Decompression Time

SGT Ben Keen — Fri, 17 Jan 2014 15:54:30 -0500

I recently attended a meeting in DC where I was able to brief some of the policy makers that effect changes in the VA. I briefed on Service member suicides and what we should look at to help bring these numbers down.

The one thing we talked about was the military takes a good 3 months to take you from civilian to service member but only takes hours to move you from service member to civilian or from deployed to non-deployed. This type of fast adjustment can be hard to deal with. I related it to a deep sea driver. When a deep sea diver goes to the bottom of the ocean, he/she is brought back up to the service in a controlled manner and allowed to decompress. Failure to do this results in the diver getting the bends. I related the suicides and drug abuse seen among service members as military bends. I feel the DoD needs to find a way to "bring us to the surface".

One of the other Veterans at this meeting told a story about someone from his unit that refused to fly back to the states because he was shot down while flying over Vietnam. He sailed from Vietnam to California and said it was the best thing for him. He was able to talk to the other guys on the boat and to decompress following a crazy deployment.

My question to the group is what do you think? Are we given the time to decompress? Is the DoD able to give this time without effecting mission readiness? What ideas do you have to give service members as time to decompress?

Response by SFC Private RallyPoint Member made Jan 17 at 2014 5:00 PM

SFC Private RallyPoint Member — Fri, 17 Jan 2014 17:00:53 -0500

after my last deployment my company put me in charge of a program called WAQ, Warrior adventure Quest. This program was designed to help bring soldiers adrenaline down and help readjust to Garrison life. It was a great program and I feel that it did help.

Response by 1SG Steven Stankovich made Jan 17 at 2014 6:04 PM

1SG Steven Stankovich — Fri, 17 Jan 2014 18:04:44 -0500

SGT Keen - Your statement about how it takes "a good 3 months to take you from civilian to service member but only takes hours to move you from service member to civilian or from deployed to non-deployed" is something that we all should think about. You are absolutely correct. I do not have an answer for that...although I belief it should definitely be researched. Allowing someone to start the ACAP process 24 months out from retirement is not the same as a "decompression or transition" period where one can focus on the next chapter in their lives without still carrying the weight and responsibility of their current chapter. In my opinion, this is definitely something that should be looked into...

Response by 1LT Private RallyPoint Member made Jan 20 at 2014 3:28 PM

1LT Private RallyPoint Member — Mon, 20 Jan 2014 15:28:51 -0500

We need to do far more to assist service members, particularly troops returning from complex hot engagement combat zones, to not only decompress but also psychologically adjust to a more normal family life back at home. Otherwise, we will have way too many veterans self medicating with alcohol, drugs, abuse, jail, unemployed, helpless, homeless, leading to inevitable suicides.

This applies not only to combat soldiers but also to medical support personnel who suffer from noncombatant secondary compassionate PTSD where there are no adequate programs.

Response by LTC Private RallyPoint Member made Jun 5 at 2014 9:12 PM

LTC Private RallyPoint Member — Thu, 05 Jun 2014 21:12:35 -0400

The British have a system like this and they all hate it. I’m not going to say if it's good for them, but the last thing you want when it’s time to come home is to sit around some base for a few weeks.

Response by MAJ Ron Peery made Jun 6 at 2014 10:42 AM

MAJ Ron Peery — Fri, 06 Jun 2014 10:42:43 -0400

When I returned to the States from Afghanistan, I told my civilian employer that I was going to take a month off to decompress. I needed to readjust to living in the US. I traveled, visited friends and family, shopped, or just sat at the house. It was a good way to unkink and readjust. Guard guys can do that, but I don't think most of them do. Active duty military do not have that option. They dive right back into the garrison life, and often immediately start preparing for the next deployment. Returning home can be more stressful than being in theater, confronting the enemy. I don't really know the answer, but it seems to me that we need to give the troops more down time. After WWII, most of our military had to wait for redeployment to the States, some for as much as a year. And the trip home was usually by a slow ship, not an airliner. Others were on occupation duty for extended periods. In all cases, they were able to transition from combat to garrison before being re-integrated into the civilian world. Nobody comes home unchanged, but we need to recognize the changes, and learn to deal with them rather than just trying to "Move on to the Next Big Thing". Recommend you read "Taming the Fire Within: Life After War" by Dr. Anne Freund for a good discussion of post combat reaction.