Articles
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"My marriage is falling apart. We just don't talk anymore... I spend most of my time at home alone in the basement... She's tried to tell me she cares for me, but I get real uncomfortable taking about things like that, and I get up and leave. Sometimes I get real angry over the smallest thing. I used to hit her when this would happen, but lately I just punch a hole in the wall, or leave and go for a long drive. Sometimes I spend more time on the road just driving aimlessly than I do at home. I really don't have any friends, and I'm pretty particular about who I want as a friend. The world is pretty much dog-eat-dog, and no one seems to care much for anyone else. As far as I'm concerned, I'm really not part of this messed-up society. What I'd really like to do is have a home in the mountains, somewhere far away from everyone... I usually feel depressed. I've felt this way for years. There have been times I've been so depressed that I won't even leave the basement. I'll usually start drinking pretty heavily around these times. I've also though about committing suicide when I've been depressed. Sometimes, my head starts to replay some of my experiences in Nam. Regardless of what I'd like to think about, it come creeping in. It's so hard to push back out again... When I go hiking now, I avoid green areas... When I walk down the street, I get real uncomfortable with people behind me that I can't see. Night is the hardest for me... I think so many of my Nam experiences at night... I don't know; this has been going on for so long; it seems to be getting gradually worse. My wife is talking about leaving. I guess it's no big deal. But I'm lonely. I really don't have anyone else. Why am I the only one like this?" This soldier is not alone. More than 800,000 still suffer from symptoms of Post Traumatic Stress Disorder. PTSD is not a mental illness. It is a reaction to the extremely stressful influences individuals were subjected to during and after the war. The symptoms of PTSD are: Depression
Sleep disturbances, including nightmares
Tendency to react under stress with survival tactics
Psychic or emotional numbing
Emotional Constriction
Loss of interest in work and activities
Survivor guilt or survival guilt
Hyper-alertness
Avoidance of activities that arouse memories of trauma in the war zone
Suicidal feeling and thoughts
Flashbacks to Vietnam
Fantasies of retaliation and destruction
Cynicism and distrust of government and authority
Alienation
Concern with humanistic values overlaid by hedonism
Negative self-image
Memory impairment
Hypersensitivity to justice
Problems with intimate relationships
Difficulty with authority figures
Emotional distance from wife, children, and others
Self-deceiving and self-punishing patterns of behavior such as an inability to talk about war
experiences, fear of losing others, and a tendency to fits of rage.
Do not suppress it- talk to:
Family or friends
A minister, priest, or chaplain
Other fellow vets
Understand your reactions are normal in response to abnormal life experiences.
Reinforce a sense of safety; provide an environment to ventilate and validate feelings/thoughts.
Constantly reinforce a sense of trusting self and others; make decisions for self; examine and discuss
thoughts/feelings relating to the psychological, biological, sociological, and spiritual domains of human
existence with support groups."
Before the United States entered the war in Vietnam, France had been occupying the country for many years. France failed to keep peace between the warring tribes of Vietnam and were ousted. History reveals that in the areas of Vietnam, Laos, Cambodia, and Thailand, there have been century-old battles between these tribes. During that time much of the religion in these areas was Buddhist and Hindu, mixed with Spiritism. Animism, the belief that spirits exist in the world of animate and inanimate objects like rocks and trees, is part of the religion of the Vietnamese. It is predominately the religion of the Montagnards, the highlanders. The Animist lives in a world inhabited by spirits, both good and bad, and these spirits are active in influencing the outcome of daily events. While the Animist does not want to offend spirits, he also desires to use them to his advantage. Just as members of other religions that we are familiar with pray to "go betweens" to help them ask for favors from their deity, the Animist uses spirits to help him achieve his goals in life. He engages in prayer and rituals to cause them to do his will and to placate those spirits which otherwise would harm him. The most important man in the village of the Animist is the sorcerer. It is the sorcerer who gives advice on what the moods of the spirits are and what can be done to please them. The Animist also places a great deal of emphasis on omens, which appear in the form of dreams or even as happenings in the real world. An important concept in the life of an Animist is that the dead must be given proper burial. To deny the dead this privilege is to condemn the dead person's spirit to aimless wandering. The Animist also believes that to mutilate or decapitate the body harms the spirit as well as the body. During the Vietnam War, forces from both sides used this belief in their terrorism by decapitating those who will not submit to them or who openly oppose them. According to an ex-Buddhist priest an entire sect of Vietnamese Buddhist monks spent years heaping specific curses upon all Americans that came to fight in their country. These specific curses were: That they would never find peace.
