Defeating PTSD: Veteran Tames Triggers and Reclaims His World
3 minute read
Defeating PTSD: Veteran Tames Triggers and Reclaims His World
3 minute read
Queen’s “We Are the Champions” is practically unavoidable, played on the radio, at parties, and at sporting events. For most people, it’s a song of victory and celebration.
But Chris, a Marine Corps Veteran, couldn’t bear to hear the song. Instead of celebration, it conjured up painful memories of his wartime service in Kuwait, remembrances that evoked intense emotional reactions.
Today, “We Are the Champions” is just another song to Chris, and music has become a source of healing. How he got there, he hopes, will inspire other Veterans to overcome posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) and the sensory triggers that are often among its hardest challenges.
PTSD: Feeling the impact of wartime experiences
Chris joined the Marines in 1989 and trained to become a cannoneer. That meant he’d be responsible for operating, loading, and firing artillery. It didn’t take long before he needed to do it in real battle: Saddam Hussein invaded Kuwait in August 1990, setting the stage for a U.S.-led military buildup and the start of the Gulf War in early 1991.
“I was in my early twenties, going into hostile environment, shooting more rounds than most of these guys have seen before,” Chris says. During his service, this experience started to feel routine.
But back home, after he completed his service in 1992, his wartime experiences followed him, including the song that had become seared into his memory.
“I’ll still never forget,” he says. “We were all in the trucks, geared up, had my portable radio, and that Queen song was on, ‘We Are the Champions.’ And literally, when the last note of the song was done, captain gets up and says, ‘Fire it up. Let’s go.’”
“It used to be real hard for me to listen to that,” he says.
Chris didn’t know how to cope with the impacts of his wartime experiences or his return to civilian life. He bounced between jobs. His marriage fell apart. Then, during an appointment with a primary care physician at VA, everything surfaced.
“I broke down. I broke down crying,” he says. “So she set me up with a counselor.”
Visiting the counselor became his turning point.
Therapy and music: Finding his keys to recovery
In therapy, Chris began confronting his trauma directly.
“When I was diagnosed with PTSD, talking about traumatic incidents gave me clarity as to the way that I was feeling,” he explains. “When those memories would come in, zeroing in on those was powerful.”
As for “We Are the Champions,” Chris says the cognitive behavioral therapy he received from his VA counselor taught him how to manage his emotions when hearing the song. It no longer triggers him.
He also has discovered that playing music soothes him. “Music sets the tone for my mood,” he says. “If I’m stressed, time to pick up the guitar.”
Chris doesn’t sugarcoat the challenge of overcoming PTSD. “To take the time and effort to learn how to conquer it, that came from practice, that came from hard work,” he says.
But he wants other Veterans who may be experiencing PTSD to know that the work pays off. He says he’s happier and more successful now. And he’s on a mission to make sure other Veterans hear his simple message: “There’s help out there.”
