead to the bottle. The increase in binge drinking, and a smaller rise in illegal drug use, is blamed for a rise in crimes and other misconduct involving veterans. More »
June 2008
- Vets Used to Test Drugs Linked to Suicide
  
  newser | ABC News | Jun 17, 08 2:33 PM CDT
  
  Combat veterans suffering post-traumatic stress disorder were recruited for clinical trials of drugs linked to suicide and mental disorders, ABC reports. In a trial involving the smoking-cessation drug Chantix, the VA did not warn patients of the drug's serious potential side effects until 3 months after the FDA and the drug's maker had issued warnings. More »
- War Spending Strategy: Soak the Grandkids
  
  newser | Washington Post | Jun 11, 08 11:47 AM CDT
  
  As Congress tackles the latest "emergency" spending bill for Iraq and Afghanistan, bringing the total to more than $860 billion, Ruth Marcus notes in the Washington Post: "For the first time in American history, every penny of that amount will have been borrowed. For the first time, billions more will have been borrowed to finance tax cuts in the midst of war. " More »
- Post-Saddam, Bodybuilders Let 'Er Ripple
  
  newser | Washington Post | Jun 10, 08 12:21 PM CDT
  
  Iraqi bodybuilders have long needed nerves of steel to pump iron. Under Saddam, only officially connected Iraqis could join gyms, and the average weightlifter was forced to use makeshift equipment. But after Saddam, a flood of Iraqis seeking lucrative security jobs hit the gyms. The result? Extremists began targeting bulging biceps for working for Americans. More »
- Combat Troops Turn to Prozac
  
  newser | Time | Jun 6, 08 3:53 AM CDT
  
  A growing number of American troops serving abroad are taking Prozac and other antidepressants, Time reports. A survey last year found 12% of troops in Iraq are using the drugs, with 17% relying on them in Afghanistan. The drugs help the military keep stressed combat troops in the field—but the use of the "quick-fix" for mental health is causing concern. More »
May 2008
- Stress Disorder Surges Among US Troops
  
  newser | Reuters | May 27, 08 5:00 PM CDT
  
  Post-traumatic stress disorder is surging among US troops sent to Iraq and Afghanistan. New cases rose by more than 46% to nearly 14,000 in 2007, reports Reuters. In the last five years, about 40,000 cases have been diagnosed, most of them in the Army. More »
- How Buffy Saved a Baghdad Reporter
  
  newser | NPR | May 21, 08 10:55 AM CDT
  
  NPR correspondent Jamie Tarabay says that watching DVDs of the cult classic Buffy the Vampire Slayer series saved her life—psychologically—while reporting from Baghdad. “It can be a very lonesome gig,” Tarabay recalls, and watching the series’ vampire-fighting star “deal with her private war zone helped me deal with mine.” More »
- Debate Swirls Over Purple Heart for PTSD
  
  newser | Military Times | May 19, 08 7:11 PM CDT
  
  Members of the US military are debating whether Purple Heart medals should go to troops with post-traumatic stress disorder, the Military Times reports. Defense Secretary Robert Gates has said, "It’s clearly something that needs to be looked at,” but foes argue it would devalue the honor for those wounded in battle. Proponents say it would reduce the stigma attached to PTSD. More »
- 'Virtual Iraq' Helps Vets Face Stress
  
  newser | New Yorker | May 18, 08 5:14 AM CDT
  
  Therapists are plunging US war veterans back into the horrors of battle—as therapy. A virtual reality treatment is helping them cope with post-traumatic stress disorder by returning them to scarring events until their shock value wanes. "When the ground starts vibrating and you smell smoke and hear the AK-47 firing, it becomes very real," said one veteran. "When it was over, I’d go home and cry.” More »
- VA Doctor Discouraged Post-Traumatic Diagnoses
  
