Army program works to make soldiers fit in body and mind

Army program works to make soldiers fit in body and mind

www.washing tonpost.com

The Army, burdened by almost a decade of war and beset by increases in suicides, substance abuse and combat stress, embarked on the controversial $125 million project to instill psychological strength in soldiers the same way it teaches physical fitness.

The program, called Comprehensive Soldier Fitness, is designed to make soldiers more psychologically “resilient” amid the pressures of combat, repeated deployments, and family and financial crises.

(visit the link for the full news article)


Related News Links:
www.resilience.army.mil..." target="_blank" class="postlink">https:

Two things to add to this story...

The second link I provided is where to download all the course materials for the MRT program... there in PDF format so you'll need acrobat to view...

the second is Below I briefly describe the Army's approach, dubbed Comprehensive Soldier Fitness, and draw parallels to the private sector. First, a few key points about their general approach:

•Depending on whose research you read, resilience is either a trait (something that is fairly stable over time and rather difficult to develop, similar to personality) or a state (something that one can develop). We believe it is both. That is, some people are more likely to be resilient due to their personality, but most people can become more resilient over time if they employ the skills they teach.

•Resilience training is not a medical treatment led at the organizational level by MDs or Ph.Ds. Rather, as with all training in the Army, it is seen as leadership development and taught by soldiers.

•At its core, resilience training best succeeds by tapping into what many psychologists think of as the Holy Grail: metacognition, or getting people to think about their thinking. If we can encourage soldiers to challenge how and why they think a certain way, then the skills we teach are more likely to take root.

•Like any leadership development, learning resilience is a lifelong process: everyone can improve if they put in the work; no one is ever finished. This is why our program is command-directed, meaning that every soldier in the Army, from newest Private to oldest General, takes resilience training.

Well there you have it... whether this is brilliance or bull "S" only time will tell... but if their going into this right from the start they might be able to use this strategy as a means of weeding out those who were never suited for combat roles... from a psychological standpoint

www.washing tonpost.com
(visit the link for the full news article)

The only program the military has is to train and recruit citizens not to question authority and kill the enemy who are foreigners. That is why they dislike intelligent people who question authority. They like weak minded who they can train to obey and kill. Making people kill others against their own will of course will psychologically damage people.

Originally posted by MIDNIGHTSUN
The only program the military has is to train and recruit citizens not to question authority and kill the enemy who are foreigners. That is why they dislike intelligent people who question authority. They like weak minded who they can train to obey and kill. Making people kill others against their own will of course will psychologically damage people.

Blah Blah Blah. Same BS pitched by every anti-military goon that could click and read the blogs by the daily kos, code pink or Cindy Sheehan.

The Military does in fact want free thinkers and the intelligent. Most of those in the Special Ops Field are very intelligent people.

reply to post by MIDNIGHTSUN


you do know that statement is very unfair and presumptuous of you to make... first off me and my fellow brothers and sisters in arms are not just a bunch of brainwashed zombie killing machines... you might be surprised to learn of all are nations citizens... we too embrace our personal liberties and inherent freedoms as our duty to defend and protect...

“…Against all enemies, foreign and domestic…”

That line is part of the Solders oath... the concept of Against all enemies, foreign is pretty easy to figure out... but the domestic part is a lot more nebulous...

I presumed the only domestic enemies of the Constitution were radicals and extremists who were well outside the mainstream of American thought.

Over time, however, I came to understand that anyone who sought to advance the power of government over the individual was an enemy of the Constitution. This fight at home requires all us old soldiers to be extra vigilant because it is these very domestic threats who are capable of doing the most harm...

In a 2001 radio interview, Barack Obama called the Constitution "a charter of negative liberties [that] says what the states can’t do to you. Says what the Federal government can’t do to you, but it doesn't say what the Federal government or State government must do on your behalf."

In fact, the Constitution says exactly what government is permitted to do on our behalf. Supreme Court Justice William O. Douglas declared, “The Constitution is not neutral. It was designed to take the government off the backs of people.” President Andrew Johnson said:

“Outside of the Constitution we have no legal authority more than private citizens, and within it we have only so much as that instrument gives us. This broad principle limits all our functions and applies to all subjects.”

Obama’s problem with the Constitution is that it has no provisions for what he described in the interview as "redistributive change." – In other words, it doesn't give government permission to take your earnings or your possessions and give them to others in the name of social or economic "justice."

Benjamin Franklin said, “The U. S. Constitution doesn't guarantee happiness, only the pursuit of it. You have to catch up with it yourself.” Where is the justice in forcibly taking from one and giving to another, regardless of the reason?

President Franklin Roosevelt shared Obama’s disdain for the Constitution because the Supreme Court of his day blocked many of his New Deal reforms as unconstitutional. He even created a new freedom out of whole cloth, "freedom from want," to justify his expansion of government power over the citizen.


With all due respect you will find... if you take the time to get to know us... we solders are the great defenders of your rights and freedoms... and we're a hell of a lot more intelligent that you give us credit for....

Sorry for the long winded speech but some replies require more effort than others....

interested in reading pdf..however link does not appear to be working...

interesting story though...I live and work (as a medic) near fort drum, its way past time they do this as just drugging them up on psych meds is not the answer..obviously as seen by the suicide rate.

reply to post by toepick


Don't know why the link didn't work for you...
let me try this another way so you can just copy paste the link for yourself...

edit to add this link works but you'll get a certificate error... it's okay to click to go to site... this error is caused by an outdated security certificate...

www.resilience.army.mil...

