The Civilian Lives of U.S. Veterans by Louis Hicks

Author:Louis Hicks
Language: eng
Format: epub
ISBN: 9781440842795
Publisher: ABC-CLIO

Other Issues Impacting the Mental Health of Veterans

Substance Use Disorders

A common comorbidity to mental health disorders is substance abuse. Substance use disorders include abuse or dependence on drugs, alcohol, or other substances. This section is a brief overview of comorbid substance use in veterans with mental health issues. Extensive coverage of substance abuse among veterans and the VA’s response can be found in Tate, Mrnak-Meyer, and Tripp (2012), Malte et al. (2012), and Tracy et al. (2012).

The National Vietnam Veterans’ Readjustment Study, the largest and most comprehensive investigation of Vietnam War veterans, found that 75 percent of men with PTSD developed problems with alcohol abuse or dependence (Kulka et al. 1990). Similar findings were seen in Hendin and Haas’s (1984) research; 85 percent of men with PTSD developed significant drug and alcohol problems upon their return to civilian life. Prior to war, only 7 percent of those men used alcohol frequently. Although the men initially used the drugs/alcohol to control their hyperarousal and intrusive symptoms (i.e., insomnia, nightmares, irritability), the substance abuse ultimately compounded their difficulties and led to further social alienation.

In more recent times, it has been well documented that a correlation exists between problematic alcohol use and PTSD symptoms in male and female OEF/OIF veterans (Erbes et al. 2007; McDevitt-Murphy et al. 2010; Nunnink et al. 2010). Furthermore, it appears that exposure to traumatic events (particularly the experience of killing) may be a predictor of alcohol abuse among one sample of OIF soldiers (Maguen et al. 2011). Despite data showing rising rates of both PTSD and alcohol use disorders postdeployment, there are several possible explanations. It should be noted that this increase may be partly attributed to more detailed mental health evaluations after deployment, more frequent reassessments of mental health symptoms and alcohol use, expanded outreach efforts to underserved veterans, and the reintegration of Vietnam veterans into VA services (Lemke and Schaefer 2010; Seal et al. 2007).

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