Greek tragedies offer lessons on pain of war

[unhappycamper]

heater of War
Reading focuses on war-related mental illness.


Greek tragedies offer lessons on pain of war
By Chelsea J. Carter - The Associated Press
Posted : Friday Aug 15, 2008 6:14:13 EDT

SAN DIEGO — The screams of agony from the soldier echoed through the ballroom-turned-theater, forcing a hushed whisper among those witnessing his sudden break with reality.

He was no longer with his wife, seated beside him on the stage; no longer with his comrades. In his mind, he was back on the battlefield, killing his enemy — the price of years of combat stress from witnessing war’s horrors.

In this “Theater of War,” the wounds date back millennia and the words spoken by actors are translated from Greek, but they speak to Iraq and Afghanistan combat veterans and the doctors and therapists who treat them.

“I wanted to keep the pain to myself, son, but now it cuts straight through me. Do you understand? It cuts straight through me,” the lead character in the play “Philoctetes” tells a comrade.

Those hidden wounds and their effect on family members and caregivers were the focus of the Greek readings at a three-day combat stress conference hosted by the Marine Corps that addresses post-traumatic stress disorder, anxiety and depression brought on by combat.


Rest of article at: http://www.marinecorpstimes.com/news/2008/08/ap_sophoclesmarines_081408/