Sheepdog Tip of the Day, After Combat tip 147
In Vietnam what appears to have happened is that many a combatant simply endured traumatic experiences (experiences that might otherwise have been unbearable) by refusing to come to terms with his grief and guilt and turned instead to the escapist therapy of a "short timer's calendar" and the promise of "only forty five days and a wake up." This rotation policy (combined with the extensive use of psychiatrically and self prescribed drugs) did create an environment in which the incidence of psychiatric casualties on the battlefield was much lower than that of past wars in the twentieth century. But a tragic, long term price, a price that was far too high, was paid for the short term gains of this policy.
Lt. Col. Dave Grossman, On Killing
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Additional Resources
For PTSD, Shepherd Resource Group.