The impact of posttraumatic stress disorder on partners and children of Australian Vietnam veterans

Objective: This study explored the emotional and physical health of a group of families of Australian Vietnam veterans suffering posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD). The aim was to study the impact of PTSD upon the families of the sufferers. Method: The families of a random sample of Vietnam veterans receiving treat ment at a specialist PTSD Unit were invited to participate in this study. P artners of the veterans and children over the age of 15 years were eligible to participate. Four self-report psychometric inventories were administere d assessing psychological distress, social climate within their families, s elf-esteem, and a range of lifestyle issues, including physical health. A c ontrol group, consisting of a sample of volunteers, was also surveyed. Results: The partners of the Vietnam veterans showed significantly higher l evels of somatic symptoms, anxiety and insomnia, social dysfunction and dep ression than the control group. They reported significantly less cohesion a nd expressiveness in their families and significantly higher levels of conf lict. The partners also had significantly lower levels of self-esteem. The children of the veterans reported significantly higher levels of conflict i n their families. However, the children showed no significant differences o n measures of psychological distress and self-esteem from their matched cou nterparts. Conclusions: These findings support overseas studies that indicate that the families of PTSD sufferers are also impacted by the disorder. In this stud y, the families of Australian Vietnam veterans experienced more conflict an d their partners were significantly more psychologically distressed (i.e. s omatic symptoms, anxiety, insomnia, social dysfunction, depression and low self-esteem) than a matched control group.