Spring Break
Veterans share in experiences of life after war
Justyna Tomtas
Issue date: 1/26/09 Section: News
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After spending eight months in the field treating patients' wounds, the four-year veteran, who now suffers from what he calls the "universal problem" of Post Traumatic Stress Disorder, was reluctant to share the details of his experiences abroad and was reserved in his response.
According to http://medterms.com, PTSD is "a common anxiety disorder that develops after exposure to a terrifying event or ordeal in which grave physical harm occurred or was threatened."
Hens did not explain how PTSD and the war affect his life specifically, but said that the days are marked by periods of mental calm and upset.
"The outlook on life is negative at first, and as part of the process, it becomes more positive," Hens said of his post-war outlook on life and the mental traumas he suffers to this day. "(The negative outlook and PTSD) goes away but then resurfaces," Hens, quiet and serious, said.
Hens said his greatest opposition to the war was his physical location: isolated in the middle of dust-blown Afghanistan deserts for eight months without reprieve.
"(War is) sort of like a prison; you're wired in and it's not an enjoyable setting," Hens said. "There were lots of causalities and the medical trauma aspect was not pleasant."
At the present, Hens is readjusting to an academic life, free from war and is in the process of developing a veteran writing group that would meet two times a month. Hens said composition and non-fiction works are the group's main focus.
By staying busy, being patient and making personal improvements, Hens has turned his outlook on life into a more positive experience and is doing this by "getting an education, maintaining relationships, living healthy and eating better."
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