Tulsa, OK- Following the shooting deaths of 13 people at Fort Hood, servicemen and women are speaking out on the stressors of combat.
From Post Traumatic Stress Disorder, to getting ready to go into combat, there's a lot that civilians don't know.
For so many men and women in uniform, it's a sore subject- stress.
But, one Army Medic sat down with us and gave us his own personal story of the struggles with being in the military.
"My platoon ended up shooting two kids," said Michael Patton, a former Army Medic. "We didn't know they were children."
Two years after coming home from deployments in both Afghanistan and Iraq, Patton is still reliving the horrors of what he saw.
"Iraq? Oh, I think the worst part about Iraq was when we had suicide bombers and the aftermath of that," he said. "I see head. I see brains. And that's all that's left from when they detonate the vest."
While in combat, Patton and his fellow soldiers looked for ways to cope.
"We goofed around a lot, joked around a lot. We would joke about epitaphs, what we wanted on our tombstones."
But, coming back home, he had to face a hidden enemy he wasn't prepared to fight.
That enemy was anxiety and depression.
He talked to us about his breaking point.
"Having issues of my father passing away, going through a very nasty divorce and not getting any support whatsoever from my chain of command."
We asked the Oklahoma Air National Guard how much of a priority is given when it comes to psychological outreach.
"Service members also get training of 'Hey, look look out for each other,' protect yourself, keep yourself healthy," said Brandon Wardell, Director of the Psychological Health Program for the Oklahoma Air National Guard. "That is your obligation as a soldier. It's to maintain your readiness and that includes your mental health."
As a medic, Patton was the one helping people, not expecting to one day need help himself.
He says medication has helped him cope with life after combat.
But, he isn't recovered yet and knows he'll never go back to being the person he was before the war.
But, he wouldn't have it any other way.
"Aside from the bad that I saw, there's so much good that we've done."
Another stressor for Patton- he couldn't find a job for a long time after he got back from service. He's working now and wants everyone to know there's help for military men and women.
He recommends a group called COPE. If you're interested go to http://www.okcopeinc.org/
As part of the Yellow Ribbon Reintegration Program, in 2007, it became law that military men and women have access to counseling and other services throughout all stages of deployment.
