Tag: army

Blogishness, ptsd, Self Improvement / Healthy Living, Self Improvement / Healthy Living, Uncategorized

Why All Soldiers Need To Be Stoic Philosophers

Michael Anthony

soldiers paying respect to fallen friend

Many people entering the military may feel influenced by people around them. They get encouraged to undertake a guise of being ‘mentally tough,’ so they can succeed. Eventually, they learn that acting tough isn’t enough to successfully cope with the things that may occur around them.

A lot of soldiers today underestimate the importance of mental preparation for handing experiences in the military. However, some have suggested that the U.S. Military should start teaching the principles of stoicism to trainees. While a number of soldiers do get exposed to stoic principles from the beginning, others don’t learn what stoic philosophy can do for them as people.

So, why should today’s soldiers believe in a relatively unconventional belief system? As we’ve explained in other articles, stoicism has the potential to be incredibly powerful to a group of soldiers. In the most basic terms, stoicism teaches people that ‘whatever happens has happened as a result of forces they can’t control, and has no real effect on their character.’

Soldiers, especially those who enter the military unprepared, can learn how to accept what happens to them if they adopt a stoic mindset. Stoic philosophy can instills that mindset within people. It inherently encourages people to respond without allowing external forces to influence their true character.

Why Modern Stoic Philosophers Suggest Stoicism for Coping with War

Until the 20th century, little was known about how war affected soldiers on a psychological level. Progress in mental health research helped mental health professionals discover the high occurrence of post traumatic stress disorder in soldiers. Following the Vietnam War, medical researchers began aggressively studying the psychological effects of war on people who have served in the various wars of the past, including those that still wage today.

PTSD causes people to develop what’s known as ‘traumatic functioning.’ This causes them to remain in a situation where they’re stuck acting out negative behaviors that prevents them from being their true character. People with PTSD often feel stuck in these ‘ways’ and feel powerless about getting out.

Soldiers who aren’t adequately prepared for their time in the military are prone to developing some type of traumatic functioning, which many don’t recognize as disordered thinking in any way. Stoicism, on the other hand, can help people break away from the cycle, helping them flourish as human beings again.

Why All Soldiers Need To Be Stoic Philosophers

In a previous article, we touched upon how stoicism can help soldiers accept their humanity. Many don’t know how to cope with being sent to war, especially if they’re deployed faster than they can take in the situation. A lot of soldiers in this situation choose to respond with negative feelings, usually fear and resentment. Stoicism, however, can help soldiers accept the inevitable. Accepting the inevitable is the most sobering thing about being human: being unable to influence outside forces, but being able to accept that what happens, happens.

Stoic philosophers also stress another important aspect of stoicism: the way people objectively act against nature determines their character. The idea is that people, while influenced by external forces, can choose to act objectively to preserve their character. What happens to us, whether affects us mentally or physically, doesn’t have any real bearing on our true character.

Soldiers who have lived through tough experiences can use stoicism to regain their confidence in life. The underlying principle of acceptance in stoicism plays a large role in helping soldiers to cope with traumatic experiences over time, eventually becoming stronger as a person and as a member of society.

Why Soldiers Need Stoicism Today

Stoicism, as we’ve mentioned throughout the article, can help soldiers become mentally resilient and accept the inevitability of life. The principles bought forth in this philosophy have played a long term role in not only the mindsets of war veterans, but the military as a whole.

Some would say that stoicism is the military’s unofficial philosophy. According to various records, texts and studies, that sentiment is very much true. Nancy Sherman’s The Stoic Warrior notably recollected how ‘stoicism is a driving force behind the military’s prevailing mindset, particularly due to its focus on self control, inner strength and endurance.’

In tough situations, soldiers may become isolated, imprisoned or abandoned without contact with others. The desolation and hopelessness of such situations often cause people to develop mental trauma—they’re left alone, captive with their negative thoughts, believing that they’re the one responsible for such an inevitability.

