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Remember that famous scene from M*A*S*H when the men gathered with their lawn chairs outside the showers and dropped the canvas walls to expose the women? That was a real laugh, wasn't it? It was also Hollywood, those purveyors of American Culture, encouraging MST (Military Sexual Tauma). After all, “Boys will be boys”, right?

We who serve/served know the tragic numbers, that 22 veterans commit suicide every day. What surprised me, and may surprise you, is that MST is just as deadly as PTSD. They both lead to dissociative disorders and leave the victim seeking a release from the pain, a release that can only be found in death.

Dr. Ron Gellis, PhD, Clinical Psychologist and Founder and CEO, of Integrated Recovery and Operation 22 MST, surprised me and my fellow members of our American Legion Post with these and other tragic issues related to MST and PTSD. We were shocked at the frequency of MST incidents not only for women, but also men. We were even more shocked when female members of our Post who served in Iraq and Afghanistan, every one of them, spoke up to reveal their personal experiences.

We need to help. We can help Dr. Gellis and his organization. They will soon open a resident facility for MST patients, hopefully jump starting treatment that is delayed in our VA facilities. We can also petition the Pentagon and Congress to acknowledge and take this issue seriously. Sadly, many, including commanders, not only tolerate MST but also encourage it. This must stop.

We who serve/served are family. Families are built on trust and MST is a betrayal of that trust. When we commit sexual assaults, or avert our eyes to avoid dealing with them, we are betraying our comrades and our nation. We are not worthy of freedom, the foundation of America, because we are not taking responsibility which is attached to every freedom.