Working with military veterans

Military veterans present with complex difficulties which are challenging to work with therapeutically. They experience a range of co-morbidities, and social, health, and relationship difficulties. In addition they present with significant barriers to help-seeking and often find their own ways of coping. Alcohol and substance misuse-related problems are common and, combined with hyper-arousal, can lead to aggression and the potential for contact with the criminal system. This article attempts to outline the issues that military veterans commonly present with and describes a model of working with traumatized veterans. The model is a phase-oriented approach to trauma which views stabilization as an essential part of the treatment, moving on to processing the trauma and then reintegration from military to civilian life.