  newser | Washington Post | May 16, 08 9:55 AM CDT
  
  A team leader at a veterans' medical center in Texas sent staffers an email urging them to avoid diagnosing post-traumatic stress disorder, the Washington Post reports. "Given that we are having more and more compensation-seeking veterans, I'd like to suggest that you refrain from giving a diagnosis of PTSD straight out," wrote the psychologist, suggesting a milder condition be diagnosed instead. More »
April 2008
- Military Families Sue VA Over Suicides
  
  newser | Associated Press | Apr 21, 08 11:45 AM CDT
  
  Veterans Affairs hasn’t done enough to stem the “rising tide” of suicides and mental health problems, according to a class action lawsuit going to trial this week. Roughly 20% of deployed US troops are suffering from mental illness, a recent study shows, and an average of 18 kill themselves each day. “The VA has simply not devoted enough resources,” said one plaintiff lawyer. “They don’t have enough psychiatrists.” More »
- Mental Disorders Huge Issue for US Troops
  
  newser | Associated Press | Apr 17, 08 3:40 PM CDT
  
  300,000 veterans of the Iraq and Afghanistan wars have either post-traumatic stress disorder or major depression, and another 320,000 suffered brain injuries, the AP reports. RAND Corporation, in the first private evaluation of mental injury from the conflicts, found 18.5% of combat troops suffered from major depression or PTSD. "There is a major health crisis facing those who have served," said a researcher. More »
- Bush to Shorten Iraq Tours, Halt Drawdowns
  
  newser | Washington Post | Apr 10, 08 4:00 AM CDT
  
  President Bush is expected to announce today that the drawdown of US troops in Iraq will be suspended—once forces reach their presurge level in July—because of a resurgence of fighting, reports the Washington Post . The decision, urged by Gen. David Petraeus, means the number of troops in Iraq could remain at their presurge levels until the end of the Bush presidency. More »
- Army's Role in Iraq Turning Personal
  
  newser | Bitterlemons | Apr 1, 08 11:21 PM CDT
  
  After five years of war, the US military is enmeshed in virtually all aspects of Iraqi life—a common development in such engagements but one that can prove to be a double-edged sword for military efficiency, writes Lawrence Kaplan in the policy forum Bitter Lemons. "American units slowly melt into the landscape, becoming in effect the most powerful of their area's tribes," Kaplan writes. More »
March 2008
- Stop-Loss Earnest But Flawed
  
  newser | Metacritic | Mar 28, 08 7:24 AM CDT
  
  While some critics are calling Stop-Loss , Kimberly Peirce’s long-awaited Boys Don’t Cry follow-up, earnest and, at times, riveting, none of them seem to see it as the definitive Iraq war film. But the picture, about some GIs who’ve completed their tours of duty only to be told they’re being sent back to the front, still “strikes a universal chord that transcends politics,” writes Peter Travers in Rolling Stone . More »
- Deserters Fleeing War Go North—Again
  
  newser | Washington Post | Mar 17, 08 3:14 PM CDT
  
  Iraq war deserters aren't crossing the Canadian border in VW buses, but they are trickling across—and connecting with Vietnam draft dodgers who made the same trek 4 decades ago. About 200 Iraq resisters have migrated north, the Washington Post reports. Some grew disillusioned in Baghdad; others went AWOL from boot camp. And both generations are lobbying the Canadian government to let the younger ones stay. More »
- GI Killed by German Police
  
  newser | New York Times | Mar 15, 08 8:02 AM CDT
  
  A US Army soldier stationed in Germany was shot and killed by local police after holding his ex-girlfriend hostage, the New York Times reports. The unnamed soldier was located after the woman escaped; when he threatened a SWAT unit with an assault rifle, he was shot, and later died at a hospital. More »
- Wounded Warriors Saluted at Pentagon
  
  newser | Wall Street Journal | Mar 13, 08 12:19 PM CDT
  
  A poignant and little-known ceremony featuring wounded vets is held privately indoors at the Pentagon every six weeks, reports the Wall Street Journal. It's called the "Wounded Warrior March." Hundreds of Defense Department employees line the corridors of the Pentagon to applaud, cheer, shake hands, or hug servicemen wounded in Iraq and Afghanistan. More »