Vietnam and madness: dreams of schizophrenic veterans

1. Vietnam veterans who still suffer from post-traumatic stress and delayed-stress disorders may respond to psychotherapy. Dreams that have recurred as often as every night for 8 to 15 years may be depotentiated. 2. In the records of the Vietnam veterans whom I have seen on my ward, almost without exception there has been no documentation of the contents, frequency and nature of their dreams and nightmares, and no precise record of their military experience in Vietnam. 3. By creating special group therapy, a Dream Seminar, and by individual analytical psychotherapy, a way has been found to work with these dreams as part of the post-traumatic stress disorder. 4. Three case histories have been presented to highlight the nature of these dreams and how they may respond to therapy. 5. In a larger perspective, the dreams of Vietnam offer a unique record of the unconscious history of Vietnam, uncontaminated by the waking ego, by conscious motivations or distortions. There cases have led to an extensive in-depth study of 125 randomly selected Vietnam combat veterans, which will be reported later. 6. Combat dreams recurring in identical form for years may change and evolve in a therapeutic drama.