Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD): Symptoms, Treatment (Research, Video 3:56)

Post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) can often go undiagnosed because people are not aware of the symptoms or do not know that treatment is available. Veterans are often associated with this disorder because of the trauma many experience while serving the country. One of my hospice patients, a Viet Nam veteran, described his symptoms to me with these words:

“I’ve seen and done things you couldn’t imagine. Some of them were horrible, I mean really horrible. Don’t ask me to tell you what they were. I can’t talk about it. They say time heals all wounds, but it’s a lie. I left Viet Nam, but Viet Nam never left me. I carry it with me everywhere I go. All these years later, I still have nightmares like you wouldn’t believe. The doctor says it’s post-traumatic stress disorder or PTSD. I wake up shaking, gasping for breath with tears in my eyes. In my dreams, I’m always running hard trying to escape. Sometimes my enemies are close enough for me to touch. I almost stop breathing to keep them from hearing me. I’m constantly thinking I’m not going to make it. Some nights they kill me before I wake up. My dreams are so raw, so real they turn my soul inside out.”

Many people who never served in the military suffer these symptoms and more. They may not recognize the PTSD disorder in themselves and others. In an online PTSD survey assessing PTSD trauma, symptoms, and treatments, PTSD participants included 301 adults (50% veterans). They were asked to identify PTSD related items from a list. They were better at identifying traumatic events and symptoms than they were at knowing about effective PTSD treatments. This is important because people may not seek treatment if they don’t know it is available.

All wounds are not visible. What can PTSD look like? This video features people sharing their traumatic experiences that caused their PTSD and what can “trigger” or generate symptoms in various degrees, even to the point of having “lost days” that are so scary they have difficulty functioning. Personal and group therapy are encouraged.

Frances Shani Parker, Author

Becoming Dead Right: A Hospice Volunteer in Urban Nursing Homes is available in paperback and e-book editions in America and other countries at online and offline booksellers.
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Veterans’ Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD), Depression: Clergy, Spiritual Counselors (Research, Video 4:42)

My hospice patient Nat was like many men and women who have served our country during wars. He suffered with repressed fear and sadness resulting from his experiences. We had many conversations about his life during my weekly visits with him. His story is typical of many veterans who suffer with post-traumatic stress disorder. These are words he spoke that I remember well:

(Excerpt from Becoming Dead Right: A Hospice Volunteer in Urban Nursing Homes)

“I fought in a war years ago. Gave the best I could give. I’ve seen and done things you couldn’t imagine. Some of them were horrible, I mean really horrible. Don’t ask me to tell you what they were. I can’t talk about it. They say time heals all wounds, but it’s a lie. I left Viet Nam, but Viet Nam never left me. I carry it with me everywhere I go. All these years later, I still have nightmares like you wouldn’t believe. The doctor says it’s post-traumatic stress disorder or PTSD. I wake up shaking, gasping for breath with tears in my eyes. In my dreams, I’m always running hard trying to escape. Sometimes my enemies are close enough for me to touch. I almost stop breathing to keep them from hearing me. I’m constantly thinking I’m not going to make it. Some nights they kill me before I wake up. My dreams are so raw, so real they turn my soul inside out.”

Not much research is available about veterans like Nat regarding their search for support from clergy and spiritual counselors for their depression and PTSD. In this Veterans Administration research study, 761 veterans with probable major depression participated in telephone surveys. They were asked about their openness to seeking help and their actual contact with clergy and spiritual counselors during a six-month period. Almost half endorsed this support at some level. Ninety-one participants (12 %) reported actual clergy/spiritual counselor consultation. Others indicated support for primary care providers, psychiatrists and other mental health providers.

Knowing that veterans suffering with PTSD and depression are agreeable to receiving help from clergy and spiritual counselors as well as other providers is important. Including clergy and spiritual counselors, particularly those with specific PTSD training, on care teams for veterans can improve health of patients like Nat.

This video shares the PTSD journey of one marine veteran. Veterans Healing Initiative is a nonprofit dedicated to providing veterans of all eras access to treatment for substance abuse and PTSD. 



Frances Shani Parker, Author

Becoming Dead Right: A Hospice Volunteer in Urban Nursing Homes is available in paperback and e-book editions in America and other countries at online and offline booksellers.

Hospice and Nursing Homes Blog

Hospice and Palliative Care: Veterans and Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder – PTSD (Video 7:41 mins.)

The following conversation is from my book Becoming Dead Right: A Hospice Volunteer in Urban Nursing Homes. I am talking with Nat, my hospice patient who is a veteran of the Viet Nam war. We had many conversations about his life during my weekly visits with him. His story is typical of many veterans who suffer with post-traumatic stress disorder:

“Did you see my flag on the side of the bed?” Nat asked me one day.

I looked again at his small American flag taped to the bed railing and responded, “Yes, I noticed it the first day I came. It’s always there on your bed. I can tell you like it.”

“I fought in a war years ago. Gave the best I could give. I’ve seen and done things you couldn’t imagine. Some of them were horrible, I mean really horrible. Don’t ask me to tell you what they were, because I can’t talk about it. They say time heals all wounds, but it’s a lie. I left Viet Nam, but Viet Nam never left me. I carry it with me everywhere I go. All these years later, I still have nightmares like you wouldn’t believe. The doctor says it’s post-traumatic stress disorder or PTSD. I wake up shaking, gasping for breath with tears in my eyes. In my dreams, I’m always running hard, trying to escape. Sometimes my enemies are close enough for me to touch. I almost stop breathing to keep them from hearing me. I’m constantly thinking I’m not going to make it. Some nights they kill me before I wake up. My dreams are so raw, so real they turn my soul inside out. In real life, I came back alive. A lot of people who served, some of them my friends, didn’t come back. That’s why I keep that flag there all the time. It’s out of respect for those who came back in body bags; it’s for those still struggling with physical and mental injuries. It’s the least I can do for them.”

Nat is like many men and women who have served our country during World War II and wars in Korea, Viet Nam, and Iraq. He suffers with repressed fear and sadness resulting from his war experiences. Hospice and palliative care for veterans, like the Hospice of the Western Reserve in Cleveland, Ohio, includes healing opportunities for patients to express feelings they have stored inside for years. Veterans and their families receive post-traumatic stress disorder education and support. Patients are often paired with volunteers who are also veterans. Being able to “let go” of the horrific burdens of PTSD is important at any time, but especially for closure during the final phases of life.

In this video titled “Welcome Home,” veterans share some of their agonizing service memories, including burial at sea.

Frances Shani Parker, Author

Becoming Dead Right: A Hospice Volunteer in Urban Nursing Homes is available in paperback at many booksellers in America and other countries and in e-book form at Amazon and Barnes and Noble booksellers.

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