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Dealing With Combat Stress

It Can Happen To Anyone

As a veteran of the Navy, Air Force,Army, and a former federal and military special agent, I have seen my share of action that most never have, or never will experience. Due to these experiences, I have been diagnosed by the veteran’s administration as having Post Traumatic Stress Disorder, better known as PTSD.

You don’t have to be in military or law enforcement situations to have it. Civilians can experience combat stress and PTSD as well. Although I am not a healthcare professional and recommend seeing one if you need to, I want to talk a little about how to deal with combat stress be it from a street encounter or military deployment.

What Causes This Stress?

When you are deployed to a combat zone, the stress involved can bring about physical and emotional challenges for those experiencing it and for their families. Although I refer to returning from a combat zone often in this article, your combat stress could have come from being the victim of a violent attack or traumatic situation anywhere.

If you have experienced combat stress in the past or might unfortunately endure some type of attack in the future, awareness regarding what to expect, what can happen during a combat situation, and what happens when it becomes time to return from combat and reintegrate back into a more normal life are important topics to discuss.

For service men and women, we are somewhat prepared to deal with this due to our basic and ongoing combat training. But civilians and family members can benefit from understanding the possible challenges and changes that will occur during and after a combat situation.

Awareness Is Key

First and foremost is awareness. In a combat situation, it is easy to fall victim to the effects of combat stress and possibly, Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD). As I mentioned, preparation and training allow our service people to understand what is “normal” under most combat deployment situations. But how does a civilian adjust to becoming a victim of an aggravated attack?

Every individual is different, and what causes some people major trauma may not overtly affect another person. My own combat experience suggests that awareness and preparation of civilians to deal with this situation can be very beneficial. Learning the signs of combat stress and PTSD is very helpful.

Don’t Ignore It

Denying the problems of combat stress and refusing treatment or support is a major negative factor that can slow down the reintegration into a more normal life. I have been guilty of this myself. As a trained combative and law enforcement vet, I felt like I could handle any situation and was too macho to admit that I may have PTSD.

Many military personnel see themselves as needing to be “tough” and think that they must learn to “handle” their own emotional stress. Well, I learned that nothing could be further from the truth. I learned that talking about the traumatic events that can occur in a combat zone, especially with other returned vets, is essential for most returning personnel.

I believe this to also be true for civilians who have experienced physical and/or emotional trauma. Keeping silent, drinking alcohol, or self-medicating with legal or illegal medications have not proven to be the best strategy to deal with the effects of combat stress or PTSD.

Some of you live in dangerous environments and 24/7 exposure to dangerous environments causes normal physical and emotional responses which can lead to problems. These come from personal exposure to traumatic experiences, feelings of helplessness, extreme horror, or intense fear.

Signs of combat stress can include:

  • Recurring nightmares or flashbacks (I endured this for years and still do)
  • Frequent and upsetting memories about specific events (have these and see them vividly)
  • Feeling that the event will happen again (I am always on the lookout for danger)
  • Fearing people or places that remind the service member of the event
  • Interrupted or poor quality of sleep (I still go through this every night)
  • Physical reactions such as irritability, chills, shakes, tremors, and rapid heartbeat (been there)
  • Increased need for alcohol or medication to “handle” the situation

Don’t Hesitate To Seek Help

Sometimes depression, general anxiety/fear, overwhelming feelings of helplessness, loss of security, feeling detached from loved ones, or feelings that you are just going through the motions of living life instead really living, are also ways that combat stress can manifest.

If you experience a violent attack and think you may have combat stress, support from family, friends, and others who have experienced similar events can create a healthy environment to discuss and release anxieties, fears, and feelings of overwhelming depression. It takes time, and life will never be quite the same as before the event you may have experienced, but it can be normalized and life can continue on in productive ways.

If you have been through something and feel you have combat stress, don’t try to go it alone as I did for many years. Seek help and support. You will be better off if you do.

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26 thoughts on “Dealing With Combat Stress”

  1. I have been in a couple scuffs and one of the most important things I learned is that size, skill set, or even weapons have very little impact on the out come of a real close contact combat situation. It’s mind set. As far as flipping the switch goes, it takes training and experienc. I have been fighting and hardening myself most of
    my life. I’m always switch on.

