Marines literally dying for a thrill

Marines literally dying for a thrill


http://www.signonsandiego.com/news/uniontrib/sun/metro/news_1m7risky.html



Risky behavior cited in fatalities

By Jeanette Steele
STAFF WRITER

September 7, 2003


In a tragic footnote to war, some Marines returning from combat in
Iraq are losing their lives to risky behavior such as speeding and
driving drunk.

Throughout the Marine Corps, 31 service members have died in
nonmilitary vehicle accidents since late April, when troops began
trickling back home. The numbers spiked in June, when at least one
Marine a week was killed in car and motorcycle crashes.

The year is surpassing the Corps' five-year annual average of 50 crash
deaths, even though many Marines weren't home driving for five to six
months.

Marine leaders are worried about what they call the tide of unsafe
behavior, which some experts link to a danger-induced adrenaline rush.

The Pacific Forces commander sounded an alarm in July about motorcycle
deaths caused by speed, fatigue and not wearing helmets. Fifteen
Marines have died in motorcycle crashes this year, about twice the
five-year average.

"I want to address my growing concern over the unacceptable number of
motorcycle mishaps occurring throughout the force in recent weeks,"
Lt. Gen. Earl Hailston said.

At Camp Pendleton, safety officers recently urged unit commanders to
watch for younger Marines who might be prone to find danger.

"It goes down to the small-unit leader. They know who has had a hard
time in combat," said Gunnery Sgt. Richard Foyt, acting director of
the base's safety center.

The problem, which also was noted after the Vietnam War and the 1991
Persian Gulf War, is partly chemical, say mental health experts.

Those experts say a serviceman's body becomes accustomed to the
constant stream of adrenaline that keeps him going during combat. When
he gets home, he is more likely to seek activities that start the pump
again.

The phenomenon is seen in both young and seasoned combat veterans.

"The constant pressure, the stress . . . they had to go through to
survive the war and get their job done. When you come back, there's no
need for that, and yet they are so used to it," said Navy Lt. Cmdr.
Bettye Burns, chief of counseling at Camp Pendleton's intervention and
treatment branch. "They really miss the rush."

Burns counsels base Marines who volunteered for therapy because they
felt unsettled after returning home from Iraq. She sees telltale signs
of adrenaline-tinged behavior. One group member reported driving his
truck much too fast without realizing it, until he glanced down at the
speedometer.

"They really don't recognize it as risky behavior," Burns said. "They
just know they are feeling good again."

Combat veterans may also react more intensely to common annoyances,
such as freeway traffic or loud noises, she said.

Base counselors are telling wives to be patient with their husbands'
tempers, which may be short because of pent-up emotions, but never to
accept domestic violence.

(Camp Pendleton's police chief said there have been no recent cases of
such assault on the base.)

Jeffrey Matloff, a Veterans Affairs Department psychologist who works
with veterans in San Diego, said combat is the biggest high most
people will ever experience.

"It's hard to turn off that stuff," he said. "That's why
thrill-seeking behavior is what some seek out."

Most new war veterans will adjust on their own or get help, Matloff
said. But if the problem progresses, in rare cases it turns into
post-traumatic stress disorder. Matloff heads the VA's post-traumatic
stress disorder clinic in San Diego and has worked with Gulf War
veterans who didn't seek treatment until years after combat.

The disorder develops when people begin to regularly crave the rush,
he said.

"If people start scanning for dangerous excitement to be triggered in
everyday situations, that's what we label as a symptom of PTSD,"
Matloff said.

Several Marines are already casualties of the post-combat adjustment
period, although it's not known whether their risky behavior was
prompted by their combat experience.

A recent example was Lance Cpl. Erick Rodriguez, 19, a Camp Pendleton
truck mechanic who came home in July. Late one August night, Rodriguez
was in the passenger seat of his Honda Civic during a deadly street
race on a Los Angeles County freeway.

Rodriguez was killed, and the driver, another Marine, was injured when
their car left the freeway and smashed into a tree.

A 20-year-old Marine from Camp Lejeune, N.C., was killed in June after
he and three friends drank at a bar and then sped home over a two-lane
highway in the Marine's home state of Maine, where he had been on
leave after returning from Iraq, Maine police officials said.

The Marine's Jeep Cherokee went off the road and hit a tree, ending
his life and injuring his friends. He was driving the Jeep, officials
said.

Another Camp Lejeune Marine who earned television fame as the "rapping
Marine" in Iraq came back and engaged in dangerous behavior that
didn't cause injuries, but landed him in police custody.

Lance Cpl. Alex Rivera, 21, was home in Long Branch, N.J., when police
arrested him for brandishing a pellet gun while driving down a city
street. The Monmouth County, N.J., prosecutor eventually reduced the
charges to a misdemeanor, a county spokeswoman said.

Rivera provided a lighthearted moment in the war in April when an NBC
news crew videotaped him rapping to entertain Iraqi children.

The Marines, knowing the potential for this problem, have tried to set
up roadblocks.

In May, the Marine Corps commandant, Gen. Michael Hagee, ordered
commanding officers to provide "warrior transition" talks to returning
troops and to have chaplains and medical personnel on hand watching
for potentially serious cases. He also told bases to give pre-reunion
talks to families.

The commandant also ordered a "stand-down" from work for all units
within aweek of return to discuss safety issues, including off-duty
driving.

At Camp Pendleton, Burns continues to offer post-combat therapy
groups. She has just finished one eight-week group with five Marines,
and a similar one will begin next week.

The Marines say they are trying to warn troops against the danger they
might pose to themselves.

"The Marine Corps recognizes the true tragedy when a Marine returns
safelyfrom deployment only to be killed in a traffic crash," said Lt.
Col. Benjamin Moody, executive assistant for Marine safety at the
Pentagon.