A Band of Brothers and Sisters: Groups Help Veterans Connect
4-minute read
A Band of Brothers and Sisters: Groups Help Veterans Connect
4-minute read
The bond between people who serve together in the armed forces has been celebrated throughout history. Forged through deeply shared experience, it brings a sense of belonging and mutual support. So what happens to that connection when service members transition back to civilian life?
For Veterans facing mental health challenges, group therapy can make the difference between feeling isolated and claiming their place in a new community. The bonds that groups foster can help Veterans see that—whatever they are going through—they are not alone.
A wide range of groups with a common thread
Group therapy can take many forms. It can be a Veteran’s sole treatment or can complement other treatments, like individual talk therapy.
Some groups focus on specific conditions or life situations. For example, Corey, a Marine Corps Veteran, has participated in a group for Veterans who experience depression. Army Veteran Lisa took part in groups for anger management. Shannon, who also served in the Army, attends groups to help him maintain his sobriety.
There are also groups specifically for women or men and groups for Veterans from particular service eras.
Across these various groups, and for Veterans with different backgrounds, experiences, and challenges, there is a common sense of sharing and support. For Lawrence, an Army Veteran, this is what made group treatment especially helpful: “Just being able to hear other Veterans' stories, and realize there are a lot of other Veterans that are going through a lot of the same struggles I was going through.”
Finding community again
For Marine Corps Veteran Corey, therapy groups restored a sense of community that he had missed since leaving active service.
Corey had been medically discharged from the Marines because of heel spurs and back problems. With many friends still in the service, he felt cut off. He also was deeply disappointed at losing the career he had planned for himself. He says, “I didn’t feel like I was a Marine because I didn’t finish my four years.”
The loss weighed on Corey, and he began to pull away from his family. He also started misusing drugs and alcohol. Then, at his lowest point, Corey attempted to take his own life. This was when he realized he needed—and wanted—help, and he sought treatment at VA.
After receiving a diagnosis of PTSD, depression, bipolar disorder, and substance use disorder, Corey entered residential treatment. “There was 15 to 20 people in my group,” he says. “They started sharing a lot of things that I thought was only—that happened only to me.”
Group therapy, along with other treatments, gave Corey a new sense of belonging, helped him stop his unhealthy substance use, and enabled him to repair family relationships and form new friendships.
Joining the circle
For Army and Navy Veteran Shirley, a counseling group provided a profound sense of community that she had not felt during her service.
As one of few women serving at the time, Shirley says, “You know that everybody's looking at you to fail.” She also experienced sexual harassment and sexual assault.
At the time, Shirley did not talk about what she was experiencing. Even after leaving the service, she attempted to cope by throwing herself into her work. However, over time she realized she needed more than self-help. “I was going through five blood pressure medicines,” she says.
Through VA, Shirley began attending a stress management counseling group, which provided the camaraderie that she had missed. She says, “We bonded well together. We were a team. We stuck up for each other. We understood each other.”
She adds, “Being able to talk to somebody that knows your pain, feels your pain, but we’re in it together, it’s really helped a lot of us. I felt like I’d found another home.”
Finding your group
As with individual therapy, a Veteran may find that one group just “clicks” for them, where another might not. That was true for Shannon, who found a group that he especially liked—one that introduced him to open water swimming, which has become a passion. “That’s my group!” he says.
Duane, an Army Veteran, says he was reluctant at first to try group therapy but later began to appreciate having a team on his side. “It’s about finding a team that works for you,” he says.
These Veterans’ experiences show: There are many kinds of groups and many ways to incorporate group therapy into a treatment plan—in other words, many paths to finding your own band of brothers and sisters.
