Post Traumatic Stress Is Not a Disorder

New Documentary Destigmatizes PTS

Ninety-five years ago, American author Ernest Hemingway’s short story, A Soldier’s Home,  made post-World War I societies further aware of what had been well known since the dawn of human civilization — the post traumatic stress of the warfighter is a real mental condition. In Hemingway’s time, when the field of psychology was still in its infancy, it was known as “shell shock.” During World War II the condition was known as “battle fatigue,” yet still not understood or accepted. 

Succeeding generations of people who endured the horrors of war slowly sought help for their altered mental states instead of dismissing them as a form of cowardice. It was not until 1980 that the American Psychiatric Association definitively acknowledged post traumatic stress disorder as a diagnosable condition based on research with Jewish Holocaust survivors, sexual trauma victims and returning Vietnam veterans. 

Diagnosis and treatment for veterans suffering from PTSD has greatly improved since then, especially following the wars in the Middle East after the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks on the United States. A segment of modern Americans are suffering from the same mental stressors that their ancestors did when they fought the Axis powers half a century ago. 

Filmmaker Michael Gier argues in his soon-to-be-released documentary, Wounded Heroes, that many combat veterans are still not receiving the proper treatment necessary to reintegrate into society.    

Set for release on streaming platforms on March 5, Wounded Heroes portrays the struggles combat veterans have to endure for mental recovery. Gier wrote, produced and directed the documentary over three years. 

Wounded Heroes is informative and highlights treatments that could be of real help to soldiers who return home suffering. Gier deftly interviews a diverse array of engaging veterans of past conflicts and medical professionals about the failures of health support systems such as the Department of Veterans Affairs. 

Wounded Heroes also addresses the problem of over-medication in PTSD cases and argues that many medications prescribed to stabilize severe mental conditions are having the opposite effects. Gier highlights alternative non-drug recovery programs, like equine therapy, that are now available across the U.S. But at its core, the film argues for changing the classification of PTSD to something else.

Gier suggests dropping the word “disorder” from post traumatic stress. He argues that doing so would remove a cultural stigma by recognizing that post traumatic stress is a natural mental response to witnessing and being a part of traumatic events; he advocates treatment via cognitive community support. 

Gier questions the established illness model, noting that it has not worked for many combat veterans. The documentarian interviewed pioneers in the field of mental recovery to discover how their alternative methods help soldiers heal. A major part of the treatment seems to be teaching returning soldiers that what they are enduring is not a disorder, but a “natural human reaction to traumatic events.”    

In terms of its presentation, the film felt at best like a high school health film, and at worst like a long infomercial. This reviewer half-expected Gier to turn to the camera and say, “I want to sell you my new product.” Hopefully the presentation won’t detract from the overall message of Wounded Heroes. The methods demonstrated in the film may one day enhance current treatments so warfighters have a better chance at a full mental recovery. 

Wounded Heroes will be available on March 5 through the Amazon, Google and iTunes streaming platforms. 

Arturo Garcia-Ayala was an active duty U.S. Army Infantry Rifleman in 2002 for six years. He was deployed to Afghanistan and Iraq while assigned to the 10th Mountain Division.