America’s Veterans Fighting New War On Home Soil: Combating Drug Addiction

Introduction:

When Peaky Blinders first aired on Netflix a few years ago, it certainly opened up the road to the reality of war. It’s been more than a century since the First World War, but the impact of the same has stayed deep. And when you look at the condition of soldiers in 2022, the feeling that nothing has changed sinks in deep.

The after-effects of war are not just societal and economic, it is deeply personal, especially for the ones on the battlefront. Yes, you were home keeping up with war updates, praying but the ones who are actually fighting on the battlefront? The impacts of war on soldiers have always been deep, and have continued since time immemorial.

So without wasting any further time, let’s dive into the intricacies of war, war veterans, and the complex relationship soldiers have shared with drugs for a long, long time. Keep reading to find out more on the same.

War Veterans And Their Complex Relationship With Drugs:

For the last century or so, wars have greatly shaped the modern world, both economically and geographically. Most people will tell you it was all for the better, though many might also point out that the loss of innocent lives was perhaps a devastating consequence. But was death the only devastating consequence of war?

What about the young soldiers who returned from the war alive? What about the trauma of it all? There’s perhaps no one out there who has never heard about the term PTSD or post-traumatic stress disorder. In this context, two points become equally relevant,

1. The Lost Generation
2. Drugs as a coping mechanism

The Lost Generation:

The lost generation is a term strictly used for defining the generation who lost their childhood during the First World War. When the war started, this generation was in their childhood or early adolescence, but by the end of the war they had grown up. So this generation came to be known as the Lost Generation in the 1920s.

A generation of lost youth, these people glorified alcohol and substance as a way of life. From using drugs to create art to using the same for recreational purposes, the lost generation did not care about the consequences. To make matters worse, it was also the time when the United States was undergoing Prohibition.

In this context, it should also be remembered that this generation also actually went to war, and naturally, we’re all undergoing a difficult time in their lives. While many of their peers and close ones had perished in front of their eyes, the others came back half dead. This disillusioned generation kept wondering what was the point of it all?

Drugs As A Coping Mechanism:

A disillusioned generation of soldiers, only half alive was all that the two Great Wars of the time could give back. These soldiers were not just disillusioned, but they were angry – angry that unreal idealism and unnecessary glorification had convinced them to fight a war, but for what? Patriotism could only take them to the battlefields but they weren’t prepared to deal with what came next.

“Dim through the misty panes and thick green light,
As under a green sea, I saw him drowning.
In all my dreams before my helpless sight,
He plunges at me, guttering, choking, drowning.”

In fact, drugs were their only solution, once they came back home from war. Real life seemed unreal and there are so many accounts of nightmares, paranoia, and anxiety – so how did these soldiers deal with so much trouble? The solution was simple. Drugs! This is where the complex relationship with drugs began, for war veterans.

The only solution at the present is checking out prescription drugs treatment by Gallus Detox!

PTSD: The Recurring Trauma Nobody Was Prepared For!

Now that you have a fair idea about what were the two basic effects of war and continue to be, the next vital point that made things even more complex was the lifelong curse of Post-traumatic stress disorder or PTSD. So what exactly is PTSD?

Let’s find out…shall we?

PTSD is a kind of mental health condition triggered by some sort of a traumatic and terrifying event. The person suffering from the same either has to witness or experience the same. Symptoms might influence nightmares, flashbacks, and even severe anxiety to an extent where you can’t stop thinking about the event.

There are several signs of PTSD, and those signs are as follows,

• Any life-threatening or traumatic event that’s unforgettable
• Internalized reminders of the same traumatic event
• Altered state of anxiety
• Changes in thinking or mood
• Avoiding external reminders of the same

Since no one was prepared for that recurring drama, it was only a matter of time before all war veterans began to depend more and more on the use of drugs. What began as a medical experiment to deal with pain soon became a way of life for recreational uses. And once the journey began, there was no end to it.

“His groping dreams with grinding claws and fangs.
But someone was beside him; soon he lay
Shuddering because that evil thing had passed.
And death, who’d stepped toward him, paused and stared.”

War Veterans And Combating Drug Addiction!

We are now living in 2022 and there is nothing that has changed in the past 100 years when it comes to war, veterans, and drugs. Drugs are a coping mechanism for veterans even today, and the complex relationship continues to be of utmost importance. Are veterans doing anything to make a change? Not really!

“Rain—he could hear it rustling through the dark;
Fragrance and passionless music woven as one;
Warm rain on drooping roses; pattering showers
That soak the woods; not the harsh rain that sweeps
Behind the thunder, but a trickling peace,
Gently and slowly washing life away.”

Wars have never done anyone any good – the faster you understand that, the better! But you can always help out the ones who need it and recovering addicts always need help. Don’t forget to let us know in the comments below, your thoughts on the same.