Occupation also played a large role in contributing

feelings of depression and negativity. Occupation also played a large role in contributing to
PTSD development. It seems fair to say that an infantry man will see more combat than a
military cook. However, it is important to note that anyone in the military can experience
combat and they are all trained to fight. In reality though, infantry men and other combat related
billets will experience more traumatic events than someone that is not in a combat related billet.
The length of time and number of deployments is also a contributing factor. If a veteran is
deployed multiple times over the course of a few years he has a greater chance of being exposed
to trauma than someone that isn’t deployed often. It is also important to take into consideration
the veteran’s personal life. It is possible that veterans are missing important events in their home
life including the birth of a child, the death of a family member, or their best friend’s wedding.
These circumstances are very likely to weigh heavy on an individual’s mind and potential
leading to feelings of sadness. In this case, if a traumatic event did occur it is possible that the
event compiled with their sadness about life situations can lead to PTSD. It has been concluded
from this article that the most attention should be given to the role of personnel and environment
variables in predicting PTSD (Xue et al., 2015).
Treatment Options
There are numerous treatments available for PTSD so it would be beneficial to determine which
are the most effective in veterans. Sharpless and Barber (2011) evaluated psychological and
pharmacological approaches to PTSD in veterans. Psychotherapies such as Prolonged Exposure
(PE), Cognitive Processing Therapy (CPT) and Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing
(EMDR) were found to be the most effective in treating veterans. Relaxation training and stress

PTSD IN VETERANS 6
inoculation training were found to be far less effective (Sharpless & Barber, 2011). PE utilizes
imaginal exposure, processing of imaginal exposure, and relaxation training focused on slow
breathing techniques. Sessions are conducted over an 8-15 week period and each session lasts 90
minutes (Sharpless & Barber, 2011). CPT involves 12 weekly, 60 minute, individual sessions.
The goal is to reduce PTSD through emotional processing and cognitive restructuring of trauma-
related emotions and thoughts (Schumm, Walter, Bartone, & Chad, 2015). This form of
treatment is more intense than others. EDMR attempts to use desensitization and reprocessing by
having the veteran imagine distressing images while tracking finger movements by the therapist
(Sharpless &Barber, 2011).
Propranolol (Inderal), a beta-adrenergic antagonist (beta-blocker), is the most effective
medication for reducing symptoms of PTSD. In the end authors found that PE is the
psychotherapy of choice. Many studies note that antidepressants such a Zoloft and Paxil are
considered first- line choices in treating PTSD (Schumm, Walter, Bartone, & Chad, 2015). It is
also noted that paroxetine, sertraline and venlafaxine are the most promising medications used to
treat PTSD symptoms (Sharpless & Barber, 2011). It is also important to note that some of these