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A basic principle of this page is that a well defined problem is half solved. Clearly defined problems suggest solutions. In looking at problems related to the military, it is necessary to consider the nature of each problem that might occur as a result of military experience and the nature of the individual who is experiencing those problems.
An African warrior is afraid three times:
When he hears the roar of the lion When he sees the foot print of the lion When looks the lion in the eye
Lets consider this quote. How many people in Africa have gone eye-to-eye with a lion? What type of person would do so?
It can be imagined that many people talk about becoming warriors, but never get around to it. Others might "gear up," but just never go on a safari. Others might head out on safari, and while sitting around a fire hear the roar of a lion! It would seem that a number of those people would just head home. The next day the group might head out and then they see the huge foot print of the lion; as might be expected a number of those individuals might head home. Those remaining take the next step of finding the lion, and with spears in hand look the lion in the eye and kill it. Those that killed the lions were warriors.
Warriors are a different class of individuals. Not better, but different. Those people who headed home might become doctors, carpenters, book keepers or butchers. They are no less important than the warriors, but a different class of individuals. Does the fact that the warriors are made up of people who go towards the roar say anything about their nature?
Thoughout history all groups of people have been threatened by others. During periods of threat the different "nature" of people emerge:
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support - those who are unable to take part in an active campaign against the perceived threat.
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waiters - those who generally take longer to decide if they should be part of a response effort.
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walkers - those who walk up to are commited to action, but just take longer to get to the action.
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trotters - those who make up the "second wave" of actively confronting a problem.
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runners - those who run straight to the action and are generally in an "alert" mode in their every-day lives.
CITIZENS
Citizens are usually those individuals who keep up the day-to-day operation of a country, and are generally the support people and the waiters.
The word citizen, and not civilian, is used because the definition of civilian is "someone who is not now in the military, or who is currently a police officer or fireman."
Most citizens have not undergone some form of military "drilling." Many individuals undergo training that they call "the drill," but most of that training is important to realize that training is not 24/7 for 16-30 weeks as is the case Basic and Advanced Individual Training (AIT) in the military.
Many athletes train themselves and there are many occupations that require extensive and intensive training. Further, many people intentionally or unintentionally drill themselve due to mental health issues or due to repetitive behavior patterns. Worry, depression and obsessive compulsive disorders are examples of mental health issues that drill the brain and alter its structure. Over eating, over drinking, smoking, continuous yelling/screaming/fighting, etc. are examples of repetitive behaviors that can alter brain structure, also.
Altered brain structure occurs when neurons are fired and re-fired. This process causes the ends of a neuron to become "thicker," and causes little branch-like structures to grow at the ends. The constant re-firing of a neuron causes growth in the next neuron down the line. These next neurons grow stronger and grow additional branches of their own; the process goes on-and-on, and in science it is stated that "neurons that fire together wire together!"
When a person has fired and re-fired neurons over and over it becomes what some people call their second nature.
SOLDIERS
When citizens are become part of a military organization the are all soldiers, but each branch of the military has names for "their" soldiers. Citizens become soldiers for any number of reasons, but are made up of the walkers, trotters and runners.
Each branch of the military give their "soldiers" Basic Training that lasts for a certain number of weeks:
Army 1+9 Navy 8 Air Force 6.5 Marines 13 National Guard 1+9 Coast Guard 8
Basic is followd by Advanced Individual training (AIT) and both seemingly go on-and-on. Each branch is very good at training, and able to take people from the hills of Tennessee as-well-as the inner city of Chicgo and "drill" them into soldiers regardless of each individual's level of intelligence or education.
The military "drill" is always coupled with strong emotions, and the emotions are the mortar that binds the experiences and individuals together.
Thus, while all soldiers are drilled, not every soldier has gone to the next level wherein that military training is "seared" into their brains through exposure to, and the experiencing of:
WARRIORS
Warriors are soldiers who have spent time in an active war zone and/or experienced combat. Initially, they might have been walkers, trotters or runners, but deployment in battle conditions takes them all to another level.
It has been said that war zones, and expecially battle, can be described as prolonged periods of boredom that are interrupted by periods of intense fear and many times terror.
The military conflicts in Korea, Viet Nam, the Balkins, Somalia, Iraq and Afganistan have been different from past wars in many important ways. Let's compare World War II with Iraq:
WW II
In many more recent conflicts our military have been in continous combat and experienced prolonged periods of emotional arousal.
The word terror is very important to the discussion. In a old documentary Mike Tyson said fear "...is like fire - it can warm your house or burn it down." When confronted with most forms of fear a person's "fight or flight" system will kick in. When this system kicks in the individual determines that there are courses of "action" available and one can stand one's ground, or retreat in the presence of and overwheling force in order to fight another day.
Intense fear is very close to terror and in conditions of terror fighting and running are usually not options, the circumstances of the moment have control of the outcome and one is more-or-less in a frozen state.
Combat conditions thus are cauldrens of fear/terror and the mechanisms of fight/flight/freeze are activated., and most often, these reactions are not "decided" upon by deliberation and logical decision making. During such periods multiple brain functions in action at levels of awareness and unawareness.
When one is caught up in situations of extreme stress amazing things occur within our brain and body.
WAR
Women
TV commercial: flight attendants male and female
Women in a man's world
Women as Wounded Healers
"...one who must look after (her) own wounds, but at the same time
be prepared to heal the wounds of others" - Nower, 1972
- Role Expectancy
- Care Giving
- Secondary Trauma
- Grief
- Anger
- Despair
- Self-Care
Woman's evolutionary reaction to stress: fight/flight/freeze
tend and befriend
Women in a military world
Women Warriors | 
