Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) has become a major problem for soldiers serving in the United States Armed Forces since the start of the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan. PTSD cases have increased up to 400% and the condition is difficult to treat. Soldiers develop PTSD due to the brutality of combat including traumatic events, multiple deployments with little rest, and guerilla warfare tactics used by enemies. PTSD severely impacts veterans' lives through nightmares, anxiety, and an increased likelihood of violent crimes or suicide. While medications are prescribed, they are often ineffective or cause other issues. More research is needed to find better treatments for veterans suffering from PTSD.

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Adam Miles
Mrs. Lester
Hon World Lit
19 April 2012
Shaping Sheet
Introduction
Fact Statement: Post Traumatic Stress Disorder, or PTSD, has become a major problem
for the soldiers serving in the United States Armed Forces. Since the start of the wars in
Iraq and Afghanistan, the number of PTSD cases have drastically increased; up to 400%
in some cases.
Claim Statement: The Veterans Administration is trying to help our veterans recover.
There are also many charities and other facilities that are helpful to veterans. However,
more needs to be done to prevent PTSD from occurring in combat and researchers need
to find a more dependable and successful treatment to give to our veterans.
Thesis Sentence: It is essential that the society of the United States understand the nature
of this epidemic so that it can help veterans adapt to civilian life.
Research Question 1 How do soldiers develop PTSD?
Paragraph 1
Topic sentence: PTSD is a disorder that affects the mental state of many of the veterans
that return from the wars in the Middle East:
concrete detail: Before learning about the available treatment for this disease, one
ought to know how the disease is defined.

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commentary sentences: According to the American Psychological
Association, PTSD, or post-traumatic stress disorder, is defined as an
anxiety problem that develops in some people after extremely traumatic
events, such as combat, crime, an accident or natural disaster. People with
PTSD may relive the event via intrusive memories, flashbacks and
nightmares; avoid anything that reminds them of the trauma; and have
anxious feelings they didn’t have before that are so intense their lives are
disrupted.
concrete detail: PTSD has become a major problem in the modern wars.
commentary sentence (2): Every year, more soldiers develop PTSD than
the year before. Some statistics claim that there has been up to a 400
percent increase in PTSD cases in soldiers in the recent years.
concrete detail: In sheer numbers, there have been 236,000 cases of PTSD out of
500,000 surveyed soldiers in one study.
commentary sentence (2): These soldiers have been fighting since the
beginning of the wars. According to this survey, almost fifty percent of the
soldiers that have fought since the beginning of the war have developed
PTSD.
Wrap-up Sentence: PTSD has become a major problem in the army, and is most likely
caused by the brutality of today’s wars.
Paragraph 2
Topic Sentence: The veterans of the US military have developed PTSD because of the
type of combat that is seen in today’s wars.

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concrete detail: Fighting styles used by the enemies of the US military create a
high stress environment. As an army report puts it, “fighting insurgents and
terrorists in Afghanistan and Iraq has been a nearly nonstop exercise in patrols,
raids and firefights with no real battle lines. Even at a forward operating base,
soldiers can be hit by a rocket, a suicide bomber or an Afghan who turns and
starts shooting Americans.”
commentary sentence (2): Due to the fear of all of these tactics, soldiers
are constantly under stress. Constant stress along with stressful events can
lead to PTSD development.
concrete detail: Another cause of PTSD is redeployment. Take Sgt. Bales for
example, the soldier who went on a killing spree supposedly due to PTSD. He had
served three yearlong deployments in Iraq, and had witnessed some heavy
firefights.
commentary sentence (2): This is the same for many soldiers. The
soldiers’ minds cannot endure traumatic events. Logically, the more
chances a person has to encounter a traumatic event that can cause PTSD,
the more likely he is to develop this mental disease.
concrete detail: A third reason for the development is the little time for recovery
during service. Some soldiers, such as Eric Fowler, felt like they were always on
fighting. He said, “We had 24/7 guard duty and we usually had 30-hour shifts.”
commentary sentence (2): This duty was usually spent in a Humvee, and
the time for rest in between was even shorter. Soldiers most likely took a

