Post-traumatic stress disorder is a debilitating mental illness formed after a painful or terrifying experience. Many different situations can trigger PTSD, but there is a large concern for the prevalence within the military. Some of the situations our troops experience are unimaginable, and it shouldn’t come as any surprise that they can have lasting effects on psychological well-being. So, the big question is, how do we stop this phenomenon and protect our troops?
It is important to first understand the mechanisms underlying PTSD before answering this question. Ever noticed how the strongest memories you can recall are often from emotional experiences? That is because the brain releases specific stress hormones and neurotransmitters in response to stressful stimuli. These molecules go on to activate different regions in the brain which are important for forming memories – specifically, the hippocampus and the amygdala.
The purpose of these memories is to better prepare ourselves in case these types of situations occur again, sort of like a defense mechanism. However, extremely traumatic experiences can overactivate our stress response, or the “fight or flight” response of the sympathetic nervous system, by releasing higher levels of signaling molecules such as glucocorticoids. This results in powerful memory formation and consolidation. When triggers occur later, the brain struggles to differentiate between reality and the associated memory, setting off the sympathetic response again.
This can be especially problematic for returning soldiers as they have been conditioned to react much differently to common stimuli than the average citizen, often making it difficult for them to readjust. This brings us back to the question that arose earlier: what can we do to stop this from happening?
There are a number of treatments for PTSD, including medications (SSRIs, SNRIs, Benzodiazpines, etc.), exercise, and therapy, but the main issue with treating soldiers is the timing of when they are treated. Currently, soldiers are treated once they come back home after reporting symptoms… What if we treated them before they were deployed? Would this prevent consolidation of painful and traumatic memories? Is that a good idea?
Let’s think about this for a minute. Treating soldiers with medications before, or deploying them with medications to take while they are there, MIGHT prevent them from developing PTSD. Would this be ethical? In my opinion, no. Medications should not be prescribed before there is any need for them, putting the individual at unnecessary risk for dependency. Other side effects also need to be taken into account. Medications would decrease the stress response prior to being exposed to the stimulus. This may cause troops to react inappropriately, if at all, to high-stress situations that put their lives in danger. One wrong reaction may be fatal, and so it is important for such responses to be functioning while in combat.
I believe this issue refers less to the traumatic experience itself that results in PTSD, and more-so to the aftermath of the stimulus. The reactions troops learn while deployed are necessary for their survival. Therefore, treating them with medications before or during their deployment would be detrimental. Some possible solutions may lie in discovering a way to remove emotion and stress responses associated with specific memories, or implementing more extensive entrance testing for possible genetic precursors. However, even if an individual is not predisposed to genetic risk factors, there is still a chance that PTSD can develop. And I think it makes sense – some of the things our troops witness and experience are utterly horrific. I’m not so sure it would be a good idea to find a way to prevent people from responding to these experiences. But, I do think there needs to be a lot of improvement in the medications and other treatments we currently use. Our soldiers give so much to our country, protecting us by putting their lives on the line. It’s about time we started giving back to them.
