List of Effects of War on Soldiers

War has lasting and profound effects on those who serve in the military, the anonymous men and women who are on the front lines as soldiers. These combatants face everyday battlefield situations that can scar, disable and haunt them for life.

Physical Injuries

• The most obvious effects of war on soldiers are injuries received in battle. Soldiers who experience head trauma, loss of limbs and senses such as hearing show readily identifiable signs of war. Soldiers who return from war with injuries need months or years of assistance and physical therapy. However, veterans are often unaware of the benefits and services available for them. It is frequently hard for soldiers to negotiate bureaucracies that will help them obtain aid. The frustration of getting help can lead to emotional problems like depression.

PTSD

• Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) is a disorder occurring after an event where individuals risk physical harm such as violent personal assaults, natural or human disasters such as earthquakes or bombings, accidents like a car wreck or military combat. Symptoms are troublesome memories and flashbacks, avoidance of places, people and experiences that remind the individual of the traumatic event, and other psychological difficulties like sleeping problems.

Rape

• Rape of women soldiers by enemy forces, or more commonly, by fellow soldiers is a reality of wartime. According to the Pentagon's fiscal 2009 Annual Report on Sexual Assault in the Military, a total of 3,230 sexual assault reports were filed that involved military personnel as victims or subjects. The trauma from enemy rape is difficult, but assault from a fellow soldier is a betrayal that is difficult for soldiers to report to necessary police agencies. Victims often believe they will not be trusted if they make an accusation. Often there is a military rank difference between rape victims and attackers which makes going through the chain of command difficult. Rape is a physical and psychological injury that makes recovery for many victims challenging. The physical effects of rape can be vaginal fistula, sexually transmitted diseases and AIDS. Rape victims can suffer from depression, suicidal thoughts and anger that results from the perpetrator's injury to the victim's self-worth.

Child Soldiers

• Child soldiers are coerced into serving as combatants and are victims who lose their childhoods. There is not a known number of how many child soldiers there are globally because of combat's fluid nature in underdeveloped countries. However, groups that track child soldiers believe that governments and rebels in Africa are the worse offenders. Both use children because armaments made from lighter materials are easy for children to carry and they work as expendable recruits. Children suffer the loss of education, the trauma of being forcibly separated from families and friends and the horror of injury. Seeing other enlisted children and family members die during conflict is emotionally scarring. The kidnapped children are sometimes forced to kill family and friends or face execution. Child soldiers, especially young girls, suffer rape and are forced into prostitution to survive. These girls are also domestic slaves who cook and clean for their captors.