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Find out more about Ethan: Ethan Elgin has worked in the mental health field for several years in both inpatient and outpatient capacities as a mental health counselor. He is uniquely concerned with the advocacy of rights for those with mental illness, including the politics and stigmas attached that effect an enormous portion of the world's population. He lives and works in Boston, Massachusetts. He can be reached at ethanelgin@gmail.com. |
In a stunning setback to public officials recognizing PTSD in United States veterans, Cindy McCain came out with this statement in an interview the other day:
Q: You met your husband after his POW days. To what extent is that still with you - or is it a part of history?
CINDY McCAIN: My husband will be the first one to tell you that that's in the past. Certainly it's a part of who he is, but he doesn't dwell on it. It's not part of a daily experience that we experience or anything like that. But it has shaped him. It has made him the leader that he is.
Q: But no cold sweats in the middle of the night?
CINDY McCAIN: Oh, no, no, no, no, no. My husband, he'd be the first one to tell you that he was trained to do what he was doing. The guys who had the trouble were the 18-year-olds who were drafted. He was trained, he went to the Naval Academy, he was a trained United States naval officer, and so he knew what he was doing.
It should be noted that studies show that 20% of soldiers coming home from the recent wars in Iraq and Afghanistan have suffered from PTSD. The struggle for that to be recognized is laid out further here. With the lack of mental health parity or recognition in mental illness in any of McCain’s healthcare plan, this is a frightening statement that gives insight into how this campaign views mental health across the board and also even in US Vets. This subject is brought up in further detail on the bipartisan veteran advocacy site Votevets.org.
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