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major blow to their mental state due to the limited amount of rest time that
they received.
Wrap-up Sentence: The horrible sights that soldiers see during war is the cause for PTSD.
When these soldiers return home, PTSD can have a major effect on their lives.
Paragraph 3
Topic sentence: Whether it is merely everyday life or violent crimes directed at others or
even themselves, PTSD severely affects soldiers that return home to the United States.
concrete detail: The first way that PTSD affects veterans is in their civilian lives.
One veteran, who did not wish to have his full name disclosed, said, “I was
always having nightmares at night, and certain things trigger it: just, loud noises,
or, I don’t like people behind me a lot of the time, or stuff like that. I don’t like
malls with a lot of people in it. I hate it.”
commentary sentence (2): This veteran cannot even enjoy sleeping at night
or going to a mall. He has obviously been so mentally wounded by the war
that everyday life becomes difficult. The sad thing is that he is so ashamed
about this that he would not give his full name.
concrete detail: Soldiers with PTSD are more likely to commit violent crimes
upon returning to civilian life. An example of this is veteran Nelson Hopkins Sr.
Hopkins was just recently convicted of armed robbery and earlier convicted of
second degree robbery. He has sought out treatment for his PTSD with little
success.
commentary sentence (2): Hopkins is just one of the many veterans with
PTSD who has committed violent crimes because of it. These crimes span

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from the robberies committed by veterans like Hopkins to murders in
some cases.
concrete detail: While some of the veterans suffering from PTSD use violence
against others, others show violence towards themselves. An army report that
there were 115 suicides directly related to PTSD in just one year during the Iraq
and Afghanistan Wars.
commentary sentence (2): These veterans are so troubled by their mental
state that they feel like the only way to end it is to kill themselves. More
should be done to prevent veterans from reaching this point.
Wrap-up Sentence: This condition obviously affects soldiers’ lives greatly. In an effort to
help these veterans, many psychologists prescribe medicine to the veterans.
Research Question 2: Why is this condition so difficult to treat?
Paragraph 1
Topic Sentence: The medicine that is used to treat PTSD in soldiers does not work on the
scale that it should for the United States’ mentally wounded warriors.
concrete detail: Most veterans who return home are given antidepressants,
sleeping pills, or anxiety medicines to help them cope with their PTSD.
commentary sentence (2): These medicines help some soldiers with their
symptoms. However, these medicines do not prevent the symptoms from
recurring.
concrete detail: A large number of the medications used to treat PTSD patients are
opiate based. This medication has not shown to cure soldiers of PTSD. Also,
when combined with other medication, these pills can cause suicide attempts.

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commentary sentence (2): The last thing that our veterans should be
receiving is a medicine that can possibly cause suicide. These medications
have not shown enough success to be used.
concrete detail: A second problem that can be caused by medication is simply
taking too much of it. One soldier, Spc. Victor Lewis, accused his battalion at Fort
Bragg of overmedicating soldiers.
commentary sentence (2): Overmedication does not improve a patient’s
condition. In fact, it can cause problems in the recovery process.
Wrap-up Sentence: There are a number of problems with the medication used to treat
veterans, but there are still problems left for veterans to face.
Paragraph 2: Facilities
Topic Sentence: A common problem that soldiers with PTSD face is receiving treatment
from a good facility.
concrete detail: A problem among many treatment centers and army bases is
understaffing. The army standard ratio of mental health doctors to patients is one
to fifty. However, some military bases as few as to 1 doctor to 265 patients.
commentary sentence (2): This is a major problem for soldiers with PTSD.
Without enough psychiatrists, these centers cannot do an effective job in
treating each individual case.
concrete detail: Active duty soldiers with PTSD face yet another problem. Army
bases continue to deploy and use these soldiers even when they have developed
PTSD. Of the 76,176 soldiers diagnosed with PTSD between 2000 and 2011,
65,236 of them were at some stage in their deployment.

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commentary sentence (2): One might wonder why these soldiers were not
relieved of duty. The answer is most likely because the military needs all
the people it can get to serve.
concrete detail: Another possible challenge is the chance of a misdiagnosis. At
Fort Bragg Army Base, there have been alleged misdiagnosis in an attempt to
deny veterans military healthcare.
commentary sentence (2): This was most likely done in an attempt to save
money. However, the veterans who have been misdiagnosed are most
likely suffering greatly due to it.
Wrap-up Sentence: The facilities that are used to treat soldiers have problems that can
slow recovery, but there are still more problems for our veterans.
Paragraph 3
Topic sentence: Remaining problems for veterans with PTSD exist.
concrete detail: One problem exists in the initial diagnosis. Up to 80 percent of
PTSD cases exist with another psychiatric disorder.
commentary sentence (2): The other disorder can mask PTSD, which
makes it harder to see the symptoms. This can make diagnosing PTSD
very difficult.
concrete detail: Symptoms of PTSD can also recur when triggered. For instance,
many veterans with PTSD can have flashbacks if they hear a loud noise, or if
someone stands too close behind them.

