Veterans’ PTSD and Moral Injury Centered in Documentary ‘Healing a Soldier’s Heart’

During the Civil War, “Soldier’s Heart” was the name given to the symptoms we now associate with post-traumatic stress disorder, or PTSD. While the condition has had many names in the decades – and wars – that have followed, its toll on soldiers has not abated. Between 11 and 15 percent of Vietnam War veterans are still suffering from PTSD, 50 years after the end of the war. The new documentary “Healing a Soldier’s Heart” follows four veterans reckoning with PTSD and with moral injury – the psychological harm we experience when we violate our moral code. We talk with the filmmaker, a Vietnam War veteran and a psychologist about what it looks like to heal.

Related link(s):

• Watch the documentary “Healing a Soldier’s Heart”
• Moral Injury – PTSD: National Center for PTSD
• For Family and Friends – PTSD: National Center for PTSD
• Moral Injury and Distress Scale (MIDS) – PTSD

Guests:

Shira Maguen, professor of psychiatry and behavioral sciences, UCSF Medical School; staff psychologist, San Francisco VA Medical Center PTSD Program

Stephen Olsson, director and producer, “Healing A Soldier's Heart”

Levie Isaacks, decorated Vietnam Army platoon leader (Bronze Star for heroism) and veteran

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