BRITISH TROOPS IN IRAQ FACE RISK OF MENTAL ILLNESS

Monday, March 12, 2007

Source:
www.Dailytimes.com
http://www.dailytimes.com.pk/default.asp?page=2007%5C03%5C12%5Cstory_12-3-2007_pg7_35

Thousands of British troops are facing permanent psychological damage after fighting in Iraq and Afghanistan, a mental health charity has warned, reports the Sunday Telegraph.

"New government figures reveal that more than 2,100 soldiers have returned from Iraq since 2003 suffering from some form of mental illness," Sean Rayment writes in the British newspaper.

"The threat from roadside bombs, the intensity of the combat and the fear associated with fighting a hidden enemy are all factors said to be leading to large numbers of troops returning from operational tours with serious mental conditions."

Psychiatric conditions suffered by service personnel include post traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), manic depression, and drug and alcohol dependency.

But it has also emerged that up to seven British service personnel have committed suicide either during or after active duty in Iraq.

The Ministry of Defence is yet to publish figures of the number of soldiers diagnosed with a psychiatric condition after serving in Afghanistan, where the risk of death and injury has been even greater in recent months than in Iraq.

Combat Stress, a mental health charity for veterans, has said that it has seen a 26 percent increase over the past year in the number of troops seeking help. They include 160 veterans of the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan seeking help for mental health conditions, many of which were not diagnosed while they were serving in the forces.

Robert Marsh, the charity's director of fund-raising, said: "The average veteran does not seek help for at least 10 years. The military could be facing a mental health time bomb."

The MoD's figures show that of the 2,100 troops diagnosed with a psychiatric condition, 904 had developed adjustment disorders, where sufferers have difficulty readjusting to their normal way of life after a traumatic experience.

Up to 328 servicemen and women returned from Iraq with PTSD, which can lead to manic depression, and another 227 were diagnosed with other neurotic disorders.

The figures also stated that 188 had taken part in so-called psychoactive substance misuse, including alcohol and drug abuse, and the abuse of antidepressants.