Life Stress and Illness Patterns in the US Navy

Abstract

Patterns of illness occurrence were examined in naval aviators flying combat missions from an aircraft carrier during a 6-month deployment to Vietnam. Demographic and symptom questionnaires were administered at the beginning of the cruise, and the cruise activities, work assignments and the illnesses developed by the aviators during the cruise were tabulated.The mean illness rate varied with operational conditions and personnel characteristics. Higher illness rates occurred in younger age groups and among those more preoccupied with their health. The findings parallel those for several ships' enlisted crews, from whom the aviators differed along several demographic dimensions. The civilian scoring system for the Schedule of Recent Experience, measuring recent life change, was effective in discriminating future illness in this officer sample.

Life‐events, coping strategies, social resources, and somatic complaints among combat stress reaction casualties

“…Another interpretation arises from the supposition that the veteran's somatic difficulties are not an outcome of his current social resources, but go back to the period of the war. Research that shows a rise in the number of health problems during battle (Rale, Gunderson & Arthur, 1970;Rubin, Gunderson & Doll, 1969) leaves open the possibility that CSR veterans continue to suffer from the somatic disorders that began during battle, just as they continue to suffer from the psychological problems that started then. Whether the CSR veterans' somatic problems are a continuation of health problems that began during the war or a later development cannot be determined on the basis of the current data.…”

“Hysteria” in Clinical Neurology

“…The illness then evolves as the means of relieving and resolving part of the anxiety associated with the stress. The social and stress factors which determine illness onset have been well described by Rahe et al" and Rubin et al 12 It is worth noting that it is often "illness" rather than "disease" which determines the timing and reason for a patient seeking medical attention. 1314 The symptom complex and its behavioral derivates may be reinforced by environmental events, for example, the avoidance through illness, of stress at home or at work.…”