Stoic philosophers, however, argue that the principles of stoicism – self control, inner strength and endurance – helps soldiers positively accept and cope while stuck in a mentally and/or physically traumatizing situation. Many soldiers, even if they don’t know about stoicism, undertake such a mindset in order to survive.

Survival—it’s a sentiment that’s shared among many soldiers. Stoic philosophy has the potential to help soldiers cope with what happens to them while they’re enlisted. Not only can they develop the mental resilience and self control they need to survive, but it can also help them get through a world where they might think they don’t have help.

Civilianized: A Young Veteran’s Memoir

In this dark humored War Memoir, Iraq veteran Michael Anthony discusses his return from war and how he defeated his PTSD. Civilianized is a must read for any veteran, or anyone who knows a veteran, who has returned from war and suffered through Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD).

dark humored military memoir“An intense memoir.” -Kirkus

“I wont soon forget this book.” -Mary Roach

“A must read.” -Colby Buzzell

“[S]mart and mordantly funny.” –Milwaukee Journal Sentinel

“Anthony delivers a dose of reality that can awaken the mind…” Bookreporter

Order your copy of Civilianized: A Young Veteran’s Memoir .

Picture: Flickr/The National Guard

Blogishness, ptsd, Self Improvement / Healthy Living, Self Improvement / Healthy Living

How Stoic Philosophy Can Help Make Soldiers More Mentally Tough

Michael Anthony

mentally tough soldiers

Originally an ancient Greek school of philosophy, originally founded in Athens by Zeno of Citium, stoicism teaches that virtue (the highest good) is principally supported by knowledge and that the wise consonantly live with divine Reason ruling nature. Those who follow Stoicism also remain indifferent to the fluctuations of fortune, pleasure and pain.

In the modern world, however, stoicism notably helps people cope with emotional and physical trauma, mainly through teaching them how to accept the inevitable, or what has happened, without reacting in a way ruled by their emotions.

When you break it down like that, stoicism can play a powerful role as a practical life guide. Stoicism has many applications for people who work in all sorts of industries, whether they need to become more ‘business minded’ or more motivated than they currently are. Stoicism also plays a powerful role in educating today’s soldiers about how to accept the inevitable. Not only that, stoic philosophy plays a large role in helping people become mentally tough.

To Become Mentally Tough ~ What Is Mental Toughness?

Becoming mentally tough involves more than ‘ironing out’ all of your emotions or becoming completely emotionally and nonreactive.

Mental toughness is a bevy of attributes that define how a person perseveres through various difficult circumstances, eventually emerging without breaking their character or spirit. Various professional industries essentially define mental toughness as the state of mind that ‘allows a person to attain a victory amid uncontrollable circumstances,’ which isn’t entirely wrong. In that context, however, mental toughness is defined as something to utilize in a competition and not something you can utilize on a day to day basis.

Mental toughness plays an interesting role in the U.S. Military. People, usually civilians, often associate the military with images of toughness, resilience or a type of ‘never give up’ attitude. But people also hold another common attitude toward the military: many people don’t understand how serving in the military affects the men and women there. Mental toughness isn’t something that people can ‘turn on and off.’ It’s also not a facade or a mask of sorts. It’s a mindset that people can develop over time, if they allow themselves to.

Being mentally tough, in human terms, is more about perseverance and survival. If you develop your mental toughness, you’ll eventually become more emotionally resilient and be able to push harder, further toward the things you might want to accomplish. Mental toughness also prepares us to cope with ‘whatever life throws toward us,’ helping us recover from situations that could place us in mental turmoil.

The principles of stoicism revolve around helping people understand and accept the inevitable, which allows them to maintain a strong character while remaining harmonious with nature. Becoming mentally tough can actually help people, particularly soldiers, attain this.

Stoicism and Becoming Mentally Tough ~ Four Policies To Uphold?

A startling number of soldiers, in and out of the military, eventually develop post traumatic stress disorder. This disorder manifests in people in very different ways, but it results in the same effect: PTSD inhibits how people adopt healthy behavioral patterns, ultimately affecting how they function as people. Stoicism has the potential to help those afflicted with PTSD unlearn harmful habits and become more mentally tough.

