From the years 1955 to 1975 America saw two decades of everything from achievements, war and horrors. Events from this time-period included the election of five presidents, the impeachment of Richard Nixon, the lunar landing, the JFK assassination, the civil rights movement, and most notably the Vietnam War. The Vietnam War was a war many disagreed with altogether and therefore created a type of divide within the United States. This bloody and traumatizing war was largely fought by college age males and most had no previous fighting experience. Back home however, the American citizens showed little sympathy for the soldiers as the media and news outlets portrayed them as “baby killers” and murderers. This was mainly due to the fact the Vietnam War was the first war in which the American people were able to see actual pictures from the war due to the rise of television and new technology. The soldiers who returned from Vietnam were often traumatized and severely physically and mentally hurt. The American people offered little support for these returning veterans and in many cases even helped to worsen the veterans mental state. 

In Tim O’Brien’s “The Things They Carried”, O’Brien details the Vietnam War through the eyes of one specific platoon. In the book, O’Brien mainly dives into specifics regarding the objects the soldiers carried and their weights. He details how they carried everything from knives, food, water, bug repellent, first aid, tents, guns, and heavy radios. He went in depth on the good luck charms many of the soldiers carried as well. The soldiers carried items such as a pebble, thumb, and a rabbit’s foot for good luck. Lieutenant Cross’ pebble was especially important to him and he often carried it in his mouth to taste the salt water and ocean of back home. These good-luck charms were carried to keep them safe and hopefully keep them from suffering the same fate many others in the platoon suffered. O’Brien describes the graphic scenes of bloodshed and death in his book. For example, “Right then Ted Lavender was shot in the head on his way back from peeing. He lay with his mouth open. The teeth were broken. There was a swollen black bruise under his left eye. The cheekbone was gone.” This excerpt describes the daily graphic scenes that the soldiers had to endure. Scenes like this are what led to so many soldiers returning home traumatized and with PTSD. Many times, scenes like the one described were so common that the soldiers did not even think twice. This can be seen later in the book when Kiowa calmly explains how Ted Lavender died, “Like cement… boom, down. Not a word”. One may think that the soldiers may still be in mourning so shortly after witnessing a friend get shot dead so brutally. However, it does not seem to be that way as they discuss Lavenders death. Times like these is when we get a glimpse of how mentally ill and distressed most of these men are. 

When it was time to come home however, these men were not met with the same open arms and parades of past wars. Instead the veterans were welcomed home by protests, name calling, and persecution. This was the exact opposite of the greetings which soldiers of WW1 and WW2 were met by. As Maury Thompson wrote, "As soon as you marched out, all you could hear from the crowd was, ‘Baby killers!' " he said. "And that made you feel rather bad because that was the farthest thing from the truth." This is just one example of the cold welcomes that soldiers received when arriving home from Vietnam. Thompson also goes onto explain, “Area Vietnam veterans said they generally did not have the sort of homecoming that soldiers returning from Iraq and Afghanistan have today, where the community turns out to honor them”. This is not a good way to welcome home soldiers returning from a traumatic war. To make things worse for these men, PTSD was largely overlooked and not yet recognized in the field of medicine. These men were once again under attack, this time from the American people. The same people whom these soldiers risked their lives to defend and die for were now the ones hurling bottles and insults at them as they came home. This in turn created a divide between the American people and the veterans. In many ways this is why so many Vietnam veterans today are homeless and mistreated. According to a study done by USA Today, Veterans make up one in four homeless people. This goes to show how our veterans have been overlooked and mistreated over the years, especially those who served in Vietnam.

There are several other factors that led to the progression of a soldier’s PTSD as well. According to Jennifer L. Price PhD, a writer for the U.S Department of Veterans Affairs, those veterans with a “high level of war-zone exposure” had significantly higher rates of PTSD as well as other post war related illness than those veterans without such a high level of exposure. This is to be expected as it would make sense that those veterans who experienced a higher level of combat and war exposure would be more likely to develop PTSD and other mental illness upon arrival home. These “high-level war zone experiences” are portrayed in O’Briens “The Things They Carried”. The numbers back this up as well, with 35.8% of men who experienced a “high level” of war-zone exposure meeting the criteria of someone currently suffering from PTSD. According to NVVRS estimates, the percentage of Vietnam theater veterans suffering from a life long battle with PTSD is even greater. PTSD, although the most common, was not the only mental health battle that Vietnam Veterans faced. Alcohol abuse, depression, and anxiety disorders were also extremely common. Once again as previously stated, these psychological issues were much more consistent with Vietnam theater veterans than among non-theater veterans (Vietnam-era veterans). In addition, readjustment issues were much more prevalent among “high level” exposure veterans. These readjustment issues range from instability in the workplace, family conflicts, and marriage problems. Often violence is associated with the transitioning of the veteran back into civilian life as well. This can be expected as many of these men are coming from an extremely hostile and brutal environment and being expected to smoothly transition back into society. Meanwhile, society’s rejection of the returning U.S soldiers likely only added to the veteran’s mental deterioration. Vietnam veterans still currently suffering from PTSD today are also reporting decreased physical health. This gives a glimpse into the possible link between mental and physical health. Studies also showed that returning veterans with very seldom had just one readjustment issue and that often when there was one psychological issue, others followed. Another surprising link Price writes of is the link between race and post-war psychological issues. According to the U.S department of Veterans Affairs, returning African- American and Hispanic Vietnam War veterans report back a higher rate of adjustment issues within their families and society as well as a higher rate of PTSD. This is likely attributed to the gruesome and horrific tasks many of the minority soldiers were assigned during the war. Often the minority soldiers were looked as lesser than their white counterparts. 

The VietnamWar was a time of major turmoil for America. It took place in an era in American history plagued by protests, recessions, death, and war. The soldiers who fought this war were subject to horrors one could not imagine, as well as extreme physical and mental strain. Tim O’Brien gives an extremely accurate portrayal of a day in the life of a platoon fighting in the war. He is able to detail all that is carried with them and the experiences the soldiers must endure on a daily basis. Jennifer Price then describes the details of the mental states of many Vietnam War veterans and what they lead to in the readjustment period. She is able to use statistics to link “high level exposure” in the war to worsened PTSD and psychological issues. O’Brien is able to paint us a picture of what many of these “high level” war time experiences were like and leaves us with striking images. 