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commentary sentence (2): These flashbacks are the very problem that
doctors are trying to cure. The triggers stunt the recovery of the veteran
with PTSD.
concrete detail: One of the biggest problems for veterans with PTSD is that they
never sought treatment to begin with.
commentary sentence (2): Many veterans do not want this help because
they see it as a sign of weakness. Others feel that treatment will not help
them, and others do not understand that they have PTSD.
Wrap-up Sentence: Obviously, there are many problem that face veterans with, but there
are also many things that are being done to help these veterans.
Research Question 3: What is being done to cure soldiers with PTSD?
Paragraph 1
Topic Sentence: The military and Veterans Administration
concrete detail: The Army does want to find a cure. Since 2007, the Army has
invested $710 million in research.
commentary sentence (2): This shows that the US Army is concerned
about this problem. Hopefully, this large amount of money will find a
better treatment for PTSD.
concrete detail: The Veterans Administration offers many services to veterans
suffering from PTSD. These services include, but are not limited to: One-to-one
mental health assessment and testing, medicines, One-to-one psychotherapy and
also family therapy, and group therapy.

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commentary sentence (2): Many of these services help veterans to cope
with their PTSD. Veterans who use these services have a chance of living
a normal life.
concrete detail: For patients with more serious PTSD, the Veterans
Administration also offer several other services. These are specialized treatments
for cases that are not cured with basic treatment. Treatments of this type range
from substance abuse and women’s treatment to 90 day hospitalization.
commentary sentence (2): One can see that the Veterans Administration
does not give up on veterans whose PTSD is not cured with basic
treatment. It is good that the men and women in the Veterans
Administration care this much about our veterans.
Wrap-up Sentence: The army and veterans administration want to fix this problem, but so
do other organizations.
Paragraph 2
Topic Sentence: There are also several options other than the treatment offered by the
Veterans Administration and Army.
concrete detail: One of these options is to take part in clinical trials offered by
universities across the nation. An example of this is the University of Pittsburgh.
The University of Pittsburgh has an extensive psychiatric program that deals with
PTSD victims regularly.
commentary sentence (2): Many of these programs ask for volunteers for
trials. If basic treatment has failed veterans, they ought to consider
volunteering for research trials.

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concrete detail: Several research centers are researching a medication that would
enhance the brain’s ability to change during psychotherapy.
commentary sentence (2): This would be incredibly helpful because it
would allow the brain to change easier. Doctors would then be able to
change the veterans’ brain in a way that would help cure them of their
PTSD.
concrete detail: Another form of treatment for veterans is merely discussing their
condition with other veterans. These are called group therapy sessions.
commentary sentence (2): Many veterans find these sessions helpful
because they help to ease the pain of their traumatic memories. Veterans
cannot forget these memories, but they can come to view them differently,
which would help them live a better life.
Wrap-up Sentence: There are many organizations outside of the veterans administration
and army that dedicate much of their time to helping veterans, and there are also civilian
and charity organizations that can help.
Paragraph 3:
Topic Sentence: Society as a whole in America needs to help integrate its veterans back
into the normal life that they deserve.
concrete detail: There are many facilities across America to help veterans
suffering from PTSD, Traumatic Brain Injury, and other war related problems. An
example of this is Shepherd's Heart Veterans Home, an Uptown ministry for
homeless veterans that offers rooms, food, counseling and training as well as
weekly church services.

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commentary sentence (2): Places like these can help veterans adjust to
normal life. Several of the veterans that stayed in this veteran’s home
could not hold a job, keep a house, or have a good relationship. After
staying here, these veterans were able to attain most of these things.
concrete detail: Jack Grate, a judge that has had to deal with a PTSD related
crime, said that, “Society does not have time for him to get solved.”
commentary sentence (2): What Grates is saying is that society did not
stop to help the veterans suffering from PTSD. Society should take the
time to help the veterans that are struggling to make it in civilian life.
concrete detail: The general public can do things to help veterans as well. One of
the most helpful things that the public can do is advocate for them to get resources
that they need.
commentary sentence (2): The United States’ veterans need all the help
that they can get. The people of America sacrificed many things in other
wars, such rationing food and supplies. In this war, the citizens of the
United States need to help soldiers get housing, treatment, work,
education, and anything else that they may need to help them adjust to
civilian life.
Conclusion: The veterans returning from the modern day wars need the help of civilians. The
general public does not know how Post Traumatic Stress Disorder affects returning warriors.
United States citizens need to understand what these men and women are going through. It is the
citizen's’ responsibility to help veterans return to normal life. These men and women risked their
lives to protect their citizens; and, in return, have suffered psychologically. The citizens, who

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live a protected and peaceful life, owe it to these young men and women to help them achieve
the same lifestyle.