This is a study of the effects of the Gulf War regarding posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD)on 12 male members of armed services reserve groups. Because recent wars have seen reserve combat troops activated rather than drafted, combat troops have been redeployed 2 to 4 times to Iraq and Afghanistan, ensuring an increase in occurrences of psychological trauma. According to AMA findings, 1 in 3 returning soldiers requires some form of mental health treatment. Combat trauma occurs in myriad forms among a wide distribution of males and females, depending upon several variables. Many types of...

Since 1990, U.S. Veterans' centers have treated more than 1.6 million PTSD-affected men and women, including an estimated 100,000 from the Gulf War and an untallied total from the Iraq and Afghanistan fronts. The number also includes World War II veterans, because PTSD does not fade easily. Sufferers may experience the traumatic events in flashbacks that may seem as real as when they first occurred. Using firsthand accounts, the authors offer insights into the realities of PTSD and combat trauma, and how symptoms may pervade even the most mundane of daily activities and cause sufferers to...