Major Dick Winters on PTSD after WWII | Band of Brothers

[@bloodboughtsaint777]

I truly find it amazing that any of these men can talk about their experiences so well. My paternal grandfather was a veteran of D-Day, Omaha beach, 1st wave. He was a medic. He was also the only member of his unit to survive that day. All I could ever get out of him, about the war itself, was that he served and was there on D-Day. My father said he stopped asking about it because he couldn't stand to see his father so broken when he would ask questions like: what happened? or what was the war like?, when he was younger. Unfortunately, that's all I know for sure about his service record. That, and he would obviously be reassigned to a new unit. He would spend the rest of the war in the Pacific theater. He never spoke about that either, he would just tear up when I'd ask questions. Apart from that, he was the gentlest man I ever knew. A man who entered the room, and everyone fully respected. He always had a kind greeting, a joke, and a bit of Godly wisdom to share for almost any situation. My grandmother passed in 1994, and that day was the only thing that made him break down even more than asking about the war. He was not prone to crying mind you. He was always calm in any situation. The only time I saw a tear of joy in his eyes was the last time I saw him alive. It was a few weeks after 9/11 happened. I had enlisted in the US Air Force about 3 weeks before 9/11 happened, and this was the last chance I would get to see him before leaving for Basic Training. He was obviously sad for our country, but he was so proud knowing that I was ready to serve, and I was undeterred. He knew I was still 17 at the time I enlisted and could have found a legal way out of the contract once 9/11 happened. My mom wanted me to back out of the enlistment, but I told her no, I'm honoring my commitment. I can't recall a time I saw my grandfather so proud, and yet a little sad at the same time, not knowing what my experiences would be like. He would pass away not too long after that. I was not in a position to be present for his funeral due to the fact that I was serving overseas, and no one could get in touch with me in time to go back home. I didn't mean to gush, but my grandfather was a great man... born of a great generation. These men need to be honored, always.

[@Set_Your_Handlle]

Really tells something when 100 year old men recount certain stories down to the last word and detail 80 years later. That level of psycological impact is probably detectable by brain scans

[@kkampy4052]

Gush man gush

[@ksrmk]

Thank you for sharing!

[@craigdavies5424]

My grandfather was in the Royal Engineers and landed on sword beach on D-Day, later he would go on to fight in Burma, he never spoke of any of it to me or my dad. He was a very hardworking, humble man who would have fun with me and my brothers playing board games and cricket (he always played to win, and taught us to keep trying until we could win). I looked up to him and respected him a great deal for who he was and what he had done. He sadly passed away from cancer in 2001, whilst I was backpacking around Australia, so with great sadness i couldn't attend his funeral, although I was pleased to hear that the church was packed out, even some had to stand outside. The last time I saw him before I left for my travels he told me to be careful and watch out for the Tamil tigers (my stop over was in Sri Lanka for a week before heading on to Australia), my last words were "I will see you when I get back", I had hoped that he would get through his treatment. Weeks later in Australia we saw on the news that the Tamil tigers had attacked the airport in Sri Lanka. They destroyed most of the planes that was parked up from the airline I flew with, when I came home I had to fly back with a different airline. So evidently my grandfather's advice was right to be cautious, however I never got the chance to tell him. I feel privileged that I got to spend time with him and to have known him. I'm proud of him and his generation and what they sacrificed to give us a better life, and as time goes on I'm glad that my generation were able to know these veterans as many now won't, I just hope that future generations don't forget what they did and the lessons from it, as to never repeat it.

[@JPMadden]

Beautiful story. I had a great-uncle who I was told served as a combat medic in the American Army. If I remember correctly, he landed at Utah Beach on D-Day or soon after. He was captured during the Battle of the Bulge, but was liberated only a month or two later, as Germany collapsed. I never knew him other than to say hello as a kid, and he died relatively young. He had a reputation for drinking to excess, and I wonder if he was self-medicating.

[@Ancient_War]

My dad fought in WWII. He was a C-47 pilot who watched the paratroopers he dropped get cut down in their harnesses or catch fire. He was shot down behind German lines during Operation Market and spent days with the Dutch Underground evading capture as the Germans actively hunted for him. He spent time on troop carriers and on Okinawa. He remembered the rats that would come out at night and nibble on them. They slept with their boots on. He rarely spoke about the war. He was also in the Korean War. I didn't know that until after he died. He never spoke about it. He suffered from nightmares and was a quiet, withdrawn man. In his later years he painted pictures of the planes he'd flown. He'd sit silently for hours slowly applying the paint with a 1/8th inch brush. It was his therapy. He was my hero. He still is.

