European Stars and Stripes (Newspaper) - June 4, 2007, Darmstadt, Hesse                                Pages stars and stripes june 2007 after Iraq brigades troubled senior enlisted member seeks help for War trauma and sounds alarm that this is not Normal by Hal Bernton the Seattle times by the end of his tour in then command Thomas Adams was crushed by too Many memorial services for dead too Many visits to the too Many innocents blown up by insurgent bombs or killed inadvertently by his fort now who was the highest ranking enlisted sol Dier in his started taking Tranquili Zers to help him at a base in Adams told Fel Low soldiers he was not of and would seek since his Adams has challenged the army to better confront the mental wounds of his efforts helped expand men Tal health counsel ing at fort Lewis for returning sol Diers and improve training for Ira bound sol Diers on the emotional hardships of i had generals from All walks of life come Down and Tell us How Good we Are and Sprinkle holy water on said referring to his Preira but not one professional came and talked to us about what its going to be like when we lose somebody for Adams Homecoming has been shadowed by Battles with Post Trau Matic stress his personal troubles Mirror the emergence of mental health issues As a critical concern at military posts across the a defense department task in recent draft cited the mental health threats to soldiers As one of the most Perva Sive and potentially disabling costs of the task Force noted that 38 percent of soldiers report psychological concerns upon their return from and concluded the army has insufficient staff and funds to adequately care for those during a yearlong tour in Adams Stryker subject to attacks by Roadside 84 assaults by vehicles packed with and daily threats from Small arms fire and rocket propelled Gre the brigade lost 45 soldiers 632 were by Adams the brigade killed 550 insure what in telling you is that theres absolute carnage out Adams we have to be ready for the trauma of today almost didst make it ii Halm telling you is that theres absolute carnage out retired command Thomas Adams he was in the fight every an absolute  kind of said 1st class Creed an expert Marks Man who helped protect in an daily he would visit the newly wounded at the army Hospital in Adams would award a brass Bri Gade while Robert the company handed out purple during the course of the Adams tallied 186 women and children who fell victim to what he termed the bad when civilian vehicles approached too close to a traffic checkpoint or families got trapped inside an in surgent position under assault from american you just cant imagine what that does to a Adams what do you say to a Guy that just blew away a woman and a kid because the enemy hid in that room with them and they All had to i want pre pared and i wish i Adams shared his concerns with James who As fort Lewis commander made several trips to Adams talked about the shortcomings in training and the monumental readjustments the soldiers would face upon their one suicide car bombing focused those amid the blood and spattered body a Young iraqi victim had literally melted into the what would happen when these soldiers went Home colonel Brown and i looked at each other and were going to have some this is not and we certainly Adams and the brigade returned to fort Lewis in the fall of by Dubik had worked with Madi Gan army medical Center to develop a screening program that included computerized surveys and at least one visit scheduled with a mental health therapist Between 90 and 180 Days after their Adams encouraged the soldiers to consider another they could Call a military hotline to set up of Post away from fort he soldiers would talk More freely with less fear that their problems would Fil Ter Back to their unit and Hurt their career he made it easier to sol Diers would no longer have to Clear the visits with squad Pla Toon platoon leaders and he told soldiers in his brigade that they needed to con fide Only in an immediate who would keep their confidential Adams also sought to change to a botched attempt to treat combat soldiers already an ulcer resulted in More than a studied in gum bleeding detail Hal dozen army Doc tors wanted him to but after a year of intensive Adams passed his physical fitness test and was assigned to the 1st brigade 25th infantry which left for Mosul in the fall of in Adams com Mand sergeant an Anchor of the How and when to Adams insisted they needed to know How they might feel after the at a it should be a mandatory thing that we have to to discuss the real world feel the emotions that you will go through unless you Are some sort of you kill another human Adams based on the ideas of Adams and others who had served in Afghani Dubik fort Lewis began psychological preparation for All soldiers headed into combat Dubik also credits Adams with helping launch a senior leaders which brings together officers and top enlisted As Well As their to talk about the stresses of by last Adams had retired from the separated from his wife of 16 years and moved into a sparsely furnished House in Span but he found it hard to Settle in the he returned to Iraq As a private As he Hung out with other Stryke brigade sol he began to experience severe he Cut Short his work and returned to where he sought amid his own Adams fretted Over the Fate of other Bri Gade More than 700 of them had left the army in the first three months after the Home com he believed most left before seeing a Adams had not alerted these soldiers to the options of going to the veterans administration clinics and feared they would not seek i failed them and i feel terrible about Adams testified before the defense depart Erika Seattle retired command Thomas Adams sits in his Home in Adams has battled Post traumatic stress disorder since his return from Iraq in ment task Force on mental after the january depart ment of veterans affairs doctors who heard Adams testimony offered in Adams decided to re turn to Iraq As a civilian contract he arrived in for briefings before flying to his Luggage included a years Supply of drugs to help him to rough the at the Adams Learned he would Fly into that Trig gered in All the brain injured soldiers had been flown to the base Hospital at returning to his hotel Adams tried to sleep and started Downing his prescribed mood Sta Bilzing pills far More than the Standard at they didst know whether i had tried to commit suicide or had an Adams overdose was a Correct state i just didst have my wits about postscript Back in Adams worked with a doctors to improve screening for traumatic brain which doctors be Lieve Adams May suffer but he could not stay Home for in Early he left for Afghani where he now works As a civilian contractor training com sissif5ii Jeff a Ance to c 1 join up you could win Uiha Art other Ere at prizes Ruskai Serges Hei Power of combat support common