Why do so many Vietnam vets have PTSD?
Risk Factors of PTSD in Vietnam Vets Many mental health professionals in Psychiatry attribute the high incidence of PTSD in Vietnam-era veterans to a lack of “decompression” time.
What happened to the Vietnam veterans when they returned home?
Many Vietnam veterans built successful lives after they returned home from the war. They finished their educations, established good careers, and had families. But many other veterans had a tough time readjusting to life in the United States after they completed their military service.
How many Vietnam War veterans suffer from PTSD?
In the 1970s, a study showed that 15 percent of Vietnam War veterans developed PTSD. However, as time has gone on, that number has doubled to a staggering 30% of Vietnam veterans with PTSD, or 810,000 of the 2.7 million service members, in the National Vietnam Veteran Readjustment Study.
How did PTSD affect Vietnam veterans?
They reported lower satisfaction with their marriage, sex life, and life in general. They also indicated having more parenting difficulties, higher divorce rates, lower happiness, and more physical health complaints, such as fatigue, aches, and colds. Veterans with chronic PTSD were also more likely to be smokers.
What is the life expectancy of a Vietnam veteran?
Average age of men killed: 23.1 years Total Deaths: 23.11 years Enlisted: 50,274; 22.37 years Officers: 6,598; 28.43 years Warrants: 1,276; 24.73 years E1: 525; 20.34 years Five men killed in Vietnam were only 16 years old.
Why do Vietnam vets not talk about the war?
Civilians do not like to hear about killing, and combat soldiers do not want to talk about it. There is no euphemistic way to talk about killing, and there is no eloquent way to describe a violent death. So, in order to cope, soldiers have invented their own private language to talk about these subjects.
Was PTSD recognized during the Vietnam War?
It was first officially recognized as a mental health condition in 1980, only five years after the end of the Vietnam War. This was the first study to evaluate the prevalence of PTSD among Veterans, and became known as the National Vietnam Veterans Readjustment Study (NVVRS).