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2009-09-06 Home Front: WoT

Virtual World in Second Life to be offered to Veterans with PTSD

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Posted by Anguper Hupomosing9418 2009-09-06 16:15|| || Front Page|| [2 views ] Top

#1 Oh for phuechs sake, just drop the crutches.

Posted by Besoeker 2009-09-06 17:22|| 2009-09-06 17:22|| Front Page Top

#2 Part of the 'problem' is that in older cultures they had cleansing rituals in which those who'd been in such a situation would be absolved by the society of the acts and the trauma they'd seen and lived. It was public and participatory. While we have modern psychology and practices, something that served man and his societies for thousands of years can't be completely substituted for by 'management'.

Posted by Procopius2k 2009-09-06 19:33|| 2009-09-06 19:33|| Front Page Top

#3 Agreed, p2k, but there's some pretty strong evidence suggesting that those who are active in virtual worlds engage most of the same neural circuits as in real discussions with other vets. And that generally rewires the overloaded neural circuits that otherwise keep getting reinforced in combat memories.

My WWII decorated (Silver Star, Bronze Stars, multiple Purple Hearts) uncle spent hundreds of hours visiting wounded vets from Iraq & Afghan before he died. As he put it, 'I'm there to listen or talk if they want, and if not then at least they know I've been through similar situations."

But there aren't enough Uncles like him to go around, in part because we have lost fewer of our military to death than in prior conflicts but have more who are dealing with PTSD or brain trauma. ICT did a lot of the immersive training games the Army now uses, so they have some data on 'before' with soldiers to inform this Second Life offering.

Posted by lotp 2009-09-06 21:25|| 2009-09-06 21:25|| Front Page Top

#4 Please forgive my rant, but PTSD has become a cottage industry among the Disabled Veteran diability payment recipient ranks. There certainly ARE many legitimate cases, but the abuses should be investigated.

Posted by Besoeker 2009-09-06 21:48|| 2009-09-06 21:48|| Front Page Top

#5 Is it just me or does Chicoma Lodge and Chicoma Island remind anyone else of Manchurian candidate with the whole ChiCom thing. I couldn't find it in the article, where did the name come from?

Posted by rjschwarz 2009-09-06 22:10|| 2009-09-06 22:10|| Front Page Top

#6 There certainly ARE many legitimate cases

Yes, yes there are. I deal with a lot of them in the course of my job.

And some of us don't collect disability, or intend to.

Posted by Pappy 2009-09-06 22:53|| 2009-09-06 22:53|| Front Page Top

23:53 tipper
23:13 whatadeal
23:00 gorb
22:54 gorb
22:53 Pappy
22:51 gorb
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22:35 tipper
22:32 Frank G
22:30 Lampedusa Glusing8107
22:26 tipper
22:10 rjschwarz
22:09 Frank G
22:05 Frank G
22:03 rjschwarz
21:48 Rambler in Virginia
21:48 Besoeker
21:46 phil_b
21:43 Angie Schultz
21:40 Hellfish
21:37 Redneck Jim
21:30 Hellfish
21:27 lotp
21:25 Hellfish