That they would be angry men and women for the rest of their lives.
The spirit of a man will sustain his infirmity; but a wounded spirit who can bear? Proverbs 18:14 The steps involved in this need to be taken in order. If things are taken out of order there will be no foundation. Like the foolish man who built his house on the sand, when the wind and rain came (and they will come!) his house collapsed because there was no foundation. STEP 1: RESOLVE YOUR RELATIONSHIP WITH GOD He did not go AWOL in Vietnam. He also is fighting a war (even now) against the Devil. One of the most powerful verses in the Bible is John 10:10. It says that the "Thief" comes only to steal, and to kill, and to destroy. And his target is YOU! Recognize the enemy. It is NOT God. 1 Peter 5:8 warns us to be sober and vigilant because "your adversary" the devil, as a roaring lion, walks about seeking whom he may devour. In John 8:44 it says that the Devil is the father of lies and there is no truth in him. The biggest lie of all is that the reason for your pain is all God's fault. NOT TRUE! The truth of the matter is that God loves you unconditionally, you were made in His image and that He desires only good for you. God never requires that we clean up our act before we go to Him. He'll do that for us. Don't ever be afraid to tell God what's on your mind, how you feel, your fears and pain because ultimately He's the only one who can do something about it! All He asks of us is that we have an honest heart. To make our relationship with God right, we need to confess with our mouth that Jesus is Lord and believe in our heart that God raised him from the dead (Romans 10:9 & 10). I John 1:9 says that if we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins, and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness. James 1:17 - Every good gift and every perfect gift is from above, and comes down from the Father of lights, with whom is no variableness, neither shadow of turning. Now that we've established who our enemy is and who is our friend we have a foundation ready to build on. The next step is to... STEP 2: RESTORE YOUR VIEW OF YOURSELF The first step is to view yourself as valuable. When God first created man and woman it says very plainly that God created them in his own image (Gen. 1:27). He blessed them and when God say everything that He made, He said it was VERY GOOD (v.33). Since sin entered the world and perverted all that was very good, it was necessary for God to provide a way of restoration. That "way" is through Jesus (John 14:6). The fact that He was willing to come to earth to die for our sins speaks volumes about the worth God sees in us. Secondly, we need to forgive ourselves for things that we've done or haven't done. If at all possible we are to make those wrongs right again but sometimes that isn't always possible. We need to get out from under the burden of guilt that we carry. True forgiveness won't be initiated by your emotion. It comes when you exercise your will to forgive. He will deal with the emotional aspect of forgiveness. STEP 3: HEALING THE RELATIONSHIP WITH YOUR SPOUSE AND CHILDREN Because most veterans are men, we will look at how our relationship with our wife ought to be ordered. Genesis 2:18 "And the Lord God said, It is not good that the man should be alone; I will make him a helper fit for him." Part of PTSD is the emotional numbing and isolation. Early in our training as Christians we were taught that the devil has four types of individuals who are particularly vulnerable to his tactics. The young, the old, the sick or weak (any guesses what the fourth is?), and the loner. It is fairly obvious why they're easy targets. Wives are meant to be a help, but that is an impossible task when they're not allowed to! You need to communicate with your wife. Not your friends -- your wife. At first this may have to be taken slowly, in portions that you both feel comfortable with. There may be mistrust or other problems that will need to be dealt with. Always remember to forgive. If you're angry, you need to step back, figure out why you're angry and communicate that to your partner. A great majority of problems can be worked through if you deal with the acorn instead of the oak tree, so deal with things as soon as possible. As husbands and fathers, you are the life and core of the family unit. The other family members hurt when you hurt. Shutting them out is not the way to go. It's always easier to have someone to help bear the burden instead of trying to go it alone. "Who can find a virtuous woman? for her price is far above rubies. The heart of her husband does safely trust in her, so that he shall have no need to spoil. She will do him good and not evil all the days of her life." Proverbs 31:10-12 "Lo, children are a heritage of the Lord, and the fruit of the womb is his