Originally posted by MIDNIGHTSUN
The only program the military has is to train and recruit citizens not to question authority and kill the enemy who are foreigners. That is why they dislike intelligent people who question authority. They like weak minded who they can train to obey and kill. Making people kill others against their own will of course will psychologically damage people.

It looks like ignorance has gotten the best of you. You have absolutely no idea what you are talking about, and until you serve your country in a uniform, you can shut the !*@$ up, you follow? You have no idea what it takes to serve in the military, and yes they want thinkers, and people to see things outside the box. They want the fresh ideas, and people to think things through. Yes you are taught to take orders, but not the way you are thinking of. The next time you want to type up some little un-educated opinion think it through on who might read it, and set you strait, and remember, be kind to soldiers, we are the reason you are still Americans.

reply to post by DaddyBare


Thanks! not sure what was up with first link..that got it though..looking around site, interesting =)

Would love to see how and if any of this could be applied to EMS, Fire, and Police training.

Originally posted by toepick
interested in reading pdf..however link does not appear to be working...

interesting story though...I live and work (as a medic) near fort drum, its way past time they do this as just drugging them up on psych meds is not the answer..obviously as seen by the suicide rate.

PDF Unit Implementation Plan

Try that DOC.

Indeed seen too many guys especially the young ones all xanexed out and unable to do thier jobs.

What they need really is maturity training not this stuff.

It's all a bit 'earth army' and 'goat-talking' isn't it!
It must be an odd position to be in, being both the defenders of the constitution and then not fighting against the internal threats to the constitution.
Personally I don't like what the army signifies, and especially the United states army as the pre-eminent military machine on earth. I think that the United states has a bit too much paranoia and that isn't helping it make rational decisions.

However, any sort of resilience and psychological help has to have benefits. Maybe then you guys will be able to have longer tours of duty for less pay and be able to murder more 'enemies of the constitution'.

It is good to hear that some effort is going into this. One of the main factors of where is all goes is where the heart is. Depending on if you are fighting for independent and freedom or fighting as a genocidal project for profits is going to make a big difference in how it all plays out. The psychological fallout for all involved in war is nasty and I do support and efforts to address this.

One concern is if it is taking MK Ultra to the next level and dehumanising the soldier even further with an aim to reduce the emotional impact of hostilities.

I think it's a good idea. I know too many people who've gone into the military and come home messed up for life. Shellshock is no joke, and spending long periods of time in what I call "survival mode" takes a bad toll on you as well.

Typical Western solution: if theres a problem with the intrinsic nature of individuals, label them and "fix" them with programs, procedures and chemicals.

There's a very simple solution: change your ways. Stop sending your poor soldiers to fight wars for the rich and powerful. They know they are being used. No scientific solution is going to fix the very corrupt system; it will only dumb them down more and more until they break.

I wonder how many WWII vets suffered from the same conditions that modern US soldiers now do.

I don't really understand what this program is.

By the article, it appears it is soldiers talking about their personal problems, which is a good thing.

But I hope it doesn't end up being "if you are upset your wife left you, we have drugs that can fix that"...

Originally posted by Dimitri Dzengalshlevi
Typical Western solution: if theres a problem with the intrinsic nature of individuals, label them and "fix" them with programs, procedures and chemicals.

There's a very simple solution: change your ways. Stop sending your poor soldiers to fight wars for the rich and powerful. They know they are being used. No scientific solution is going to fix the very corrupt system; it will only dumb them down more and more until they break.

I wonder how many WWII vets suffered from the same conditions that modern US soldiers now do.

I fail to see where the US sends the "poor" soldier. You really look down your nose at the US fighting GI, don't you.

Originally posted by NuclearPaul
I don't really understand what this program is.

By the article, it appears it is soldiers talking about their personal problems, which is a good thing.

But I hope it doesn't end up being "if you are upset your wife left you, we have drugs that can fix that"...

I have had some training in the counseling field and to me this sounds a bit like Pop Psychology more than a miracle cure...

but... it does open the lines of communication and hopefully with training will remove some of the stigmas that go with... if nothing else it will teach select NCO's and Officer's about the warning signs, what to look for, how to assess and if needed get that solder to real doctors for proper treatment... if nothing else that in itself is a huge leap forward

Originally posted by macman

Originally posted by Dimitri Dzengalshlevi
Typical Western solution: if theres a problem with the intrinsic nature of individuals, label them and "fix" them with programs, procedures and chemicals.

There's a very simple solution: change your ways. Stop sending your poor soldiers to fight wars for the rich and powerful. They know they are being used. No scientific solution is going to fix the very corrupt system; it will only dumb them down more and more until they break.

I wonder how many WWII vets suffered from the same conditions that modern US soldiers now do.

I fail to see where the US sends the "poor" soldier. You really look down your nose at the US fighting GI, don't you.

No, not at all.

Regulars in the US military don't really have much say in what they do or where they go. Most are pressured into the job due to the benefits that it provides for the life after service (pension, college, bonuses, etc). To some, it's not only the easy solution to obtaining an income during economic hardship, but also the only choice (especially since there's always a role that needs filling in the military machine).

Regular soldiers in the military are similar to regular citizens in a society. Only difference is that you need to be in the correct mindset to fight wars (usually accredited to those who join because they are born for the job).