The Road Home Program assists Veterans in overcoming emotional trauma and helps them live a more productive life. I will take you through a few days that articulate the day-long interactions with staff who facilitate lesson plans that are critical to mental health.
The veteran participants were separated into groups of four, and I found that number manageable because everyone had a chance to speak and voice their opinions and personal challenges. This two-week program was intense but gratifying because we were busy learning and being productive, and interacting with each other. Having attended other group sessions at the Veterans Administration, all group individuals have similar needs because the stress that becomes traumatic requires a commitment and an open mind. Unfortunately, the requirement of an open mind is missed by many because these veterans tend to look for reasons not to comply with staff recommendations.
The misnomer about the program’s design to cure the mental wounds experienced by veterans cannot happen. What can occur are the tools provided that will assist veterans in becoming their therapists. Given these tools, it’s up to the individual to perform daily work to remain in front of those emotions so those transitory challenges won’t get out of hand. I decided to use the word transitory because much of our feelings are temporary, and if the treatment is seen as evidence, healing is around the corner.
Day One
My first day was an in-depth explanation of the programming lesson plans that addressed a ‘treatment agreement,’ which meant that the purpose of this program was to teach specific skills to help us become independent in determining how servicing ourselves can occur. The flow of learning events that followed was individual narratives explaining why we were all there and identifying precisely the emotions we were experiencing. Those projections and completing daily surveys consisted of added questions to keep track of our progress through their specialized database. Overall, the carefully designed program covered all aspects of a fine-tuned engine complemented by psychological diagnostics that feed into the staff’s assessment and evaluation.
Day Two
The second day furthered the program design as staff provided (CPT) or Cognitive Processing Theories, an elevated approach to penetrating the emotional core as the paradigm of coping mechanisms identified the steps to approach each emotional statement progressively and consistently. This process forces a more subjective approach to our healing and encourages self-indictment. For some, this procedure proved difficult and caused the brain of veterans to shut down and not accept the messages given in classroom sessions or private discussions with our assigned therapist.
The (Mindfulness-Based Resiliency Training) focused on our awareness of the emotions affected and how this mechanism would help and support the problems mentioned. As understanding for me was vital, this was not enough to treat emotional upheavals. For that to happen, the mental tools given by staff needed to be implemented daily as my primary source of awareness to interpret the need for me to find ways to ease my anxiety and depression that later led to panic attacks that have proven to be uncomfortable. This physiological attack is directly associated with emotional and physiological outputs. Given that I am not prone to settle into belaboring emotional attacks, I look for ways to effectively strategize a plan to stay ahead of those emotions before they manifest. To that end, I have been unsuccessful but optimistic.
Day Three and Four
Day three and four was much of the exact repetition of strategies to deal intelligently about what was happening with my mental processing. I realized that these emotions would never disappear, but understanding those feelings can eliminate the severity of internal issues. As my panic attacks have yet to be explored, on day four, during the Cognitive Processing Theory session, I plan to tap into what can be done to remove or lessen the impact of these attacks. Though there are prescribed medications, the effects of these meds are troubling, and once I had taken them, I didn’t recognize who I was in the moment. My reaction to these meds fog my thinking, makes me dizzy, and limits my energy. When utilizing these meds, I think about more of an outer-body challenge where I see nothing of who I am as a person. A specialist provided an alternative to the meds with acupuncture treatments and six needles placed around the ear lobe each day. I found this procedure to be successful as it eased specific body pain and stunted my anxiety. That comfort level was huge in that my concern over the past four months has been intense and interrupted my ability to focus. The mindful interruption experienced by panic attacks elevates my anxiety and creates doubt for reaching promising results.
Day Five
On this day proved to be emotionally taxing. The night before, my anxiety was high as I experienced a panic attack that lasted most of the night. I took that complicated undertaking into Friday’s session with a high level of apprehension due to my enhanced irritability. Being the oldest of the group and the only Vietnam Veteran was another test for my patience. Much of the discussion amongst the group made it difficult for me to be that active participant, but that feeling soon passed because combat veterans understood. As the day moved on, another acupuncture procedure was given, and my level of irritation and anxiety subsided.
Day Six through Nine
Day six through nine repeated the past week to reinforce the lessons shared, hoping that something would find its path and lead to self-discovery. The time spent at the Road Home Program was well worth my time and effort. I will embrace those I met and share my experiences with other vets. However, even though my journey was uplifting, the time spent must be reflection, application, and repetition. Without these values, it was discovering what works and what doesn’t would be impossible.
My Takeaways
I have learned that PTSD isn’t all in the head, but it also has a physiological base that affects the entire body. When the physiological proponent enters the healing equation, that picture of clarity is more relevant and purposeful. I also learned that human beings are experts in wishful thinking and obscuring the truth of how little control they have over these emotions. In A quote from Abram Kardiner and supported by Elvin Semrod, known leaders in neuroscience and psychiatry research are the lies we tell ourselves because it’s too painful to face the truth of known realities.
Interestingly, according to Bessel Van Der Kolk, M.D., and the author of “The Body Keeps The Score,” many people who aren’t interested don’t want to know what soldiers went through in combat. They don’t want to know how many children are molested and abused in our society or how many couples engage in violence. In other words, people would instead think about families as being safe havens in a heartless world by formalizing the thought of being civilized people as a lie or an exaggeration. So again, we have another example of how difficult it is to face the truth.
Much like the sorted emotions expressed by veterans, many would rather complain than harness some rigid understanding about what has been troubling them for so long. To become so comfortable with being unhappy and overwhelmed, veterans would instead take the low road by waddling in their misery. To actively pursue the model of the Cognitive Processing Theory could help these veterans mull through their questions of doubt and self-worth.
Dr. Van Der Kolk continued to communicate that people believe that cruelty only occurs in faraway places. According to Dr. Van Der Kolk, Is it no wonder that traumatized individuals cannot tolerate remembering the trauma and resort to using alcohol, drugs, or self-mutilation to block out their unbearable knowledge. Those hidden truths of the past will surface continuously unless some action is taken to minimize the effects of trauma.
In closing, and my complete takeaway, I have learned that trauma is not a mere event that took place sometime in the past, but the imprint left by that experience on my mind, body, and brain. Furthermore, this imprint has ongoing consequences for how the human organism manages to survive in the present.
As explained by Dr. Van Der Kolk, learning to live in the present is not only dealing with the past but enhancing the quality of day-to-day experience. For example, traumatic memories become dominant in PTSD because it’s so challenging to feel alive. When your mind can’t be fully in the present, you go to the places where you did feel alive, even when those dark places were filled with horror and misery.
I recommend all veterans, combat or non-combat, enroll in this program to involve themselves in something new and innovative. You will never know what may work for you until you try different approaches to dealing with your trauma. But, I think we all agree that nothing about you will change if you don’t try. ‘The Road Home Program’ helped heal my soul. The program allowed me to take a close look at my life, both pre-military and post-military. I was offered the opportunity to discover ways to help myself more efficiently as part of the missing puzzle for a long time.
This Article was Last Updated On: December 2, 2021