reward. As arrows are in the hand of a mighty man, so are children of the youth. Happy is the man that has his quiver full of them." Psalms 127:3-5 In dealing with your children, the Bible is specific in its instruction on how to raise them. "Fathers, provoke not your children to wrath..." Ephesians 6:4. One sure way of provoking them is by demanding of them what you can't or won't do yourself. In other words by being a hypocrite. Be careful of the example you set. Did you ever wonder why children who were abused grow up and abuse their own children? It's very simple. "Train up a child in the way he should go: and when he is old, he will not depart from it." Proverbs 22:6. That principal works in the positive as well as the negative, so be careful of how you train your children. STEP 4: GAIN A PROPER PERSPECTIVE ON YOUR RELATIONSHIP WITH OTHERS First, we'll deal with the down side of others. The book of James deals with our speech. "But the tongue can no man tame; it is an unruly evil, full of deadly poison (3:8). "If any man offend not in word, the same is a perfect man (3:2). In the course of our life, sometimes the things that hurt the most are things that were said to us. Resentment, anger, bitterness, and a whole host of other negative emotions can paralyze your life. Sometimes there are valid points to what was said even though it wasn't said in a pleasant way. If there is truth to what was said we need to make adjustments. If there is no truth, you need to let go of it. Again, you need to forgive. Enough can not be said about the positive influence forgiveness can have on your life. In Jesus' Sermon on the Mount when the disciples asked Him to teach them how to pray, He said Forgive us our sins, as we forgive those who have sinned against us. Out of the whole Lord's Prayer, what does He see fit to comment on? Forgiveness. "For if you forgive men their sines, your heavenly Father will also forgive you: BUT if you don not forgive men their sins, neither will your Father forgive your sins." Matthew 614 & 15. Not forgiving puts you in a spiritual prison. (See Matthew 18:23-25) Now you have the key - it's up to you to use it. I want to stress something here. Forgiving does NOT mean that what was done or said is suddenly okay. All it means is that you're surrendering your right for payback. "Vengeance is mine; I will repay, saith the Lord" (Romans 12:19) I believe God can do a far more adequate job and at the same time we remain blameless before Him. Vietnam PTSD: Another Curse of Satan by Earl Davis Before Vietnam I was a happy-go lucky kid, having fun chasing girls, running with the guys, living my life, felt safe, had a sense of right and wrong, school provided structure, leading to a happy future. In Vietnam I lived in a world where every single day and night I had to worry about being wounded, mutilated or killed. I survived 115-120 degree temperatures, torrential rains, poor food, awful insects and demanding physical efforts. I learned to stuff my feelings when I saw unspeakable horrible events, felt tremendous terror/fear/revulsion, and developed rage and anger to cover up. I may have killed, saw others kill, or saw the end results of horrible killing and death. I may have turned to alcohol or drugs to numb me out and keep the terror from my awareness. I was given responsibility over friends who died under my care. I learned to hate, became confused, feared making new friends, felt isolated/alone/abandoned and no one to tell. No place to let the pain go. I forgot my beliefs, lost my life's direction, lost who I was, survived for a year in this living hell, and expected that I would return to be the same happy-go-lucky kid, but he had died in Vietnam. After Vietnam I was no longer the happy-go-lucky kid. The world was no longer a safe place in which I lived. I was confused, lost angry, fearful, suicidal, quiet and withdrawn. I had lost my ability to have fun. I became antisocial, untrusting, fearful, vengeful, numb, and no longer fit in. I had lost my sense of direction, and lost my self. The horror was still with me from Vietnam, and the alcohol and drugs only triggered my fears into rage, violence, and "crazy behavior". I just wanted to be the old me, but now I was an old man with post traumatic stress disorder as my world! I could not handle stress and feared anything new or different. The horror continued in my head for years after returning. Others saw the changes and wanted the happy-go-lucky kid to still be me. Others told me just to forget about it, but I haven't found out how to do that. I live with the past daily. The kid was killed by war; he no longer exists. My name is Earl Davis. I am a United States Marine Corps Vietnam combat veteran. I am a minister of the gospel of Jesus Christ. I was in Vietnam in 1966, as an interrogator with the 9th Interrogation-Translation