Take the following example from a video showing how the U.S. Navy Seals help trainees learn how to fight fear:

Four specific cognitive behavioral techniques, which we’ll call policies, can help military trainees uphold a ‘stoic mindset’ and become prepared for their duties.

These policies are:

Goal Setting: This is believed to stimulate the brain’s frontal lobes, where the brain processes planning and reasoning. Concentrating on a specific goal helps the brain rein in the chaotic nature of our thoughts, while also having the effect of ‘cooling off’ the brain’s emotional center.

Mental Rehearsal: Visualization, or mental rehearsal, is the act of running an activity through your mind repeatedly. When you run through the act in ‘real life,’ it’ll come to you naturally, since you rehearsed it in your mind. By practicing something in your mind, you’re actually reducing the severity of the stress reaction you may have once you do that particular thing.

Self Talk: Most people speak to themselves, but too many people tend to relay negative thoughts and words to their minds. Self talk helps focus your thoughts, so that most of these personal thoughts and words are positive. You want to replace the thoughts that stimulate the frontal lobe with positive thoughts, potentially overriding the fear signal from the brain’s emotional core.

Arousal Control: Breathing techniques help people, especially trainees, maintain control in terse situations. Slow, controlled breathing can soothe the effects of panic, stopping its negative after effects from overtaking the body. Exhaling slowly also mimics the body’s relaxation process, helping bring more oxygen to the brain to bolster performance.

We previously mentioned that stoicism teaches that ‘whatever happens has happened by way of forces they can’t control, and so it has no real bearing on your character.’ That holds true for people who enter the military, afraid and unsure if they’ll be able to handle the mental and physical consequences. But as long as they’re able to follow the aforementioned four policies, they’ll be able to eventually become more mentally tough.

Picture: Flickr/DVIDSHUB

Best Of, Blogishness, ptsd, Self Improvement / Healthy Living

Why The U.S. Army Should Teach Stoic Philosophy In Basic Training

Michael Anthony

US Army Basic Training Soldiers Should Be Taught Stoic Philosophy

A lot of soldiers today underestimate the importance of adequate mental preparation for the ordeal ahead of them. In order to successfully mentally prepare people who will undergo Basic Training and graduate into the military, some suggest that the U.S. Army should start teaching the principles of stoicism during Basic Training.

Why should the nation’s military change already established standards to teach recruits a relatively unconventional belief system? Stoicism has the potential to be powerful to a group of soldiers. It can teach them how to cope with what happens around them when they’re on duty.

Stoicism also helps them hold onto their true character, while facing harrowing situations, when away from what’s familiar to them. Not only that, stoicism is essentially for helping those enlisted to keep flourishing as a human being in light of traumatic experiences.

What is Stoicism?

Stoicism, in the modern world, can essentially help people cope with emotional and physical trauma without responding to such situations in a highly reactive way. It helps people accept the inevitable, or what has happened, without reacting in a way that’s ruled by their emotions. The idea is that ‘whatever happens has happened by means of forces they can’t control, and it has no real bearing on their character.’

In this way, stoicism acts as a ‘practical guide for life.’ While it helps teach people how to approach situations deftly, it also encourages people to become more mentally tough. The lessons people can learn from stoic philosophy makes it a natural philosophy for the currently enlisted to utilize for coping with traumatic experiences.

Stoicism and How To Cope

The principles of stoic philosophy can help the enlisted learn how to cope with both physical and mental trauma, especially since some may develop conditions like post traumatic stress disorder as a result of entreating such trauma.

Learning how to flourish as a human being is the main reason why stoicism may work within the context of the U.S. Army’s Basic Training. As previously mentioned, Stoicism maintains that the main goal of life is to flourish.

To flourish as a human being is to:

  • To live in continued excellence.
  • To live happily.
  • To live with a peace of mind.
  • To live as a strong character.
  • To live with enthusiasm for life.

Establishing such a mindset in soldiers from the start can help them avoid developing negative behavioral patterns that may directly contribute to the develop of post traumatic stress disorder and other mental disorders. How soldiers can maintain their true character, as they remain Stoic, also plays a role in helping them flourish.

