Last Friday, I addressed the first two of the many myths civilians have about military veterans. These myths continue to present serious roadblocks that veterans, especially those just transitioning out of military service, must overcome in their job search.
By the time you read this, April unemployment figures should be public, followed closely by the veteran-specific unemployment numbers. Overall, the news has been good. Veteran unemployment is on par with the overall unemployment rate nationwide. But still too many people cling to misperceptions about veterans, if only because only about one in ten Americans have ever served in the military, let alone in combat.
Here are the next two myths that I wish corporate recruiters (and, frankly, everyone else) would forget they think they know about veterans.
The myth: We’re all ticking time bombs
In the First World War, they called it “shell shock.” In the Second World War, “battle fatigue.” General George Patton famously slapped a soldier who complained of it, to get him to return to the front lines. By the Vietnam War, we’d settled on post-traumatic stress disorder. But soldiers suffering from its effects show up as far back as the works of ancient Greek historians such as Xenophon and Thucydides.
I prefer to follow the lead of retired Gen. Peter Chiarelli, who as vice chief of staff of the Army refused to acknowledge the “disorder” in post-traumatic stress disorder. Chiarelli simply called it “PTS,” since what the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual calls PTSD isn’t truly a disorder, it is a perfectly natural and expected reaction to trauma.
Post-traumatic stress isn’t confined to the military. Anyone who has experienced a traumatic event — such as an accident, natural disaster, or violent assault – where they feared for their own life or the lives of others – is vulnerable to developing it. According to the National Institute of Mental Health, about half of American adults will experience such an event in their lifetimes. And the Department of Veterans Affairs reports that between seven and eight percent of all adults will experience PTS “at some point in their lives.”
Veterans obviously have a much higher probability of having experienced an event that could potentially lead to PTS than the average American. But that doesn’t mean that every veteran develops it, or that it is debilitating, or that it lasts forever.
The vast majority of veterans do not develop any symptoms of PTS, which include irritability, difficulty sleeping, detachment, intrusive thoughts, and being “easily startled.” The VA estimates that for veterans of the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, between 11 and 20 percent will have PTS “in a given year.”
That qualifier is important, because even though the vast majority of veterans will never develop it, PTS does not mean a veteran is scarred for life, or that they’re a powder keg ready to explode at any moment.
Despite its problems, the VA is very good at some things
It’s a popular sport among veterans, and the general public for that matter, to criticize the Department of Veterans Affairs. Stories of delays in claims processing, secret waiting lists for care, tragic misdiagnoses, and general bureaucratic ineptitude and laziness have plagued the organization for years.Back in 2015, a study from the Pew Research center found that among the general population, the VA was the least trusted government agency.
With an approval rating of only 39 percent, it scored even worse that the Internal Revenue Service, of which 42 percent had a favorable opinion. But there are some things the VA does very well, and treating PTS is one of them.
It is possible, even likely, for a veteran to develop PTS and recover. The trauma services specialists in the VA employ cognitive behavioral therapy, which challenges a patient to confront the way they think about the event that precipitated their PTS. A good CBT therapist can help a patient overcome their negative reactions to their experiences, first to recover from a triggering event, and later, to avoid reacting to the trigger at all.
So just because a veteran has a better chance than the average person to develop PTS, the vast majority won’t. And of those who do, the overwhelming majority recover. Rest easy, recruiters and hiring managers. Veterans are not an accident looking for a place to happen.