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  2. Thank you for your service, and also for your courage in being honest! You are a truly brave warrior, and have not only helped by your past service but by your candor now.
    Thank you, and be well!!

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  3. Thanks Bob for great advice on all topic all around for a novice fighting-enthusiast from Turkey such as myself. Especially this article helps a lot because it goes a long way also into a deeper level of understanding fighting in a psychological sense. Really appreciate everything that you do to make fighting a popular sport all around the world!

    Respectfully from Turkey,
    OMER

    Reply

  5. For what its worth, someone who has made their mind up to go through with an attack has reached a point of 100% to go through with it, regardless if they are 100% efficient. When you turn to be the aggressor, and keep that mind set, you have changed the outcome by at least 50%. Its odd but thinking of this seems to give relief of the stress factor in hand to hand situation. These memories of situations will remain with you always, so long as you can keep your sanity through the years. The most dangerous people on earth are the ones with a belief, and those with no belief. This probably does not need to be on this reply/comment, but I wanted to share this with someone suffering. Remember those that seek death will surly find it, be strong, keep the straight path…Try to enjoy life, it is great…

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  6. Thank you veey much for youre article it was very good. Also thank you so much for youre service to our great country. Keep the great products and articles coming.

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  7. I’m a Disabled Veteran with PTSD General Anxiety and Depression and have recently started Therapy also have a Emotional Support Dog which I am also training to become a Service dog. Thank you for your Service and good luck and God Bless.

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  9. I appreciate your honesty and advise. As I have been through a traumatic situation and suffer from PTSD. Have finally got a handle on it through lots of help. Thanks again for your honesty and advise. Thank you for your service.

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  10. Thank you for talking about this and your service. I salute you for your service and for talking about this very important topic. I served in the military and then over 41 years with a local law enforcement agency before retirement. As a LE Officer I was involved with many hostile situations including a hand to hand fight with a criminal intent on killing me. I prevailed. Many of the things you discussed I can relate to. I drank very little alcohol and never did drugs other than antacids and motrin. But you can’t come home and talk to your wife about these topics.
    She doesn’t understand. Be sure to seek assistance and support.

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  11. There are essential words , pertaining to PTSD , like , Denial , too macho , toughness , , awareness . Our veterans need not to suffer unnecessarily . There is always a solution . Correct me if I am wrong ; to win the battle , team work . To manage PTSD , also team work , lets us look out for each other . I would never forget about the incidence in which , the renowned , hero Sniper was murdered by his own colleaque with missed ptsd , very tragic .

    Jamaica , population of 2.7 million , had 1616 murder rate , in 2017 . Recently , a well known , medical doctor and Politician , Senator was istabbed to death at home .
    Even for a law abiding citizen in Jamaica , hearing those horrible crimes , is definitely , repeated Stress and Trauma , even though might not amounting to , military personals and their experience . Thanks , to Mr Pierce , your programme and web site , preparing us for increasing violent world . Be safe . My favorite article ; Do you have bad mind ?

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  13. Very good, does not delve into how to adapt, but encourages one to identify, acknowledge that different events affect different individuals differently.

    Consistently advises that no shame on seeking help. No problem with that

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  15. Thank you for your service. I have ptsd. it took me 25 years before I got help. I did not know that I had ptsd until a Vet told me I did. again thanks.

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  17. A good introduction on PTSD, and encouraging one to not go it alone. It can effect almost anyone after a difficult situation A good read for all.
    Wishing you well.

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  18. A good brief on PTSD. It can impact all of us, those we care for, and military service is not the only cause. Encouraging professional help recommendation is essential.
    Best wishes to you and yours

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  19. I very much appreciate your post and your service. Forty plus years in law enforcement has shown your words to be true. A friend who works with Vets with PTSD uses horses for therapy. She uses the term Post Traumatic Growth to help refocus the experiences toward positive growth. Again, thanks for your willingness to share. If you’re interested check my blog post titled Survival Strong. God bless.

