A mythological studies approach to PTSD among Vietnam combat veterans: From memory through myth to meaning

The primary objective of this pilot study is to determine the effectiveness of a mythological studies approach to support the existing, multidisciplinary treatment program offered in the Mental Health Clinic (MHC) to Vietnam veterans who suffer from posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD). Mythology, story that transcends time and place, is particularly concerned with communicating meaning and purpose to human beings, especially when adversity strikes. According to Joseph Campbell, a well-known scholar of cross-cultural mythologies, all myths contain certain elements that inform basic human experience, propose answers to mankind's most profound questions, and provide a structure for wondering about the mysteries of life and death. This study was designed to determine if the metaphor of the Hero's Journey can communicate a different meaning for the traumatic events that these veterans have endured, thus reducing their self-reported PTSD symptoms.;Although there is significant existing research that examines combat-related PTSD from a variety of positions, few researchers have addressed the meaning that veterans attach to their traumatic war memories and the meaning and purpose in their lives today, some thirty years after the initial exposure occurred. This pilot study introduces the myth of Odysseus to a small group of veterans with PTSD, veterans who have not recovered from their traumatic combat or homecoming experiences. The intervention employs the use of imagination, ritual, story, and art to convey the lessons that ancient mythic heroes and warriors have to teach.;Little statistical significance was achieved in this pilot study due to the small sample size; however the results of this project support the value of this psychoeducational approach as an adjunct to the existing care available to these veterans. Mythic themes have long been effectively used in the psychoanalytic hour on an individual basis, but a group setting for the transmission of mythology is historically more common. This project attempts to revitalize an ancient method to help citizens recapture the mysteries that inform life.