User talk:1989girly

Anti War

Throughout American History there has been war after war. There have been wars between countries and wars against different groups between one country. This got me thinking about how fighting in a war affects the soldiers and their families. My older brother fought in this last war for about a year and a half. I do not agree with wars but I supported him because of what he was doing. When a soldier fights in a war it affects many people in different ways. When my brother got back from Iraq he talked about everything that he did over there, and all the things that he saw. Now that he is back I have been noticing that he has had to deal with a lot of emotions and issues within himself. Thinking about all the things that my brother had to do half way across the world scared me because there was no way of getting in touch with him and finding out how he was doing. When he is in the United States I can pick up the phone and talk to him. All of these different factors make me believe that fighting in wars is something that should be a last resort. They affect everyone not just the soldiers.

To start, soldiers see a lot of devastating events that can cause them to have psychological problems. When they come home from war some soldiers are diagnosed with PTSD (post traumatic stress disorder). This means that some of the situations that they experienced or were a part of were beyond the normal range of their ability to cope. These traumatic experiences stay with them. Some of the symptoms of PTSD are some degree of anxiety, depression, intrusive thoughts or flashbacks, nightmares, fear and anger. If PTSD goes without being treated it can lead to problems within their social lives or can lead to suicide. This can be treated by talking to a mental health councilor. Some soldiers also find that it is helpful to talk to other veterans. If a soldier doesn’t get help with PTSD it can affect their relationships with everyone in their lives.

Parents and families are also affected by the war but in a different way. There was an article about a soldier who came back from two tours in Iraq. It talked about the things that he went through because of the things that he saw. “He was diagnosed with post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) and traumatic brain injury. He was violent and suicidal. He carried a loaded handgun everywhere. He drank until he passed out. He cut himself. He burned his skin with cigarettes. He bit through his tongue just to watch himself bleed (Zuccino).” His parents saw him do all these things to himself but didn’t know what to do. His father tried everything he could to help his son. He also tried to teach other people the things that his son saw and why war is wrong. How can you help someone who watched friends die and helped kill other people? It is something that no family should have to deal with. You can’t say I know what you are going through, or can’t relate to what they went through. The only thing that can be done is to make sure that they get the help they need and be there for them.

War has a negative affect on the people that are involved in it. I don’t believe that wars are a way to handle problems, because a lot of innocent people get killed or scarred for life. Soldiers are taught how to kill people so that they survive in a war. When something like that is learned it is not something that is easily going to be forgotten. They come home with all these thoughts in their heads which put everyone around them in danger. Soldiers are human beings too and should not be put through this kind of situation.