-- U.S. soldier in Baghdad kills four fellow troops before killing himself, senior defense official tells CNN. {Could he have been suffering from Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder? } Post-traumatic stress disorder is a type of anxiety disorder. It can occur after you've seen or experienced a traumatic event that involved the threat of injury or death. The war in Iraq has lent a new cultural urgency to this research. About one in eight of the troops returning from combat show signs of post-traumatic stress disorder, or P.T.S.D., which is characterized by intrusive thoughts, sleep loss and hyper-alertness following a horrifying experience. Many are so traumatized that they fail utterly to respond to antianxiety medications, talk therapy and other conventional treatments.
The war in Iraq has lent a new cultural urgency to this research. About one in eight of the troops returning from combat show signs of post-traumatic stress disorder, or P.T.S.D., which is characterized by intrusive thoughts, sleep loss and hyper-alertness following a horrifying experience. Many are so traumatized that they fail utterly to respond to antianxiety medications, talk therapy and other conventional treatments.P.T.S.D. is one of the most worrisome of the generally recognized anxiety disorders. There are four others: generalized anxiety disorder (G.A.D.), obsessive-compulsive disorder, phobias and panic disorder. G.A.D. is the most common, but all are familiar complaints in doctors’ offices: more than 20 million Americans will suffer one of these during his or her lifetime.
Genetics and the environment play roles in the development of anxiety disorders,..
Murder Charges Filed Against Soldier ..."The 44-year-old soldier has been charged with murder and aggravated assault in the Baghdad slayings Monday, which his father said came just weeks before the end of his third tour of duty in Iraq. His father said the younger Russell, an electronics technician, was at the stress center to transition out of active duty. He said his son was undergoing stressful mental tests that he didn't understand were merely tests, "so they broke him." "His life was over as far as he was concerned. He lived for the military," the elder Russell said. "We're sorry for the families, too. It shouldn't have happened"...