Service Dogs Heal the Trauma of War
Our botched withdrawal from Afghanistan is hard to witness, but hearing the reports of Taliban brutality is even worse.
The U.S. Sun reports that “women face having ‘fingers cut off for using nail varnish’” and that the Taliban “reportedly shot a woman dead in the street for not wearing a burqa…”
My heart aches for all Afghanis.
It especially aches for the young women who’ve flourished during the last 20 years by freely developing their minds and talents in school, but who now must submit to the Taliban’s draconian rules.
Reuters reports that the Taliban have pulled Afghani women from their banking jobs and told them to stay in their homes because, by their primitive religious laws, only men can hold such jobs.
As I monitor the unpleasant withdrawal safely in my home, I wonder how the 800,000 Americans who fought in Afghanistan since 2001 are being affected by it.
Watching the shocking images from Kabul is far more unpleasant for veterans, according to Military News:
“Mental health experts say that the fall of Afghanistan may cause symptoms of mental health trauma to emerge. A VA story noted that news of the end of the Afghanistan mission has already led to an increase in veterans seeking help at their facilities.”
That is a worrisome trend.
According to Newsweek, approximately “four times as many active duty personnel and veterans have died by suicide than in combat since Sept. 11, 2001.”
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Copyright 2021 Tom Purcell, All Rights Reserved. Credit: Cagle.com
