That day was a day of birth for me. Watching that second tower being struck and then the immediate explosive projection of fire, caused me to mentally reflect back to the "Rolling Thunder" of B52's, the White Sparks of the Super heated acid chemical- "White Phosphorus" and the rolling saturation of fireballs of Gasoline & liquid soap know as NAPALM.
Yes, I was frozen and transported backward (40 years) in time. Within two weeks I was in the Veterans Administration Hospital Mental Health Unit /PTSD. They identified my 40 year struggle with the inner demons that plagued me. It was a mild victory to finally learn that I wasn't alone and that I was NOT CRAZY. Well I knew that all the time. You see, Everybody else, that's right, EVERYBODY ELSE had the Problem- Not Me! Anyway, Those memories tormented my soul so often and intensely, That my first book evolved, "I Can Still Hear Their Cries, Even In My Sleep...A Journey Into PTSD".
www.amazon.com/still-hear-their-cries-sleep/dp/1432704575
"A teenage US Marine Corps Corpsman left the U.S. for a tour in Southeast Asia in 1966...
Forty years later, at age sixty one , he is still fighting through depression, nightmares, and recurring flashbacks with intrusive thoughts. When he speaks of his inner demons today
he states, "I Can Still hear Their Cries, Even In My Sleep".
After living in a bottle for 16+ years (I lost count), over 44 JOBS, three failed marriages and years of psychological therapy and medication... At last I am starting to turn my life around. My forth wife (she says "THE LAST"), and I are both students at University of Indiana Northwest.
E. Everett McFall is a high energy public speaker with a driving passion to help other Veterans. He is a active member of several non-profit Veterans service organizations.
http://www.gather.com/ groups: Conversations with Writers, Disabled Veterans, Poets and Writers, The Open Journal, The Writers Cove, The writers' Guild
tags: stress management, military, family, Vietnam war, ptsd, Iraqi war, us marine corps, post war psyhcologlical effects, us army, mental health, disabled veterans, American history, post traumatic stress disorder, shell shock, combat stress, history, mental health stress, combat
The Question Still Looms...What Effect Did 9/11 Have on You?
1 comment:
I landed on your blog via gather. Glad I did.I find it interesting.
I write poetry on rooted and review books on my Reading room blog.
Clicking on my name here, you can reach reading room.
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