Soldiers feeling lost

Published 9:00 pm Wednesday, July 6, 2005

EVERETT – While driving along congested I-5, a former National Guard soldier might be hesitant to look into another driver’s eyes, or bristle warily when the traffic slows.

Michael V. Martina / The Herald Richard Garcia and Kristin Zornes of the Washington National Guard take part in a discussion Wednesday in Everett about soldiers’ return to civilian life after duty in hostile areas.

Though he’s a civilian now, several months ago this soldier was on duty in Baghdad or some other war-torn part of Iraq, trained to eyeball places where an insurgent could hide a trap of high explosives.

For a guardsman who has shifted to civilian life, even everyday traffic jams are stress-inducing, said Steve Akers, an Everett therapist who treats numerous people for war-related post-traumatic stress disorder.

“It’s extremely stressful,” Akers said.

Post-traumatic stress disorder is just one of the many problems citizen soldiers experience after separation from their families for a year or 14 months under trying conditions.

Finding out those problems, and how to fix them, was why two members of Congress and the head of the Washington National Guard came to Everett Wednesday for a round-table discussion with men and women from the guard’s 898th Engineer Battalion of Everett and Snohomish.

Other issues included finding jobs, getting back into school or reuniting with family members after a long separation.

“I’m hearing from a lot of soldiers that are returning, that the reintegration, despite the best intentions of everybody, leaves a lot of people without information,” said Sen. Patty Murray, D-Wash.

The session at the National Guard Armory was one of a series of meetings Murray is conducting to determine what funding is needed and what policies should be changed to make the soldiers’ return to civilian life easier.

The guard gives the returning soldiers five days after coming home to decommission, but “five days is not long enough for someone to understand what he or she may need when they come back,” said Rep. Rick Larsen, D-Wash.

The 898th made up part of the 81st Armor Brigade, which spent more than a year in Iraq. Four soldiers from the 898th were among the round-table panelists.

Murray, a member of the Senate Veterans Affairs Committee, told them and a roomful of soldiers that she and Larsen were there to help them “get the services you need. We’ll look into the policies to make sure we’re doing the right thing.”

Larsen, a member of the House Armed Services Committee, said the information he and Murray are gathering can be used for Veterans Affairs legislation. “We still have time this year to make the changes necessary for transition,” Larsen said.

Also present was Maj. Gen. Timothy Lowenberg, National Guard commander for Washington, and John King, state Department of Veterans Affairs director.

The four soldier panelists talked about their own transition into life outside a combat zone.

Spec. Selina Hobbs of Everett called it “overwhelming,” and a challenge “learning to be a girl again” instead of a soldier.

Capt. Carl Lee of Everett said coming home was easy, but making the adjustment back into family life with his wife and son was “very difficult” after 14 months abroad.

Another soldier complained that it was easier to pay for health coverage out of his own pocket rather than to go through federal Veterans Administration red tape. One problem, Staff Sgt. Christopher Roath of Snohomish said, was a lack of information on how to obtain services.

Akers, the therapist, also spoke, saying that most soldiers feel post-traumatic stress disorder symptoms for a while, but they frequently disappear after a few months. It’s important to understand the symptoms are natural for anyone who faces combat conditions, he said.

If symptoms don’t go away, some soldiers are reluctant to come forward, he said, for fear of losing a job, getting kicked out of the guard or just being labeled as damaged.

One study suggested 20 percent of soldiers leaving Iraq suffer from post-traumatic stress disorder.

Murray said she was disappointed that the Veterans Affairs Department only recently said it will be $1.5 billion short this year in providing services. The money shortage is something she’s been hearing about for some time.

“You cannot cut veterans services and then expect to recruit soldiers in the future,” Murray said. “More importantly, we owe it to these guys. They did a great job for us, and we should be there for them.”

Reporter Jim Haley: 425-339-3447 or haley@heraldnet.com.