By Caroline Alexander — 2017
Brain injuries caused by blast events change soldiers in ways many can’t articulate. Some use art therapy, creating painted masks to express how they feel.
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CLEAR ALL
Thousands of veterans who served in the wars that began after the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks struggle with issues that are often invisible to those around them. Some are suffering from health problems and trauma, and others from feelings of displacement and alienation.
Soldiers are always supposed to be thinking. That’s what West Point teaches its cadets, who are officers in training. You’re supposed to question the orders you’re given, to see whether they conform to the Geneva Conventions and the laws of war.
The process to uncover your purpose after a career in military service takes great introspection.
Veterans are molded by military culture—a unique set of values, traditions, language and humor, with unique subcultures. It has enough consistency across different branches, ranks and time periods to make most veterans feel a kinship.
No matter where you move after the military, even if you’re returning to where you grew up, it takes time and effort to find your sense of belonging. Your civilian job likely won’t provide that as easily as the military did—or at all.
Brooklyn-based Theater of War Productions bills itself as “an innovative public health project that presents readings of ancient Greek plays, including Sophocles’ Ajax, as a catalyst for town hall discussions about the challenges faced by service men and women, veterans, their families,...
On the heels of America’s longest war, a new PBS documentary series sits down with nearly 50 veterans in hopes of helping to bridge a growing gap.
Many in the veteran community have made the mistake of assuming that the only process of reincarnation as a new, more laudable self is through violence and brutality.
There’s a growing understanding—and resources—to allow us to take control of our minds and of our own well-being.
We all want more well-being in our lives.