As a member of the armed forces, I want to weigh in on this one.

I work with many soldiers upon their return from the Middle East and around the world. The military is a different world, both for soldiers and their families, and what seems normal and right to us, is often a buerocracy of red tape for them. Many of them simply get tired of the hassle.

There are activists who are fighting for changes on behalf of our soldiers. They are lobbying to create changes in how we diagnose and treat things like PTSD but at this point, a soldier dx'ed with "moderate to severe" ptsd can be profiled, and put out of the military. Yes, he might be disabled vet benefits, but then his family is left w/o benefits. Soldiers know this, and as such, will often betray just how bad the PTSD is. It is a sad situation all the way around.

There are not enough resources right now to treat the men suffering from PTSD. Many of them had a propensity for depressive and anxiety based disorders BEFORE this way, and many of those are suffering terribly. A lot of field physicans do not know how to recognize PTSD in the field and thus begin treating it. The men and women in my group have told me over and over how they tried to tell someone that something was wrong, but people did not understand.

I grieve for these men and women. They are our brightest and bravest and we are failing them miserably.