DUMMERSTON — The names for the condition have changed over the years.
After the Civil War, doctors called it “soldier's heart.”
In World War I, it was called “shell shock.”
In World War II, it was called “battle fatigue.”
Vietnam gave it new name: “post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD).”
And now, the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan have spawned a new name for a condition as old as war itself - “moral injury” - affecting a number of the more than two million men and women who have served. Hundreds of thousands of other veterans from previous wars still struggle with what they experienced.
For combat veterans, the emotional intensity of the war experience comes with something else: a struggle with the ethical and moral ambiguities of battle and, as a result, the deep sense that the fundamental foundation that every human has of what is right and what is wrong has been thrown out of kilter.
And for those who never experienced war, there is no way to comfortably talk about it.
The all-volunteer Warrior Connection has quietly built up its efforts to serve these veterans and their journey back to civilian life with six-day retreats in the woods of Dummerston and Putney.
And now the nonprofit is launching a new nationwide endeavor, Operation Battle-Bro, to combat an epidemic of suicide among veterans, by connecting them to one another.
The Warrior Connection is the brainchild of Dr. Anne Black, a psychologist and educator, who believes that moral injury goes hand in hand with PTSD.
And, she says, the way to get veterans to deal with the pain and depression is to make them feel safe.
“When combat vets feel safe emotionally and physically, and when they can trust the people they're with, the healing process, and themselves, the walls come down and, for most of them, they start sharing their stories. If you keep a lid on too long, those emotional experiences, sooner or later, are going to blow up.”
The start
For the past four years, Black and a group of local volunteers have led veterans through the retreats. The Warrior Connection has been quietly holding these retreats to do the emotional and moral reconstruction that Black says the military doesn't do.
“The military does a great job turning a civilian into a soldier,” she said, “but it doesn't do quite as well turning a soldier back into a civilian.”
“Too many vets are left alone with their demons, and they withdraw and lead unhappy lives,” Black said. “That's why vet-to-vet contact is so important.”
The retreats started with four men.
“We started with a group of Vietnam vets, because they got ignored when they came back and it took years for their service to be recognized. If we could keep them, they could be the mentors for the younger vets.”
Twelve more retreats followed over the next three years, and a cadre of four male and three female veterans now work as facilitators. There's a waiting list for the fifth season of retreats that begin later this month.
The retreats are free to the veterans, and the Warrior Connection makes them possible without money from the government. Food for retreats is donated by many local farms and businesses. Walker Farm donates all produce grown on their farm. Community members prepare the dinners.
“This organization is outside of the military, and outside of the government, and the veterans like it that way,” she said. “We've been very quietly doing these retreats, and the word is starting to get around.”
The retreats are drug- and alcohol-free, Black said. Through varied entry points, from music to expressive arts to meditation, participants make the journey through a nine-station process.
First, they look at why they enlisted in the military, and the experience of going from civilian to soldier.
Then they look at the losses and ordeals of their combat experiences and the inner resources to deal with them. Then they move on to the return from battle and the emotional reclamation that needs to take place.
By the end, they are filled with fresh insights and new resources to cope so they can proceed to the last stage: telling a new story about themselves.
“That first night is always the hardest,” Black said.
But no one enters the process unless they are truly committed to changing, she added.
“We interview every person who signs up. They have to be sincere, and have to be ready and willing to face what ever comes up inside them. We always ask them, 'How strong is your desire?'”
The Warrior Connection also offers retreats for veterans' spouses. As described on the website, “The Spouse Retreat helps us understand our partner, and overcome our issues with their pain. It helps us help them with their readjustment back into civilian life. And it helps us feel at peace with ourselves while we learn to bond with them again and accommodate their changes.”
Black admits she is an unlikely person to be bonding with combat veterans. She is a pacifist and doesn't believe in using violence to settle disputes. But she admits that the experience has opened her eyes.
“I've found more truth and integrity in the circles at our retreats than I have found in any church I've been in,” she said. “I love these guys, and there is no place I'd rather be.”
The next step
The retreats have accomplished a lot, Black says, but it's a small solution to a big problem - the number of suicides committed by veterans.
It is estimated that, on average, one veteran takes his or her life every hour, every day through the year.
So Black has created a new project, Operation Battle-Bro, a secure, nationwide communication network.
Once verified veterans are logged in, they are able to view the selected name, home state, and Battle-Bro number of other enrolled veterans.
Each Battle-bro user is asked to commit to calling at least one other Battle-Bro member every day and provide whatever verbal support is needed. After their obligatory call, they will check off the person's name to indicate they have been contacted.
“Everyone is checked out before they can join, right down to asking for a copy of their DD-214 [discharge papers],” Black said. “We've got at least one person in 48 states, and more than 300 members.”
And, she says, it is working.
“We've prevented at least five suicides since December,” said Black. “The whole point of this is to let veterans know someone has their back.”
But the phone tree is just the first step. Black envisions opening a veterans center in Brattleboro, or “Battle-bro in Brattleboro,” as she likes to call it.
“I want to have a center here, a non-governmental place where veterans and civilians are welcome, a place that could be a model for the country.”
That might take a while, as the retreats are run through a combination of donations, grants, and the labor of volunteers. Black admits it will take a lot more to open the Battle-bro Center, but she says that “everything's ready to pop” soon.
“We've been under the radar, but not for long,” she said. “No one likes war-and we can't forget the warrior. The high suicide rate is a huge cry for help from our returning veterans. As a society, we have a moral and ethical responsibility to care for those who were willing to give their lives for our freedom.”
A cross-country fundraiser
Operation Battle-bro will have its coming-out party on June 14, Flag Day, when a group of motorcyclists will be leaving Brattleboro for a cross-country ride to Seattle.
All makes and models of two-wheeled machines are welcome. A $100 donation per person is required, and riders are responsible for their own food, gas, lodging, and insurance.
More information and a registration form will be posted soon at battle-bro.org.