Stoicism and Maintaining True Character

Stoicism states that people can become harmonious once again with nature, as long as they can return to their true character. Character is our ability to distinguish good from evil, while also acting upon our interpretation of nature.

How people weave themselves through nature determines their character, provided they act internally based on how they perceive situations. As a character, it’s essentially our duty to react objectively—what happens around us ultimately doesn’t influence our true character. Naturally, Stoicism teaches that external elements don’t help people flourish; people can, however, use those elements to build character if they choose.

In other words, soldiers can use stoicism to teach them that what happens around them doesn’t bear down on their character. Whatever happens around them – whether in Basic Training or out on the field – has only occurred by the means of forces they can’t control. Therefore, such forces have no real bearing on their character.

By accepting that such forces don’t bear down on their character, soldiers can essentially learn how to cope with potentially traumatic experiences. This helps keep their character harmonious with nature, allowing them to live a more fulfilled life, even after their time enlisted in the Army.

Stoicism and Being Human

Many famous sayings ultimately boil down to ‘war changes people.’ Soldiers, especially those headed off to a war field, often don’t know how to cope with being sent in such a harrowing situation. They respond to their situation by harboring feelings of fear, resentment and all sorts of negative feelings.

A soldier who accepts their duty in light of what’s around them has learned to accept the inevitable. By accepting the inevitable, a soldier can maintain a peace of mind and their character while responding to their duties of war. Teaching stoicism early into a soldier’s training can help them accept the inevitability of being human: being unable to influence what happens around us, but able to accept the inevitability of it all. As humans, we hold little influence over external forces. That’s why, as humans, we can’t get too caught up in trying to change what happened, because we can’t. We can, however, learn to accept what happened.

While the U.S. Army likely isn’t going to change their training regime any time soon, the soon-to-be enlisted should learn more about Stoicism. Undertaking enlistment in the Army can be daunting to the psyche and the body, but if we can learn to accept what happens, that’s what keeps us harmonious as humans.

Picture: Flickr/West Point – The U.S. Military Academy

Politics / News, Politics / News

6 Interesting Facts about the Iraq War

Michael Anthony

interesting iraq war factsInteresting Facts about the Iraq War

(for the average reader)

 While many people hear about the “War on Terror” as a catch phrase thrown around on propaganda filled, politically biased, lie-filled news stations most people couldn’t even point to the country in question. A lot of misinformation is thrown around in regards to the Iraq War either for sensationalistic purposes in an attempt to please corporate sponsors with better ratings or for politically motivated agendas. In reality a lot of people have no real idea why the war was fought, who against (IE: who’s doing the actual fighting), or in some cases where it all is even taking place. There is a lot of information about the Iraq War beyond what can be found in conventional sources.

Fact #1. Many of the “terrorists” are young, well-educated college students (and some aren’t even “terrorists,” they’re just paid thugs)

The general depiction of middle-eastern terrorists is of the equivalent to what we in the United States would consider a redneck. Generally older, “gibberish” speaking, bearded suicide bombers. While movies like Team America, True Lies, or Iron Man don’t help this stereotype in all actuality most of the extremists are attending, or were enrolled in prominent universities. They are between the ages of 20 – 27, male, and often know multiple languages including English in some cases. Much like the radicals seen during the 60’s in the United States or the Occupy Wall Street movement of 2011. Additionally, the motives of these Iraqi fighters are not “death to America” as often is depicted but more out of a religious extremism also seen with certain factions of Christians in the United States. What sets these individuals apart from some of the more radical elements in the United States is nothing more than semantics more often than not. Furthermore, in our briefings before going to Iraq, we were informed that a lot of the fighters in Iraq and Afghanistan were just paid thugs. The terrorists/insurgents would go out and find impoverished people, maybe just a young man trying to feed his family, and the terrorists would offer him money to maybe place a bomb on a street, or fire a few mortars on an American base, etc. Even suicide bombers are not always “fanatics.” There have been many reports of terrorist groups, various people, and even entire countries, offering money, as high as 25,000, for anyone who will wear a suicide vest (the money would go to their family of course). This many seem ridiculous that someone would do it for the money, but in war-torn countries where the life expectancy is already lowered, and fighting is an everyday occurrence, the thought of being able to provide for your family can be and overriding feeling (and I’m sure there’s still a little religious fanaticism involved, but there’s a good bet that a lot of these people wouldn’t have worn the vests without money going to their families).

