Mental Health Difficulties and Help-Seeking Beliefs within a Sample of Female Partners of UK Veterans Diagnosed with Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder

Abstract

In the UK there is a paucity of research about the needs of partners who are supporting ex-service personnel with mental health difficulties. In this study, we surveyed the mental health needs and barriers to help-seeking within a sample of partners of UK veterans who had been diagnosed with PTSD. Our sample included 100 participants. Forty-five percent met criteria for alcohol problems, 39% for depression, 37% for generalised anxiety disorder and 17% for symptoms of probable PTSD. Participants who met case criteria for depression, anxiety and problems with alcohol were more likely to report a greater number of help-seeking barriers. Participants who were experiencing mental health difficulties were more likely to endorse barriers connected to stigmatising beliefs than those associated with practical issues around accessing mental health services. The evidence presented suggests there may be a considerable burden of mental illness within this population. It would seem prudent to conduct further work to understand how best to address this clinical need.

‘He messaged me the other night and said you are my saviour’: An interpretative phenomenological analysis of intimate partners’ roles in supporting Veterans with mental health difficulties

“…28 Th e interview schedule was developed for the purposes of the current study and was informed by previous work. 6,13,16,19 Th e interview schedule was fi rst tested with one participant to ensure suitability. No changes were made, and the questions were deemed suitable and appropriate.…”

“…14 Intimate partners of Veterans are also at risk of developing mental health diffi culties such as secondary traumatisation. 15,16 It should be noted that help seeking behaviour within the Veteran population is diff erent from that of the general population. 14 Estimates show that Veterans struggle to seek help for approximately 11 years aft er discharge from service.…”

“…14,17 Although this time gap in help seeking behaviour oft en precipitates, and contributes to, Veterans developing more severe mental health diffi culties, 18 the impact of this time gap on intimate partners is less researched and understood. When considered alongside research indicating that Veterans' partners are at increased risk of developing mental health diffi culties, 6,16 this further adds to the question of what intimate partners experience during this time.…”

“…21 Moreover, in Scotland, a number of projects include family members of Veterans in the recovery journey. 22 Despite the seemingly negative evidence presented in previous work, 4,6,16,23,24 there is research suggesting that being in a romantic relationship off ers some positive benefi ts, such as increased emotional well-being, as well as being a general protective factor against mental health problems. 25,26 Th ere is, however, seemingly little research exploring whether these fi ndings may be applicable to Veterans' partners.…”

“I'm Still Fighting for the Two of Us”: How Partners of UK Veterans Construct Their Experience of Living with Combat‐Related Trauma

“…Spouses have been found to experience high levels of stress, depression (Manguno‐Mire et al., ), symptoms of PTSD, anxiety (Westerink & Giarratano, ), adjustment disorders, relationship dissatisfaction (Lambert, Engh, Hasbun, & Holzer, ), burnout/caregiver burden (Klarić et al., ; Solomon, Dekel, Zerach, & Horesh, ), and more somatic problems (Dirkzwager, Bramsen, Ader, & van der Ploeg, ). More recently in the United Kingdom, partners of veterans were found to report difficulties with alcohol, depression, generalized anxiety disorder and probable PTSD (Murphy, Palmer, & Busittil, ).…”