The War at Home

The War at Home


Jeremiah Workman
Staff Sergeant, United States Marine Corps
Posted: October 17, 2009
Earlier this month, in a chilling reminder of our enemy's strength and capabilities, Taliban forces launched a coordinated assault on two remote outposts in Afghanistan's remote Nuristan Province along the Pakistani frontier. Eight American soldiers from the 4th Infantry Division were killed in action, and almost forty more were wounded in the hours-long defense of their firebase.

In 2004, I faced a determined and courageous enemy inside a large house during the Battle of Fallujah while serving with the U.S. Marine Corps. Some forty insurgents had come to the house to protect a meeting of local leaders. We stumbled across this gathering while searching for weapons and ammunition. The initial contact surprised both sides, and while we recovered quickly, part of my platoon was cut off and trapped on the second floor of the house. For almost four hours, we launched repeated assaults up the stairwell to try and rescue our fellow Marines. We faced grenades, machine gun and small arms fire every time we tried to push up onto the second floor. The battle only ended when our battalion executive officer ordered us to pull back and the house was destroyed by laser guided bombs.

Such desperate fighting has unseen consequences. Our battle in the house, just like the sharp and intense clash the 4th Infantry Division just endured in Afghanistan, can be so traumatic that the human brain suffers long-term consequences. I did not realize that until I came home in early 2005. I had anger issues and a short-fuse, though before Fallujah I had been easy going and relaxed. I couldn't sleep, and when I did, the same nightmare invaded my dreams. I would be back on the stairwell, but this time unarmed as insurgents chased me. Every morning, I'd wake up in a cold sweat, shaking from the experience.

I began to self-medicate. My professional life fell apart, as did my marriage. Finally, after suffering a flashback at Parris Island, where I served as a Drill Instructor, I was sent to a doctor who diagnosed me with acute Post Traumatic Stress Disorder.
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The War At Home