[@Zgreasewood]

Amen.

[@andresluna351]

Legend

[@honda197056]

A classmate from high school and I ran into each other outside our local barbershop in our hometown one Saturday afternoon. A passing vehicle back fired thru the exhaust system and both he and I instantly dropped. He was an infantry man in the U.S.M.C and I was a paratrooper in the U.S. Army. The barber that ran the shop saw us and immediately came outside to check on us. He was a WW2 marine corps combat veteran and said don't be ashamed. It gets easier with time. I'll never forget Mr. James Claridy and his act of compassion for us. Bless all my fellow combat veterans. You are never alone in your struggle.

[@debbiehanson9201]

I remember seeing an interview with a WWII vet who said he was encouraged not to think, much less speak, about the war once he got home, and he had recurring nightmares for years. He lived in New Orleans, home of the National World War II Museum and started volunteering there after he retired. Eventually, he agreed to be part of a group of veterans who took turns answering the museum visitors' questions about the soldier's experience in WWII. He wasn't sure he could do it at first, but he found it helped him to answer their questions as much as it helped them understand better what had happened in WWII. He said he found it particularly rewarding to talk to younger people, some of them not much younger than he was when he was a soldier---and he also said that the more he shared his stories, the less often he had the nightmares and when he did have them, they seemed somehow less severe.

[@VinceA-jq6ds]

It is good he could talk about it. My grandfather, who landed at Normandy and was there till the end never could. The one time he really tried he started to breakdown and left the room. This was a man who quit smoking unfiltered cigarettes cold turkey in his 70s, so he was not a weak man.

[@yaakw]

Debbiehanson I befriended a vietnam vet in diesel mechanics class in 1990 in Fife, Washington. He was a helicopter pilot of short stature in the First of the 9th Air Cavalry. In Vietnam. His job was to drop off and pick up “The Blues.” Airborne Rangers/LRRPS or something like that. His shrink told him to pick a stranger to talk to about some of his memories. He picked me. I was speechless and honored. Never will I forget this guy. He was a workaholic who hardly slept. Wild Bill Mcintosh: a decade later after that year, I read about you in a book. Hope you are well. Peace, my friend.

[@tbneddy9216]

My grandfather served in WWII as part of an Anti-Aircraft Artillery (AAA) Battalion. He was involved in 4 major battles, including Operation Overlord (D Day) and the Battle of the Bulge. He was awarded two bronze stars in the war. He later suffered from PTSD after the war spending a year in a veterans rehabilitation facility. He would have terrible headaches and vertigo throughout his life. My mom (his daughter) says that he would at times sit in a dark room by himself for a while listening to old records. He was a very regimental and punctual man but was always smiling, laughing, and clowning around just to drive my grandmother crazy. He never spoke about the war until just months before his sudden death at 85 years old. I was a teenager at the time and always wished I could have gotten to know him better. I'll never forget the look in his steely blue eyes as he recounted stories from the war and things that had haunted him for decades. It gave me an even deeper appreciation for the greatest generation and inspires me to shed a light on the soldiers who fight their "second war" after coming home. 🇺🇲 🪖 A good man and a personal hero.

[@roykiefer7713]

I served as an active duty officer from 1969 to 1989. One on Independence Day in the early 1970’s, I went to the movies at a theatre in Philadelphia. Some clown detonated a small firecracker, everyone in the audience looked around and some jumped up to improve their field-of-view. I was instantaneously on the theatre’s floor, with the discarded popcorn and soda spills. As Major Winters’s stated, you REACT. Incidentally, the folks with whom I went to the movie gave me considerable grief for my actions, however, none of them had my experiences.

[@EMJ31]

Thank you, sir, for your service-then and for the many years afterward while you and those closest to you carried it!

[@amain325]

Sir, I hope the people who gave you grief came to understand just how heartless and ignorant they were.

[@Remo1147]

@JAMESP-gt2izI disagree with you, those that served in Iraq/Afghanistan conflicts did so voluntarily

[@johnarmstrong472]

People had very little understanding or empathy back then! But now people take time off for PTSD, and they're not even in the military or a job somewhat related. How times change...