Fact #2. Believe it or not: the wars in Afghanistan and Iraq are two different things

While these two wars often get lumped together they are two separate conflicts. The war in Afghanistan was a result of the hostile actions taken against the United States by a militant group believed to have originated and was currently in control of Afghanistan: Al-Qaida. On the other hand, the war in Iraq occurred as a result of, then believed, the countries possession of weapons of mass destruction IE: chemical, biological, nuclear based weapons. While over time these two conflicts have merged into a universal conflict they did not have a singular theme at the time of the United States involvement

Fact #3. Believe it or not: Iraq and Afghanistan are not geographically connected, or even that similar

Much like the specific conflicts and their origins, many people consider the countries as one place or even geographically connected. This is far from the truth. Iraq and Afghanistan are over 1000 miles apart, separated by Iran. Additionally the cultures of both countries are vastly different. Iraq’s economy is almost entirely based on the oil industry that is responsible for almost 90% of the world’s oil. Afghanistan, on the other hand, is agrarian at best with the majority of Afghan citizens living below the poverty line (and a lot of profits actually come form poppy fields–in fact to keep tribal leaders happy, some U.S. military units were actually tasked with protecting the poppy fields from the Taliban). Afghanistan is far more similar to rural places in Africa than it is to Iraq.

 Fact #4. The actual Iraq War lasted a little over a year

Despite popular belief, the most recent Iraq War ended in 2006 with the death of Saddam Hussein–with many prominent American’s even declaring it over at that time. After Saddam’s death a new government was put in place, however, there has been constant infighting between the two dominate Islamic religions, Sunni and Shiite, for control of the country. Combine this with various actions on the part of smaller, more extremist groups vying for control. As a result of this chaos, the United States along with many other countries and international organizations have had to moderate the violence within the country. The ongoing struggle is a direct result of the conclusion of the war.

Fact #5. The whole country isn’t constantly in a state of Chaos

A lot of the pictures and videos we see coming from Iraq are of various bombings and shootings, etc. However, outside the city of Baghdad and a few specific locations the majority of the country is relaxed and living life like any other day. Similar to what you would see in the United States after a major natural disaster. While citizens in places near the coast of Florida can be seen trying to pick up the pieces after a hurricane, residents in unaffected areas of Florida or even other states go about their lives like they would normally. Most Iraqis get up, go to work, and come home, repeat just like we do.

Fact #6. The prominent threat is homemade bombs

We see a lot of gun fighting and such on TV and in movies related to the Iraq war but the major problem isn’t from one on one combat but from Improvised Explosive Devices (IEDs). These can range from a plastic jug of gasoline with a fuse to cell phone detonated explosives. The issue with these compared to standard gun fights are that the extremists using them do not have to be present when they go off or even been within trigger range in some cases. Much like landmines during WWII, these are often set it and forget it type of weapons that can result in casualties and fatalities for both the intended target and any unintended personnel. Additionally, since they can be made out of anything, finding and defusing these devices is akin to finding a needle in a hay stack–a needle that will explode if you don’t find it.

Picture: Flickr/The U.S. Army

Politics / News, Politics / News, ptsd, Self Improvement / Healthy Living, Uncategorized

Is PTSD Genetic? Can PTSD be passed onto my children?

Michael Anthony

ptsd uncle sam recruitment poster ptsdIs PTSD Genetic?

Can PTSD be passed onto my children?

Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) is a psychiatric ailment that affects many people around the world. This stress disorder can affect anyone and it is typically caused by uncontrollable or unpredictable traumatic events. In most cases, PTSD symptoms appear after several days or hours of certain event. However, there are times that it takes up to few months or weeks for the symptoms to manifest themselves. Common PTSD’s causes may be because of sudden death of loved ones, assault, car or plane crashes, rape, war, natural disasters, kidnap, childhood neglect, physical abuse and other traumatic events.

“Avoiding being reminded of the event, including becoming detached from friends and becoming emotionally withdrawn, is another sign of PTSD.”

But can we tell just by taking a simple blood test if we are predisposed genetically to PTSD? This question has been the biggest issue internationally. International researchers have found a genetic marker that is linked to PSTD in the blood samples of the conflict zone based Marines. This team of researchers is studying to figure out who is more resilient to PTSD, and who is more at risk for PTSD.

Women are more likely to develop this stress disorder than men. Signs tend to cluster into three main areas. One is when a person relives the event through vivid images and nightmares together with an extreme reaction like heart palpitations, uncontrollable shaking and chills. Avoiding being reminded of the event, including becoming detached from friends and becoming emotionally withdrawn, is another sign of PTSD. The last main signs of this disorder are when a person is hyper aroused, irritable, startled easily, and/or has difficulty concentrating and trouble sleeping.

The idea that your genes play a role in whether you develop this stress disorder has been a famous focus of frequent research. Scientists have actually discovered, in mice, the genes that regulate fear. The lack of a brain chemical that is regulating the fear (which is called peptide that releases gastrin), led to fear response that is greater among rodents. In another study, mice that do not have a protein that is necessary to form the so called “fear memories”, have less tendency of freezing up and willing to explore unfamiliar spaces (think of the cartoon Tom and Jerry, and how Jerry (the mouse) wasn’t afraid of Tom the cat. This could have, realistically, been because Jerry lacked a certain protein in his brain that would’ve told him to be afraid of Tom). This is important to note because many people believe that PTSD is an unnatural response, but PTSD can often be a natural response to a somewhat unnatural situation. The brain is almost wired to respond in such a way.

“It’s been said that a single person with PTSD infects/affects/effects up to seven individuals with symptoms.”

There are also studies on twins which show that heredity is accounting for about 30 percent of the differences responding to trauma. Identical twins are much more likely to develop this stress disorder than the fraternal twins. Another research has looked into the role of inherited mental disorders, brain differences or tendencies of addiction.

An unusual research avenue is the contribution of our immune systems to the development of the symptoms of PTSD or if it has also a big role in this development. Prior studies showed that people who have been diagnosed with PTSD as compared to individuals without PTSD suggest that their differences in their genes in relation to inflammation, plays a role.

Therefore, there is a tendency that PTSD can be acquired genetically, however, there is no positive result as researchers are still going on progress of having some clues as to what may predict resilience and risk.

One thing to keep in mind about PTSD, is that even though it may or may not be genetic, a father or mother can still pass on PTSD to their children, and loved ones, through proximity. It’s been said that a single person with PTSD infects/affects/effects up to seven individuals with symptoms. Think of it as the flu. A father gets sick with the flu: he’s lethargic, has a fever, diarrhea, and he’s nauseous. Several days pass and the father’s son gets sick. The son has all the same symptoms as his father, he’s lethargic, nauseous, has diarrhea, etc. Then, the next thing you know, the sister gets sick, the mother, and the whole house is laid up in bed. Now, take that same scenario and imagine a man with PTSD. He’s irritable, short-tempered, has trouble sleeping, is anxious, and is emotionally withdrawn. How long do you think it’ll be before his short-temper and irritability is passed along to his wife and children?

In a sense, it’s the old nature vs nurture debate. Are we predisposed to PTSD or brought up into it?

Picture: Flickr/Ilona Meagher

Best Of, Blackout Poetry, Blogishness, Blogishness, Politics / News, Politics / News, Uncategorized

Blackout Poetry: Combat Action Badge

Michael Anthony

Blackout Poetry Logo DesignThis poem/post will probably be a little more controversial than most Blackout poetry posts. That’s because it involves Combat Action Badges, and the current debate regarding them, and when/how/if/under what circumstances they should be awarded. My position on this is somewhat unique, though I know I’m not alone…

Blackout Poetry: Combat Action Badge

This article originally appeared in the Army Times and was over whether or not Combat Action Badge’s (CAB’s) should be retroactively awarded to soldiers.