Team stationed at the Marine Corps Air Station at Chu Lai, South Vietnam. Chu Lai was in I Corps south of Da Nang on the coast. Many of you may be familiar with the location of Chu Lai because of its proximity to My Lai, the site of the Lt. Calley incident. We are here now to discuss the causes and effects of Post Traumatic Stress Disorder. In the past, effects of combat had labels like "shell-shocked" and 'battle fatigue". These were the labels applied by man and our government in an effort to explain the effects of combat on the veteran. The DSM IV, the handbook used by the Veterans Administration to explain psychological disorders in veterans, lists the diagnostic criteria as follows: The person experienced, witnessed, or was confronted with an event that involved actual or threatened death or serious injury to the physical integrity of self and others, and the person's response involved intense fear, helplessness, or horror. This event is persistently re-experienced in one or more of the following ways:
2. Repeated distressing dreams of the event in the manner described in the previous statement. 3. Acting or feeling as if that event were occurring at that moment (reliving the experience, having flashback episodes, including those happening upon awakening or when intoxicated). 4. Intense psychological distress when exposed to circumstances resembling the original traumatic event. 5. Physically reacting those circumstances as though they were happening again for the first time.
2. Avoiding activities, places, or people that bring back these thoughts. 3. Forced amnesia - inability to remember the event. 4. Turning every thing inside - no interest or participation in anything. 5. Feeling of detachment from others - no self-worth. 6. Unable to have any loving/caring feelings. 7. No expectations to have a career, marriage, children, or a normal life-span. I have a friend whose brother is a Vietnam veteran. My friend told me that on various occasions his brother had said that he felt at times that he was cursed. Recently, God placed a booklet in my hands through a friend. It's title is "America Ambushed", now out of print, written by Chuck Dean of Point Man International Ministries. I'd like to read you a portion of that book and combine that with the seven effects of PTSD, along with reading from the 28th chapter of Deuteronomy from the Old Testament. "Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder", the malady that plagues hundreds of thousands of Vietnam veterans today is a SPIRITUAL problem, and a bi-product of pagan curses. In late 1989, Point Man Ministries headquarters received a verbal report that an ex-Buddhist monk had shared with an American pastor regarding demonic curses being cast upon American troops during the Vietnam war. Since we know that Satan's playground and battlefield is mostly the minds of men. we began to take serious notice of how these so-called curses may had affected all Vietnam veterans. When we did, we realized that PTSD's origin had more of an explanation than simply being beaten down by the rigors of combat, and participating in an unpopular war. According to the ex-Buddhist priest, an entire sect of Vietnamese Buddhist monks spent years heaping specific curses upon all Americans that came to fight their country. These specific curses were:
2. That they would never find peace. 3. That they would be angry men and women for the rest of their lives. To understand what really happened to our troops in S.E.Asia, and why they are seemingly hopeless cases, with 'incurable' stress problems (the VA makes this claim), we must look from the spiritual side of things. We must look at the eternal, not the physical. Before the United States entered this conflict in Vietnam, France had been occupying the country for many years. France failed to keep the peace between the warring tribes of Vietnam and was ousted. History reveals that in the areas of Vietnam, Laos, Cambodia, and Thailand there have been century-old battles between these tribes. During that time much of the religion in these areas was Buddhism and Hinduism, mixed with Spiritism (worshipping spirits). Over the centuries this part of the world was given over to pagan spiritual powers." From Ephesians 6:12 of the New Testament: "For we wrestle not against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this world, against spiritual wickedness in high places." Back to 'America Ambushed': "When they (these warring tribes) went to war they called their gods (principalities, powers, rulers, spiritual wickedness) to fight for them. During these battles they had learned how to call on the spirits to destroy their opponents. When foreign powers came to their countries, they also used these same spiritual forces against them. Our American men and women went to fight a physical war, not a