Suffering in silence

I did 13 years in the Marine Corps infantry. I completed six combat deployments and was wounded twice. I have been diagnosed with combat-related Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD).

There are so many myths about PTSD, mainly due to the media and ignorance of some people. In most cases, what you see on the media is blown way out of proportion. We do have our problems, but not what you would think. We usually suffer in silence. Most of us (veterans) don’t want to talk about it. Those that do are usually doing it for some kind of attention. It takes everything we have just to admit we have it. We are taught from the beginning of boot camp to be warriors and tough. It took me 10 years and a failed marriage to even admit to myself that something was wrong.

It’s true that 22 veterans a day commit suicide, but not all of us are suicidal. We are learning to cope with our problems knowing that we will never get over them. A lot of us succeed in life dealing with them.

What I’m trying to get at, is you don’t have to be afraid of veterans. Usually we’re just students and people trying to get through school like the rest of you. We smile, we laugh, we have our tough days, and we even get mad. We are normal people and if you get to know someone with PTSD, you will see that your previous notions and thoughts about who we are, are most likely wrong. So I ask you to take a chance and talk to a veteran. Expand your mind! We are everywhere.

-Sgt/USMC/retired