I just want to call your attention to two articles in the New York Times from Monday May 7th. There is a cover story on the epidemic of military sexual trauma, which is military parlance for rape in the mililtary. On the same day, Maureen Dowd’s column on the Op-Ed page discussed it. Here is that link: https://nyti.ms/17KHXk8
I’ll let you read the article itself but among other things it does mention “The Invisible War,” an eye-opening feature-length documentary about MST which was executive produced by one of our advisors, Maria Cuomo Cole, and is definitely worth checking out.
It also happens that at least two films produced at I WAS THERE Film Workshops have addressed aspects of this issue.
One film produced in 2011 at Fort Carson is called “Liberation.” This soldier reported having a recurring nightmare stemming from traumatic childhood events – it always ends with her being caught by her assailant. Here she recreates the dream, alters the outcome to something she can live with. Her expressed intent was to watch this before bed to help interrupt the nightmare cycle. In follow-‐up interviews, she and her social worker told us that watching the video had helped her significantly, and that the nightmares have ceased.
Take a look: https://tinyurl.com/liberationfilm
Another, entitled “Real Battles,” was produced by three female soldiers at Fort Carson. In the film, these soldiers help one another to complete their physical fitness regimens. Throughout the film, helium balloons with word like “rape,” “suicide,” and other traumatizing memories are attached to their shoulders. I won’t spoil the ending but hopefully, its meaning will be fairly clear. Check it out: https://tinyurl.com/realbattlesIW
We continue to believe in the therapeutic power of storytelling. Sometimes, there are things a soldier just can’t talk about — but maybe he or she can make a film about it — and that’s can be a vital early step in recovery.