20% of Troops Return with Brain Injuries, Depressed, Stressed

More than one million troops have cycled through Iraq and Afghanistan. A new study shows about 20 percent of those troops come back with depression, post traumatic stress, or a brain injury.

The nonprofit group, the Rand Corporation, finds 300,000 troops have post traumatic stress or depression. 320,000 have received a brain injury. 

A military spokeswoman says the military has to do a better job of getting the word out to soldiers that it's okay to talk about mental issues. "I think you'll agree with us that the time is now for little less talk and a lot more action.  Whether it be in the areas of clinical standards of care,  education, training, building resilience, funding the research to identify  those gaps in our knowledge that we really need to understand better, as well as to connect to our service members and their families wherever they may be across the country," says Colonel Loree Sutton with the US Army.

The study also finds slightly more than half of service members reporting symptoms actually seek care for post-traumatic stress or major depression. Even then only about half of them receive treatment that researchers consider "minimally adequate."

A Vietnam Veteran

One Savannah man understands this all too well. Quiet neighborhoods are something James Hovater doesn't mind. It's here that he's free from reminders of the Vietnam War.

"Smell and sounds can throw you back there in a second," says James, who suffers from post traumatic stress disorder.

"Ambulance went by. Back then it had a different sound than they do now. And I was on the floor in the middle of a restaurant under the table because I thought we were under attack," says James.

He obviously understands what today's troops are going through and admits the military healthcare community needs some help. "It is getting better but it could be a lot better," says James.

For example, each month James is only prescribed 20 pills to help him sleep. "So we have to fight and struggle those other 10 days to get sleep," says James.

Some troops are too afraid to admit they have PTSD because they're afraid of what others may think or of losing their jobs. "I worked at a nuclear plant and they found out that I had PTSD and I no longer could work there because I was a risk," says James.

James says don't be afraid to talk about it or to get help. "They have individual help and they also have group counseling." Because without someone walking beside you it may be too much to bear.

The military healthcare community is taking steps in the right direction. This year they hired nearly 8,000 additional mental health professionals and other staffers.

If you're a veteran in Georgia or South Carolina, we have a list of places where you can talk to someone about what you're going through.

South Carolina

Georgia