The reality, however, is that the Department of Veterans Affairs and the Department of Defense simply don’t have the capacity or the means to address the pervasiveness or the magnitude of this national challenge, particularly for the many National Guard, Reserve, and former troops and families who silently suffer in the “woodwork” of America.

The reality, also, is that the wounds of heart, soul, and spirit have a spiritual component — an incredibly relevant faith component — that is not being adequately addressed. Despite the valiant efforts of many organizations and commitment of billions of dollars to address these issues, there remains a serious gap – the faith gap.

So how do we address this faith gap? The initial premise must be that God is the true healer, and that Jesus Christ is the avenue to experience true recovery from the ravages of combat trauma, particularly those visited on the mind and emotions. For many of our veterans and returning warriors, this will be a long road; but there is hope.

In my own life, and in the lives of many wounded warriors; I have personally observed the peace, the calm, the healing that God can bring to war-ravaged souls. Whether for the Veteran who has lived in the lonely isolation of combat memories for decades, or young Warriors just returning from their first horrors of combat; the power of God, the power of God’s written word, and the community of God’s people around our nation can become powerful resources in this healing process. And this healing can certainly extend to military families and many others impacted by these mental, emotional, and spiritual wounds of war.

In a day where we are willing to try everything else — acupuncture, Eastern mysticism, drugs,yoga, etc — let us also have the moral courage to integrate the very powerful components of faith to fight the ravages of combat trauma, PTSD, suicide, and hoplessness which have become pervasive across our nation. See http://www.PTSDhealing.org for more information and resources.

“For the first time since the Vietnam War, soldier suicides are expected to exceed the civilian suicide rate. That being said, one needs to look not just at active duty Army suicide rates in general, but at combat veteran suicide rates in particular. Only about half of our soldiers have been deployed to a combat zone. Once a soldier is an OIF/OEF (Operation Iraqi Freedom/Operation Enduring Freedom) veteran (i.e., served in combat in Iraq or Afghanistan), the chances of committing suicide increase significantly. VA Secretary Peake testified before Congress in May. Young male OIF/OEF veterans (18 - 35) are twice as likely to commit suicide as their civilian counterparts and young female OIF/OEF veterans are three times as likely to commit suicide.”

I am an active duty military spouse who helps soldiers at the largest military base in the world, Ft. Hood. I am intimately familiar with the programs that the Army has in place. The fact remains that the DoD IS doing the best it can with the funds that it has and in light of the demands being placed upon it by our executive and legislative branches (to maintain two fronts in the Middle East).

I have seen many examples of excellent care provided by the Army but I think the biggest problem it faces is demand outstripping supply re care, treatment, and services. That is why public awareness and Congressional funding is so important.

If you compare it to a similar cohort, i.e. young men, it is not much higher.

Combat fatigue has been around a long time. And the Army is aware of the problem, and doing a lot to help.

But it’s easier to write an “ain’t it awful” article than to bother to look up what is being done.

The drug-based paradigm of care is rendering what few positives this unscientific profession could ever claim into historical footnotes.

I want to see stats. How many of these suicides follow the onset of drug “therapy?”