“We don’t fight wars for awards.”

Here’s my take: Back when I was in the army, and serving in Iraq, I was awarded a CAB while serving in Mosul, Iraq. Now, at the time, CAB’s were a huge thing. Everyone wanted one. Some people wanted CAB’s so bad that they were even willing to lie to get them and “pretend,” as though they had been in a direct combat situation. It was a sad, sickening, spectacle. Several of my commanders lied about being in combat (and then backed up one another’s stories) just so they could get the coveted “Combat Action Badge.” This, ultimately, led myself and several fellow soldiers to come up with the saying “Never trust a soldier with a chest full of metal, unless the metal is shrapnel.” Lying was so prevalent that towards the end, the CAB, and several other awards, meant nothing to us.

People were trying so hard to get CAB’s that they were petitioning the Army, even back then, to change the regulations. Some soldiers wanted CAB’s for being around unexploded ordnance (I kid you not) others wanted unit-wide CAB’s since some of us had been in combat (that is actually too ridiculous for me to be able to explain in a blog post). And the coup de grace of all this is that at the end of my deployment, several fellow soldiers wanted me to lie about the events of an attack so that another soldier could be awarded a CAB. I refused, and the soldiers got upset with me, as though I was the asshole.

Anyway, if you can’t tell by now, I have no respect for soldiers, or anyone else, who feels the need to bitch, complain, and whine that they don’t have enough awards to pin on their chests.

We don’t fight wars for awards. Act like it!

 Poem Transcription:

Debate

Over

CABs

The Combat Action Badge

Was made to

Award Veterans

They want to be recognized

 For more military/war related blackout poetry click here.

To read more about the military experience and CAB’s check out the following book:

Best Of, Blackout Poetry, Blogishness, ptsd, Uncategorized

Blackout Poetry: Veteran Suicides

Michael Anthony

Blackout Poetry Logo WarIn case you’re not familiar with Blackout Poetry, Blackout Poetry is the act of creating poems by blacking out words that appear in newspaper articles (or books, but typically newspaper articles). I was inspired to give it a shot after being introduced to it by Austin Kleon. I’ve got a six month subscription to The Army Times and I’ll be experimenting with it throughout the next few months.

 —Blackout Poetry veteran suicides

This was an article that appeared in the April 13th 2015 edition of The Army Times. The article discussed veteran suicides across active duty and reserve/national guard soldiers. In 2014 suicides decreased for active duty soldiers but increased for reserve soldiers. With 22 veterans killing themselves every day in the United States (we’ve lost two to suicide from the unit I served with in Iraq) this is a serious issue that needs to be addressed. I tried to boil down the article into its major points and through the redaction process I came up with the poem pictures above (and transcribed below).

Suicides Up

Suicides confirmed

it was their own

hand.

Suicides Down

Service members

protect us

support them.

Crisis line, 800-273-8255

 For more military/war related blackout poetry click here.

To learn more about the war-time military experience check out the following book:

Best Of, Self Improvement / Healthy Living, Self Improvement / Healthy Living

PTSD: How to Prevent PTSD

Michael Anthony

Post-traumatic stress disorder or PTSD is a dangerous and debilitating mental condition caused by one’s exposure to traumatizing near-death experiences or seeing someone else’s. Aside from living a monastic or hermit lifestyle to avoid traumatizing experiences, there are other ways to prevent PTSD.