spiritual one. They were spiritual ambushed and much sickness, confusion, mental torment, and death) especially through suicide) followed." Let's compare these readings to scriptures in Deuteronomy: " But if you will not obey the voice of the Lord your God, being watchful to do all His commandments and His statutes which I command you this day, then all of these curses shall come upon you and overtake you. Cursed shall you be in the city and cursed shall you be in the field. Cursed shall be your basket and your kneading trough. Cursed shall be the fruit of your body, of your land, of the increase of your cattle and the young of your sheep. Cursed shall you be when you come in and cursed shall you be when you go out. You shall betroth a wife, but another man shall lie with her; you shall build a house, but not live in it; you shall plant a vineyard, but not gather its grapes. Your sons and daughters shall be given to another people, and your eyes shall look and fail with longing for them all the day; and there shall be no power in your hands to prevent it. You shall beget sons and daughters but shall not enjoy them, for they shall go into captivity. The Lord will bring a nation against you from afar, from the ends of the earth, as swift as the eagle flies, a nation whose language you shall not understand, a nation of unyielding countenance who will not regard the person of the old or show favor to the young." The following is from Derek Prince's book entitled "Blessing of Curse": Through personal observation and experience, I compiled the following list of seven problems indicating that a curse is at work. When I compared my list with that of Moses in Deuteronomy 28, I was impressed by the close correspondence between them:
2. Repeated or chronic sicknesses. 3. Barrenness, a tendency to miscarry or related female problems. 4. Breakdown of marriage and family alienation. 5. Continuing financial insufficiency. 6. Being 'accident-prone'. 7. History of suicides and unnatural or untimely deaths. Ladies and Gentlemen and families, we have been cursed --- not by God, but by Satan. Why? Satan wants to tear apart mankind, God's creation. Also, the United States has long been very instrumental in support of modern day Israel, God's chosen people. Satan doesn't like this and doesn't want this. If you are truly fed up with the effects of PTSD or the curse, there is one way out. Jesus said in John 14:6, "I am the Way, the Truth, and the Life". When God created mankind, He placed within each of us something very, very powerful. He gave us the right to make a choice!! Deuteronomy 30:19-20, "I call heaven and earth to witness this day against you that I have set before you life and death, the blessings and the curses; therefore choose life, that you and your descendants may live and may love the Lord your God, obey His voice, and cling to Him. For He is your life and the length of your days, that you may dwell in the land which the Lord swore to give to your fathers, to Abraham, to Isaac, and to Jacob." From this point forward, you have the right to choose, once and for all, to break the PTSD curse from the devil. Your response can be, "Father God, on the basis of your Word written in the Holy Bible, I make my response. I refuse death and curses. Instead I choose life and blessings." Jesus said in John 8:32, "And you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free." In Luke 4:18, "The Spirit of the Lord is upon Me, because He has anointed Me to preach the good news to the poor, He has sent Me to announce release to the captives, and recovery of sight to the blind, to send forth as delivered those who are oppressed, downtrodden, bruised, crushed, and broken down by calamity." Galatians 3:13, "Christ purchased our freedom from the curse of the Law by becoming a curse for us, for it is written, 'Cursed is everyone who hangs on a tree, or is crucified.'" Every recovery program established has specific steps to recovery. Here are God's steps to recovery from the PTSD curse:
2. Repent of all rebellion and sin. Mark 1:15. "The Kingdom of God is at hand; have a change of mind about past misconduct and a change in present conduct for the better and believe the good news, believe the gospel." 3. Claim forgiveness of sin or past misconduct. 1John 1:9, "If we freely admit that we have sinned, or have been guilty of misconduct, and confess our sins, He is true to His own nature and promises and will forgive our sins or dismiss our lawlessness and cleanse us from all unrighteousness or wrong-doing." 