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  20. I thank you greatly for your service and you have my prayers for your suffering. God bless you and all our troops.

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  21. I agree that being able to talk about your experience in a non-judgemental environment is essential to being able to make the transition back to civilian life from a combat environment. I was fortunate to have a loving family who accepted me when I returned from Vietnam 50 years ago. I know men who weren’t as fortunate as I was and were not able make the adjustment. I think it’s difficult for anyone who’s been in combat to deal with needing and accepting help.

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  22. I learned to deal with it from Col. Grossman from his video “Bullet Proof Mind”. When triggered, breath. Then remember the trigger and it has less effect on you next time. Focus on the “here and now” breathing, drink of water, and sharing the experience.
    I had a friend who did 2 and 1/4 tours of Vietnam (they made him stay home after his third purple heart) and he had PTSD before they even invented the term. He dealt with it by telling stories. One was about why he did a dive under a car when he heard fireworks. He got up, brushed himself off, and said it was an old habit from other days. Then told one of his stories about being shot at.
    I myself have the “flashbacks” when it is windy and cold, but have learned my triggers and so they have less effect on me.
    We will never forget, but we do not ever have to relive the situation every time we hear fireworks, or it’s windy and cold, or when a jet flies over etc. Good article, and I agree with it. it is a good start to dealing with what every vet has had to deal with since the sounds of swords on shields would be a trigger.

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  23. My wife and I have had many discussions about being a teenager with a World War II Army combat hero for a dad. His silent anger occasionally made growing up miserable. I suppose millions of other children felt the same way when their fathers came home with service .45’s and attitudes. Those men sometimes took out their suffering from PTSD on their family. Nevertheless, we wanted to be just like those dads! We watched Gunsmoke and Audie Murphy movies, played with toy revolvers, and terrorized the neighborhood with our BB guns. Freedom isn’t free.

    What could possibly be a more important thing to do in your life than serve in the military? You are not only helping your country, but you are learning respect, discipline, and pushing yourself to your limits. You’re also upholding important traditions, like getting a nickname. You didn’t pick your own; you earned it. Mostly you earned obvious ones. Perhaps yours was “Steel”. Mentally, physically, and emotionally you were resilient; you were a natural leader; and you showed no fear. Freedom isn’t free.

    Thirty-six years ago President Ronald Reagan said, “Today, as in the past, there are problems that must be solved and challenges that must be met. We can tackle them with our full strength and creativity only because we are free to work them out in our own way. We owe this freedom of choice and action to those men and women in uniform who have served this nation and its interests in time of need. In particular, we are forever indebted to those who have given their lives that we might be free.” Freedom isn’t free.

    You surrendered the prime years of your life to defend freedom, sometimes thousands of miles from home, without family and in conditions the average American wound find intolerable. It’s an honorable calling, but it comes at a high price. Even those who come home unscratched pay a heavy toll. Others are wounded and face the lifelong challenge of rising above those scars to build a whole new life and normalcy. Some make the ultimate sacrifice and never return. Freedom isn’t free.

    If you are an active or retired veteran, police officer, fire fighter, or first responder – thank you for the sacrifices you have made; thank you for protecting and upholding the very best this life has to offer. Freedom isn’t free.

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  24. PTSD is an automatic reaction to life threatening things that can happen in combat or other high stress environment. Deep within our makeup is a fight or flight gene. When it and other genes are turned on they cause changes in our mental makeup that are there to help us deal with the issue.the problem is after they are turned on it’s almost impossible to turn them off. They are their for our survive. They cause many different problems when trying to return to “normal” life.Lack of trust, excessive spending, ( won’t be here tomorrow), loss of sleep and many other problems.

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  25. Good to hear the subject talked about. In the UK it seems impossible to get any help anywhere. Lots of promises of help and you get passed on from person to person, department to department, round and round with everyone telling you that the next person /department will help in some way. Of course, you just end up back at square one, feeling worse than when you started. Don’t these people realise that giving false hope of help , then extra stress of initial discussions and then after weeks of futile searching for help –nothing, that’s the best way to push someone to suicide. That’s what you get when you ask for help in not so “Great” Britain.

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