ACT for PTSD: Military Context and Overcontrol of Emotions
Booz Allen
Department of Veterans Affairs
Yale University
University of Nevada, Reno
Key Points
- Military trauma survivors may experience the same types of traumatic events that civilians do, just in a different context.
- There are specific types of trauma that are unique to the veteran experience.
- Understand the contextual factors, military culture, and how these traumatic events have such long-term impact.
- Address emotional control or avoidance.
- Understand the survival function that control has had for military veterans.
- Unwind unnecessary applications of this control.
Materials Downloads
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Transcript
In this video, I’ll spend some time talking about specific considerations when working with survivors of trauma in a military warzone.
To some extent, the experience of trauma may be similar regardless of the context. While in the military, service members may experience training OR vehicle accidents, physical and sexual assaults, or witnessing other sorts of horrors. And there are also some experiences, like witnessing warfare and participating in combat, that are unique to being in the military. At the same time, military veterans have their own culture. And there are some aspects of that context for the trauma and the recovery from that trauma that are specific to military veterans. So first, I’ll talk a little bit about the general context of emotional control as it relates to being a military veteran.
Batten, S. V. (2011). Essentials of acceptance and commitment therapy. SAGE Publications Ltd.,Chiles, J. A., Strosahl, K. D., & Roberts, L. W. (2018). Clinical manual for assessment and treatment of suicidal patients (2nd ed.). American Psychiatric Association Publishing.
So why would this experience of overcontrol of emotions happen with such regularity for veterans of war? Well, I would suggest that it is part of military training, in fact, that soldiers, sailors, etc. learn to be in control of their emotions. They’re directly instructed to. They may be punished if they’re not showing that they’re in control of their emotions. And this is really a survival thing. They have to be in control of their emotions because if you are in a warzone, you can’t be breaking down and having strong emotions in the moment. You have to stay focused on the objective. Or it’s actually a matter of life and death.
Batten, S. V. (2011). Essentials of acceptance and commitment therapy. SAGE Publications Ltd.,Chiles, J. A., Strosahl, K. D., & Roberts, L. W. (2018). Clinical manual for assessment and treatment of suicidal patients (2nd ed.). American Psychiatric Association Publishing.