4. Here is the hard, hard one: In order to receive anything from God, we must forgive all who have ever wronged us or harmed us. Mark 11:25-26, "And whenever you stand praying, if you have anything against anyone, forgive him and let it drop, leave it, let it go, in order that you Father Who is in heaven may also forgive you your own failings and shortcomings and let them drop. But if you do not forgive, neither will your Father in heaven forgive your failings and shortcomings." This is from 'America Ambushed' and Chuck Dean is speaking, "Not long ago, I was speaking at a national conference for Vietnam veterans, and I touched on the importance of forgiving such notable figures as Jane Fonda, Richard Nixon, Lyndon Johnson, etc, The reactions were mixed, especially when I mentioned truly forgiving Jane Fonda, the Vietnam veteran's arch-enemy, for her activities during the war. One particular veteran who has been paralyzed and wheel-chair bound for twenty years, forgave her and got out of his wheel-chair and walked. As far as I know, he is still walking, and most of all he is praising the Lord for setting him free of his un-forgiveness." Conquering un-forgiveness is difficult --- but not impossible. Reach out a little to God, and He will reach back a lot!! 5. Renounce all contact with anything satanic or of the occult. 2Cor 6:14-15,17, "For what partnership have right living and right standing with God with iniquity and lawlessness? Or how can light have fellowship with darkness? What harmony can there be between Christ or Belial (the devil)? Or what has a believer in common with an unbeliever? So come out from among them, and separate yourselves from them, says the Lord, and do not touch any unclean thing, then I will received you kindly and treat you with favor." All ties with the misconduct of the past must be broken and destroyed. 6. You are now ready, having been duly prepared, to pray the prayer of release from this curse and become a member of the family of God. B. Prayer of Forgiveness - "Father, in the name of Jesus, I now confess that I have not loved, but have resented certain people and groups who have hurt or disappointed me. I have un-forgiveness in my heart. I call upon You, Father, to help me forgive. In the name of Jesus, I do now forgive: begin naming names, groups, institutions, etc. that the Holy Spirit brings to your mind. Take your time! Father, in the name of Jesus, I do now also forgive myself. I claim and receive your forgiveness because I am Your child. Amen." C. Prayer for Breaking the PTSD Curse - "Heavenly Father, in the name of Jesus, I am truly Your child. I have been purchased by the Blood of Jesus. I belong to You, I do not belong to the devil. The devil has no right to me and no power over me because of the precious Blood of Jesus. Father, You have known my sins. I confess them all. I repent of all of them now. I ask You to forgive me. Forgive me of every sin and remove the stains from my heart and from my life, for Your Word tells me that when I confess my sins, You will forgive me and will cleanse me of all unrighteousness. I not only confess the sins that were committed by my parents, grandparents, and great-grandparents - which introduced curses into my family. I confess those sins to You that the power of the curse might be broken through the shed Blood of Jesus - Blood that was also shed for me . In the name of Jesus, I now rebuke, break and loose myself and my family from my own sins, the sins of my ancestors or from any other person. I am redeemed from the curse of the Law. I break the power of every spoken curse - of every evil that came out of my mouth. I take back all ground I ever yielded to the devil and establish my faith in the Lord Jesus and I claim the blessing rather that the curse. I break the power of every evil word that was knowingly or unknowingly spoken against me by any other person, cult, or group. I cancel that spoken word and I cancel the power of the curse in the authority of the name of Jesus Christ. I believe in Your power through the Holy Spirit, Lord Jesus. I believe in Your redemption for me. I believe in my heart that You are my Savior - You are my Deliverer. I confess You with my mouth, and I confess that the power of every curse is now broken in the authority of Your Name. I command every evil spirit which is come in through the door of that curse to leave me NOW!!!, in the name of Jesus Christ. Amen." 7. Now believe that you have received and go on into God's blessings. Eph 3:20, Now to Him Who, by the power that is at work within us, is able to do superabundantly, for over and above all that we can ask or think beyond our highest prayers, desires, thoughts, hopes, or dreams." These simple words will help you in receiving, "Father, I now open myself to receive Your blessings in every way You want to impart them to me. In Jesus' name." Keep these words of receiving active in your mind and on your lips. Find a good, loving, understanding church where the Bible is taught and preached. God loves you and we love you. God bless you, and remember Jesus is Lord over all.
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