Presentation for the JustPeace Soul Care Initiative www.soulcareinitiative.org www.justpeaceumc.org

1. A Journey Toward Healing the Wounded Soul

3. • Develop an awareness of military
culture and family dynamics
• Discuss post-deployment transition
challenges including the affects of
trauma
• Describe the aspects of spiritual
recovery
• Explore the resources available to
the faith community for the care of
the veteran and family
Objectives

4. • Soul Repair: Recovering from Moral Injury after War
Rita Nakashima Brock & Gabriella Lettini
• War and the Soul: Healing our nation’s veterans from Post-traumatic Stress Disorder
Edward Tick
• Silent Wounds: The hidden cost of war
James Daniels, Emily Howden & Richard Kuhlbars
• The Post-traumatic Stress Disorder sourcebook, a guide to healing recovery and growth
Glenn Schiraldi
• Those Who Have Borne the Battle, James Wright
Literature

5. • The great malady of the 20th century, implicated in all our troubles and
affecting us individually and socially, is the “loss of the soul.”
Moore (1992)
• Association with increased tolerance of pain, and higher quality of life
Kaczorowski (1989)
• Association with recovery from mental illness and substance abuse
George (1992); Koenig, George & Peterson (1998)
Research on Religion

6. • High intrinsic religiousness, an inward involvement in religion predicts more rapid
remission from depression…
Koenig, McCullough, Larson (2000)
• Association with health, energy, and vitality
Frankel & Hewitt (1994); Shuler, Gelberg, & Brown (1994)
• Abundant evidence reveals robust relationships between religiousness and health
George, Larson, Koenig, and McCullough (2000)
Research on Religion (Cont.)

7. • Social Support
• Liturgy - repentance, forgiveness, reconciliation and healing
• Search for justice that restores and heals
• Sacred story - seek theological, spiritual meaning of shared story for
the veteran
Faith Community Assets

8. • Structured
• Standardized
• Authoritarian
• Esprit de Corps
• Mission focused
• Discipline
(Care for Our Returning Veterans, Evangelical Lutheran Church in America)
• Warrior Ethos
• Constant transition
Military Culture

9. • Structured
• Standardized
• Authoritarian
• Esprit de Corps
• Mission focused
• Discipline
(Care for Our Returning Veterans, Evangelical Lutheran Church in America)
• Warrior Ethos
• Constant transition
Military Culture

10. • Transition is a way of life
• Self-contained community
• While they are away
• After they come home
• Military Brat
• Resources and services available
Understanding Military Family Dynamics

11. • Transition is a way of life
• Self-contained community
• While they are away
• After they come home
• Military Brat
• Resources and services available
Understanding Military Family Dynamics

12. • Korea
• Viet Nam
• Operation Desert Storm
• Operation Enduring Freedom
• Operation Iraqi Freedom
The Context of War

13. • The “Forgotten War”
• In order to avoid a Declaration of war,
President Truman described the war as
a “police action”
• 1.8 million served; 37,000 killed; 100,000
wounded
• “no one wants to die for a tie”
• Pentagon initiated a rotation system
• Since the Korean War a shift began in
public enthusiasm and support
(Those Who Have Borne the Battle, Wright)
Korean War

14. • Part of the “containment strategy”
• Disillusionment following the Tet Offensive
• Most veterans were draftees
• 58,220 killed in action and 303,644
wounded
• Anti-war movement part of counterculture
• US direct involvement ended August
1973
(Those who have Borne the Battle, Wright)
Viet Nam

15. • Part of the “containment strategy”
• Disillusionment following the Tet Offensive
• Most veterans were draftees
• 58,220 killed in action and 303,644
wounded
• Anti-war movement part of counterculture
• US direct involvement ended August
1973
(Those who have Borne the Battle, Wright)
Viet Nam

16. • Operation Desert Storm - 17 January 1991
• US forces suffered 148 battle deaths, 35
due to friendly fire
• Introduced live news broadcasts from front
lines of battle - instantaneous coverage
• Proclamation, the Vietnam syndrome
indented in the sands of Kuwait
(Those Who Have Borne the Battle, Wright)
Gulf War

17. • Operation Enduring Freedom combat
operations began 7 October 2001 as a
result from the terrorists attacks in the US,
Iraq not so clear
• “We don’t want any more Vietnams.”
• At first, US led coalition largely supported
by US citizens
• Current wars not so simple
• Dissimilarities
• Even though public support has decreased,
the support remains high for the troops
(Those Who Have Borne the Battle, Wright)
9/11

