I’ve just finished watching a film on one of the minor TV channels. The last scene saw troops returning from operational service to a hero’s welcome. A band playing, friends and relatives in the grand stand, the full works. This was returning from war Hollywood-style.
The reality can be very different.
Returning from an environment where you are so scared every minute of every day. The only thing that scares you more than the enemy, is admitting your fears to your colleagues. Those in your platoon, unit or squadron.
How many struggle on their return from operational theatres of war, of all kinds? Unable to communicate what they have seen or worse, smelt. The daytime flashbacks, the nighttimes terrors. Unable to maintain or form meaningful relationships. Those who suffer rarely ask for help. They form protective shields around their private lives, which become, very private in the extreme.
Only today, the
BBC reported how the government were failing the troops. Yet many more will go unreported, until their problems build up to such a level they become newsworthy.
Alasdair's Blog
Loading