ptsd, Self Improvement / Healthy Living

How War Can Lead To A Nihilistic Outlook On Life

nihilism and ptsd

[pullquote]”In fact, most civilians know war through a superficial lens—through what the media shows them and what other people relay to them about their experiences.”.[/pullquote]People who have seen how dark life can become eventually adapt a defensive view of their life. They reject what makes life, well, life—how people live and act against the forces of nature. When someone rejects the religious and moral principles that encompass life, they undertake what’s known as nihilism.

Nihilism is best known as the rejection of all moral and religious principles, in the impression that life is ultimately meaningless. The phrase originates from the Latin term, nihil, which translates to nothing. Nihilism is also used to promote the idea that life, or the world itself, has no true morals.

This philosophical position is famously associated with the German philosopher, Friedrich Nietzsche. However, his position on the philosophical belief is sometimes misunderstood. Nietzsche was one of the first philosophers to extensively study the philosophy; he also extensively discussed criticism of the belief as a whole.

He notably argued that ‘nihilism can become a false belief, leading individuals to discard any hope of meaning within the world and create some significant compensatory alternative.’ He also argued that ‘Nihilism results from valuing higher beings who don’t value earthly things.’ Lastly, Nietzsche also suggested the idea that ‘Idealism, after being rejected by the believer, could potentially lead to Nihilism.’

Why War Makes Soldiers Develop Nihilism

Popular culture tells us that war changes people. This sentiment is reflected in various quotes, depicted in countless films and recounted in just as many songs. In fact, most civilians know war through a superficial lens—through what the media shows them and what other people relay to them about their experiences.[pullquote]”It’s possible for people to overcome a nihilistic mindset, especially if they developed the mindset as a result of war.”[/pullquote]

There’s an underlying aspect to how war changes people that others don’t quite understand. War’s effect leave a lasting effect on the enlisted people who participated and the civilian people thrown into the middle. Soldiers, in particular, often end up bearing a lot of physical and emotional trauma that they don’t understand how to cope with. Due to this, many harbor feelings of resentment, fear and other negative feelings.

Some soldiers lash out in self destructive ways. This type of coping is responsible for tragically claiming the lives of soldiers each year. Fortunately, mental health organizations have made movements to help soldiers cope with their mental trauma from war.

However, some survivors choose alternative ways to cope with their trauma. Some undertake a new religion, while others adapt a new philosophy (such as Stoicism) to help themselves navigate life once more. Soldiers who cope with depression and other symptoms from post traumatic stress disorder may undertake a mindset that changes how they view life.

Emotional nihilism develops after someone has experienced significant mental and, sometimes, physical trauma. It doesn’t develop in most people who go through significant mental trauma, but soldiers of war tend to be among the most frequent suffers of this phenomenon. Soldiers who aren’t adequately prepared to cope with such situations tend to lose hope and then develop doubts about their purpose in life.

Overcoming Emotional Nihilism

It’s possible for people to overcome a nihilistic mindset, especially if they developed the mindset as a result of war. A nihilistic state of mind may be damaging to people who return home after being enlisted.

This type of mindset can completely change how a soldier sees life during their enlistment, while they’re waiting to be deployed once more and even after they’ve officially retired from service. Of course, today’s mental health societies do make sure soldiers receive adequate mental health care following their enlistment in the military. But truly breaking out of a nihilistic mindset requires the efforts of the affected person.

Some soldiers of war don’t break out of the mindset, after remaining with such thought processes for years. This mindset can make a person exhibit mental exhaustion or, in other words, develop a tendency to emotionally check out. They become disengaged from all aspects of their life, because they feel like doing anything doesn’t matter. While a nihilistic person can normally function, the things they do tend to only happen out of duty and not a real sense of fulfillment.

Soldiers who have become nihilistic after returning home do have options to overcome that mindset. Learning how to accept what has happened to them plays a large role in accomplishing that. Interestingly enough, utilizing other philosophies – such as Stoicism – may help a soldier regain their sense of self and some enthusiasm for life.

Overcoming emotional nihilism does take effort. However, a returning soldier of war can start making large steps toward recovery by accepting that whatever happens around them, no matter when it happens, occurred by means out of their control. That familiar theme, originating from Stoicism, can help a soldier accept their experiences and learn how to cope better after war.

Once people overcome nihilism, according to Nietzsche, a society can then foster a true foundation to thrive.

Picture: Flickr/brett jordan

Comedy, ptsd, Uncategorized

How Spouses Can Help Their Veteran with PTSD

soldier with ptsd looking in the mirror

There are dozens of rumors circulating around veterans that suffer from PTSD but it is commonly known that you will never truly understand their symptoms until you’re living with a sufferer. Helping your spouse who is dealing with PTSD can be one of the most fulfilling things in both of your lives and it can help to strengthen your marital bond more than ever before. Below are some tips that you can use to your advantage to help your veteran deal with this debilitating mental condition until they are able to receive professional help.

How PTSD Affects Relationships

When your veteran comes home, you may notice that they are exhibiting telltale signs of PTSD. These symptoms can be responsible for a variety of issues in your relationship including: loss of trust, loss of closeness, inability to communicate, and issues with problem solving. They will act differently around you and patterns may develop that could harm your entire relationship.

Providing Social Support

Making sure that veterans with PTSD have the social support that they need is essential to make sure that they are able to work through their symptoms of the illness. The more meaningful relationships that they have, the higher their self-esteem will be which will make them more likely to seek professional help. You may also find that your veteran will begin helping others which can help to reduce their personal feelings of failure. Making sure that you’re there for them at the end of every day is also essential for eliminating any stress.

Seeking Professional Help

It is important that you take the necessary steps to make sure that your spouse gets the professional attention that they need. Even if you have begun to see positive signs of their behavior changing, a professional evaluation is invaluable. You should work together to find a professional therapist in your area that specializes with PTSD to help your spouse know that they are in good hands. You may also want to consider finding a therapist that works with couples and families as it is a mental disease that affects everyone around the survivor.

The therapist that you work with may suggest a variety of treatments including:

  • Group Therapy
  • Stress and Anger Management
  • Couples Counseling
  • Family Therapy
  • Assertiveness Training
  • Family Education Classes

Making sure that your family is prepared for the long journey ahead of you and your spouse is essential for ensuring that they can easily assimilate back into civilization.

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: Peter Murphy

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

Why All Soldiers Need To Be Stoic Philosophers

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