I asked my husband and some of his military friends whether they would seek mental health counseling. At least 99 percent, including my husband, answered with a resounding no.
I know there are many individuals who see mental health professionals, but military men and women don’t willingly pick up the phone and ask for a referral to a psychologist or counselor.
Seeking help this way is perceived as weak, or worse, harmful to their careers.
It’s not a simple issue. The military culture requires men and women to act “tough”; to place country and honor first, beyond their safety and their desire to be home; to live in dangerous war zones for months at a time with the concrete possibility that they may loose their lives; to see death and cruelties on a daily basis. Our military has to do the job, no matter the cost because we depend on them.
It’s not surprising that with this amount of pressure servicemembers may be reluctant to admit that they struggle with an issue or that they need help.
But when we deal with trauma, post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) and the many anxiety-related disturbances that afflict our military personnel, seeking mental help becomes fundamental, if not imperative, to continue functioning.
Changes come about slowly but society and our leaders realize the importance of this issue. Defense Secretary Robert Gates recently announced a new policy that should encourage, or at least make it less difficult for troops to seek mental health counseling. The change specifically relates to Question 21, required by the Office of Personnel Management for security clearances. Presently, servicemembers are asked if they have sought mental health counseling in the last seven years, and if so they must provide names, addresses and dates of the counseling sessions. The question should be amended in a way that will make it possible not to reveal all of the sessions received.
This is one of the many initiatives aimed at encouraging service men and women to seek help. Last year, the Army held special sessions to teach Soldiers how to recognize mental health problems in themselves and their friends.
The Navy and the Army also increased the amount mental health professionals available at primary care centers, so the long referral process for servicemembers who want help is eliminated. Navy Surgeon General Vice Admiral Adam Robinson explained that “if we embed mental health professionals with our men and women on a daily basis, stigma goes down.”
I know that a shift in our perception of mental health will take time but it will eventually happen.
I recently spoke with my husband, who is currently deployed, and told him that I went to a workshop presented by my psychologist called, “Illuminating the Shadow.” It was for women and we cried, shared personal issues and got in touch with our dark sides. I told hubby that the next workshop will be open to men and he half jokingly told me that he couldn’t think of anything more painful than to sit and talk about “emotions” with a bunch of strangers.
I have a sense that even my husband will change his mind. With five daughters he will have lots of emotions to deal with.