  • Resilience – One way to prevent PTSD is to develop one’s resilience preferably early from childhood. Some people do not get PTSD because of resilience factors. This can be a difficult task for parents to build strong character in their children but people with strong character have are resilient against PTSD.
  • Speaking – After experiencing something tragic or traumatizing, its best to contact friends and loved ones to discuss the event. This alleviates fears as well as strengthens one’s sense of security. This can sometimes lessen the impact of the traumatizing experience.
  • Be one step ahead – If the person experiences a traumatic experience yet has not exhibited PTSD symptoms, its best to consult a psychologist immediately. PTSD symptoms often manifest after thirty days. Military personnel exposed to combat often undergo counseling after missions.
  • Chemical treatment – there is a study that doses of morphine during combat missions for troops can prevent PTSD. This works on the theory that natural or chemically-induced levity reduces an event or a situation’s traumatizing effects.

PTSD Treatment Options: mentalhealthtreatment.net/ptsd

Check out some of our other posts on PTSD.

What To Do When Your Child Has PTSD.

What To Do When Your Spouse Has PTSD.

What To Do To Prevent PTSD.

 

Best Of, Self Improvement / Healthy Living, Self Improvement / Healthy Living

Military Time Management Technique: The CARVER system

Michael Anthony

Usually we wish that there were more than 24 hours in a day, so that there are more waking hours for us to get our jobs and tasks done. Yet we see others who have as much work as we do, yet they still have plenty of time to have fun and do personal stuff like going to the beach or the mall. A good example of such people is the military. From sunup to sundown, they get things done like a well-oiled machine. They work like ants and get their tasks done like exercises, trainings and assigned chores. Tasks like cooking, paperwork, construction and even combat are done quickly and efficiently and sometimes almost simultaneously. How do they do it? The answer is time management.

Time management is not a new idea. The main concept is to prioritize the most important or most urgent tasks instead of spending a lot of time doing something that may be done later and risking non-submission of the more urgent things. But like many things, the military can do things faster and even more efficiently. In the military, time management works a little differently. In military time management, tasks are practically treated as combatants. The following are the things that need to be considered in military time management.

In military time management, most tasks that need to be carried out point toward a single objective. This objective needs to be clear and well-defined so as to put more urgency in the tasks that lead to it.

In military time management, it is also important to consider the resources that need to be used to accomplish the tasks. These resources also have to be well-defined so as to be used more efficiently.

After determining the objectives and resources, next is to determine the correct priority for all of the tasks ahead. Set which task is first, what resource to use and how much time there is to allocate.

Efficiency is the hallmark of the military. They employ a militarized version of time management based on the total effect of a certain goal or objective. An objective is separated into different aspects like criticality, accessibility, return, vulnerability, effect and recognizability or in short, CARVER.

The goal or task to be done is divided into the previously mentioned aspects and ranked from one to five or depending on the person. After ranking each concept, the ranks are summed up and the task with the highest sum gets to be done first (the CARVER time management system is the system that the Navy SEALS and Army Special Forces, have to become masters in).

For a better understanding of CARVER, let us briefly describe each aspect

  • Criticality – mainly gauges the importance of a particular task. Is it that important and has to be done immediately or can it be put off tomorrow or next week? If it needs to be done sooner rather than later, then it is given a higher rank.
  • Accessibility – The task may be critical but is it easy to reach? Are the resources needed to do it readily available? If the materials needed for the task has to be airlifted from some other state, then the task gets a lower rank.
  • Return – What will be the return after the particular task is done? Will it be a promotion, a commendation or a pat on the head? The higher the return, the higher the rank will be.
  • Vulnerability – Is the task critical and easily done with the available resources? How long can it be done? For tasks that take longer to complete, the lower the rank.
  • Effect – Once the task is done, what will be the overall effect? This is slightly different than return. Will it have a bigger impact on the organization or the well-being of the individual?
  • Recognizability – finally, is the task clear and concise? No task can be done quickly and effectively with incomplete information. Vague projects take a bit longer but you may have to figure them out as the military does if everything else scores high.

The system works with anything, not just military.  I use it all the time for school, work and writing.  It’s just a good tool to have when figuring out what task to take on.

Related Posts:

Part 2 of the CARVER system

Smaller Goals VS Larger Goals

I Will Never Accept Defeat.  I Will Never Quit.

What the Military Teaches about Self-Discipline.