On Killing by LtCol Dave Grossman, 2009, Excerpts
To understand the intensity of the
body’s physiological response to the stress of combat we must comprehend the
mobilization of resources caused by the body’s sympathetic nervous system. In
combat this very often results in nonessential activities such as digestion,
bladder control and sphincter control being completely shut down. This process
is so intense that soldiers very often suffer stress diarrhea, and it not at
all uncommon for them to urinate and defecate in their pants as the body
literally “blows it ballast” in an attempt to provide all the energy resources
required to ensure its survival. As soon as the danger and the excitement is
over, an incredibly powerful weariness and sleepiness backlash occurs on the
part of the soldier.
In continuous combat, the soldier
roller-coasters through seemingly endless surges of adrenaline and subsequent
backlashes. Unable to flee and unable to overcome the danger through a brief
burst of fighting, posturing, or submission, the bodies of modern soldiers
quickly exhaust their capacity to energize and they slide into a state of
profound physical and emotional exhaustion. A soldier in this state will
inevitably collapse from nervous exhaustion – the body simply will burn out.
The lack of sleep, lack of food, the impact of the elements, and emotional
exhaustion caused by constant fight-or-flight-response activation all conspire
to contribute to the soldier’s exhaustion.
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