18. • Casualties - over 6,200
• Serious wounds - over 50,000 of which 1600 limb amputations
• Traumatic Brain Injury - over 43,000
• Over 4,000 new cases of PTSD each month
• Most of the injured are young and will require decades of care
• Estimated health care costs could reach half a trillion over the
next two decades
(Iraq, Afghanistan War Wounded Pass 50,000, David Wood, Huffingtonpost, 25 October 2012)
• 1.1 million caregivers providing 24/7 care to wounded veteran
• Statistics do not reflect soul wounds
Long Term Affects of Post 9/11 War

19. Transition Challenges
Combat Veterans
• Change in roles
• Feeling disconnected
• Battlefield to bedroom
• Fantasy versus reality
Spouse
• Joy, relief, unexplained anger
• Feeling a loss of independence or hand it all back
Children
• Change; older, taller, matured
• May experience disappointment (Returning home: What we know about the reintegration of deployed service members
into their families and communities, Marek, Hollingsworth, D’Aniello, O’Rourke, Brock,
Moore, Butler VI, Zhang, Miles)

20. Transition Challenges
Combat Veterans
• Change in roles
• Feeling disconnected
• Battlefield to bedroom
• Fantasy versus reality
Spouse
• Joy, relief, unexplained anger
• Feeling a loss of independence or hand it all back
Children
• Change; older, taller, matured
• May experience disappointment (Returning home: What we know about the reintegration of deployed service members
into their families and communities, Marek, Hollingsworth, D’Aniello, O’Rourke, Brock,
Moore, Butler VI, Zhang, Miles)

21. • Psychological
• Emotional
• Cognitive
• Physical
• Behavioral
• Spiritual
Whole Person Perspective
Reactions to Trauma

22. Psychological

23. Emotional

24. Mental

25. Physical

26. Behavioral

27. Behavioral

28. SPIRITUAL
Discouragement
Hopelessness
Despair
(The Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder Sourcebook Schiraldi, G. 2000)
Fear
Guilt
Moral Injury
Confusion about God

29. Consider Spiritual Issues
How to define?

30. • After WW2 spirituality and religion disconnected
• Distinction between the two became common
with the rise of secularism
• Modern spirituality is centered on the values
and meanings by which people live
• Person well-being, both physical and
psychological, is an important aspect of
modern spirituality
• Some discoveries suggest other possible links
between spirituality and mental health
• Important note: 18-35 year olds largely view
themselves as spiritual not religious
Spiritual Not Religious
SpiritualityReligion
Religion
&
Spirituality

31. Spirituality and Meaning
“He who has a why to live can bear almost any how.” (Nietzsche)
“The deeply personal search for meaning can bring a person to inner
peace even in the presence of adverse circumstances.” (White Paper)
“We also become spiritual when we become moved by values such as
beauty, love or creativity that seem to reveal a meaning or power beyond
our visible world.” (Richard Fuller)
“The kind of spirituality I value is one in which you get great joy out of
contributing to life…” (Marshall Rosenberg)

32. • Spirituality helps give meaning to
people’s suffering.
• Spirituality helps people find hope in
the midst of despair.
• It is through spirituality that people
can become unstuck from despair.
(Christina M. Puchalski)
Spirituality and Suffering
“Man is not destroyed by suffering, he is
destroyed by suffering without meaning”
Viktor Frankl

33. • Expressed through feelings of anger,
doubt, grief, fear, hopelessness, guilt,
and a sense that life is meaningless
• Some who had a faith prior to combat
may have lost their faith as a result of
their experience
• Feelings of un-forgiveness
• Anger directed toward God
• God has directed anger toward the
warrior; “God is punishing me!”
Spiritual Struggle

34. • It is not PTSD
• Emerges after PTSD symptoms are
relieved
• Comes from a violation of a core
moral belief
• Comes from a feeling betrayed due
to another person’s violation
• Changes one’s views of
expectations about human capacity
to behave in a just or ethical manner
Moral Injury

35. • Resolving Guilt
✓ Repentance and forgiveness
✓ Remembrance and mourning
✓ Mourning and lamenting
• Serving Others
Transforming Spiritual Trauma

36. Faith Community Response

37. Faith Community Response

38. Faith Community Response

39. Faith Community Response

40. Faith Community Response

41. Faith Community Response

42. • Faith based organizations have initiated programs supporting
warriors and their families
• Partner with VFW, AMVETS, American Legion, Wounded Veterans of
America, Disabled Veterans of America, etc.
• Get to know the VA and its resources
• Locate a Veterans Center
Network with Community
Resources

43. Questions or Comments?