Soldiers: The Consequences Of Soldiers While Away At War

When humans were created, they were programmed to rely on others. They were not made to go through life and handle difficult struggles on their own. For most, family are those people to rely on, but, what if your family isn’t around when you need them – for example, while away at war. You create one. You form a family bond with the people around you. In the midst of wartime, to delete the feeling of utter loneliness, stomach wrenching terror, and reducing the risk of PTSD in the long run, many soldiers create a brotherhood connection with their fellow soldiers. Withholding a strong social bond within a platoon while away at war grants a somewhat sense of security. They lack so many things while away, but one thing they do not lack is
knowing
Soldiers are genuinely torn by the feelings of war — they desire raw revenge at times, though they wish they wanted a nobler justice; they feel pride and patriotism tinged with shame, complicity, betrayal and guilt. They worry if they have sullied themselves, if they love their war buddies more than their wives or husbands, if they can be honest with a generation of soldiers that follow. They want to feel whole, but they see in the mirror that an arm is missing, or having bagged their buddies’ body parts, they feel guilty for returning home intact” (qtd. in Tartakovsky). It is proven that talking and releasing your feelings is aggressively healthier than keeping them all inside. But there is an obstacle for soldier’s in doing this therapeutic release of feelings. “And this is so, in part, because guilt feelings are often borne with shame. Shame, like guilt, is also directed inward. Its focus, unlike guilt, is not so much an action that harms others as on personal defects of
in
Tartakovsky). Because of this shame, soldiers feel that they are unable to talk about their experiences when returning home. That is why it is so important to have a close bond within their platoon because they can openly talk about their feelings and not feel shameful or judged.
Their platoon members are experiencing and feeling the same emotions, therefore they can empathize rather than sympathize. The last thing that a returning solider would want to feel is sympathy from people who don’t quite understand.
War is bloodshed, war is suppression, war creates guilt, war is shock, anxiety, horror, dread, and so much more. There is not one single word, or one single phrase to define what war is, what war creates, what war makes one feel. It’s a different experience for every single person,

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Robinson
however, there are possible similarities within the same platoon. That is why comradery is almost a necessity to survive the war, not just physically but mentally as well. If one is not mentally healthy, one is not physically strong, and one cannot return home safely. That’s what everyone hopes and dreams for,