Sunday 1 February 2009

The long battles of Britain's warriors










An article in today's Observer describes how some veterans, traumatised by their experiences in conflicts around the world, have been able to start reconstructing their lives thanks to the alternative therapies provided by the Warrior Programme. This four-day Programme uses t'ai chi, meditation and Hawaiian "forgiveness" therapy to help veterans suffering from PTSD to begin to heal themselves and find a degree of peace.
What these guys experienced when serving their country was shattering. As is usual with PTSD, the psychological repercussions of these experiences did not surface until several years after they had left the Services. Unfortunately, while the Army has well-established support mechanisms for helping veterans during their transition to civilian lives, its horizon does not stretch to helping those in trouble many years later.
It is left to organisations and charities like the Warrior Programme and Combat Stress to pick up the pieces of these shattered lives and to meet the obligations which we owe.

The Observer: Once were warriors
The Warrior Programme