[@brianthebee5845]

@JAMESP-gt2izplenty of “todays youth” serves in our armed forces, show some respect

[@mike36dc]

My friend, a San Antonio, Texas, Mexican American, Joe Flores, was fresh back from Korea in his Marine dress uniform at a New Year's Eve party and someone in the kitchen popped the cork on a bottle of champagne. He dove over the sofa. While lying face down with his head covered he slowly looked up and the room was staring at him, and after a couple of seconds everyone just went back to talking. He got, dusted himself off and straightened his tie, and went about the evening like nothing ever happened. The people there understood and treated him afterward just like before. I believe they respected him for his service and they were very welcoming of him. Joe was a wonderful person and I know I'm lucky his sweet wife introduced us.

[@AlexTSilver]

He's a smart man. Flying corks can be dangerous

[@Deadgoat865]

That's called a Texican.

[@jediroya6810]

Wish I could find the clip but years ago I saw an interview with a WW2 veteran that went something like this (the veteran was over 90 years old at the time): Interviewer: Did you have nightmares when you first came back from the war? Veteran: Yes ma’am. Interviewer: How long did this carry on for? Veteran: Oh, for a while. Interviewer: How long is a while? For example, when did you last have a nightmare from the war? Veteran: Last night.

[@bocawilliams9200]

Dick Winters be like "I'm a grower, not a shower!" Whereas Dick Splinters says "I don't even wanna talk about it."

[@Letterman0412]

Not the same circumstances but there's a great interview with F.W. Prentice who survived the Titanic disaster, and its almost 70 years after the sinking, and he mentions that just talking about the it will probably cause him to dream about it again that night.

[@samdumaquis2033]

Poor soul

[@AndrewMRoots]

​@josephrochefort9989Why?

[@dakritic]

To say that Band of Brothers “failed” to capture the battle they continued to fight after the war is pretty ignorant. When the men of Easy Company speak before each episode, they clearly are sharing their difficulties after the war.

[@Kaspisify]

Also the full documentary highlights it pretty well. I'd consider that a part of BoB as well.

[@mattp.272]

You can see Shifty Powers start to tear up and struggle to maintain his composure when describing how they lost good men on D-Day. That was 60 years later at the time. They even said during it all, you can watch friends die and kill the enemy many times without many issues in the moment, but when you go home and have time to think, that’s when the demons really attack.

[@lightingbolt8148]

Huh?

[@IPFreelly604]

The Train scene with Winters perfectly represents it. The anxiety and the loss of time. It raises a question: Did the makers of this video watch the show?

[@Piekartz]

Exactly. Band of Brothers didn't fail to do anything. It's the greatest series and portrait about the war ever made.

[@jarodcrazyindian]

It never leaves you, but you cope. Or you don't. Prayers for our veterans.

[@JelMain]

We can fix it now. Go talk to Bessel van der Kalk's Boston Trauma Research Foundation - there's even an FDA Protocol being rolled out, MAPS, and Vets get a priority.

[@jarodcrazyindian]

@@JelMain This needs to be more known.

[@JelMain]

@@jarodcrazyindian I'm a Vet myself. I worked with a therapist from UK Special Forces on this. Right now, there's yet another fundraiser going on here by people who can't be bothered to check when you tell them. I wonder how much is going to reach the need? It's not in their interest to reduce dependency. Who's actually fighting for THEM?

[@richardpiper6265]

I had a friend who served in combat in Viet Nam where he was wounded. He had returned home and was walking down the street when a car backfired. His mind thought it was gunfire and he dove on the sidewalk and covered his head and then realized what had happened. People were looking at him and he said he was embarrassed. He died several years ago from Agent Orange. RIP my friend.🇺🇸

[@hamsred12hams]

I have heard that 'car backfire' story from so many so-called veterans. From Europe, Africa, Asia and South and North America. Guess what? As a veteran of much combat, the story is BS regurgitated crap.

[@Ancient_War]

I had several cousins who served in Viet Nam. They were all changed by the experience and their stories were pure nightmare fuel. One, however, suffered from _severe_ PTSD. One evening, we were all watching TV when gunfire on the TV triggered him. He dove for the middle of the room screaming "Foxhole! Foxhole! Foxhole!" He huddled there, covering his head while we all just froze. His brother got up and gathering him in a hug just held him. They went home. I was 14. He committed suicide not long after. We don't give our returning soldiers enough support. After WWII, at least the entire nation had been at war, and there was some understanding. Vietnam Nam's soldiers got severe backlash. Soldiers returning from Iraq and Afghanistan receive indifference from the population, although therapy is available from government sources. So maybe we're learning. One young cousin returned from Afghanistan and didn't leave his mother's house for almost 1-1/2 years. He got intense therapy and, finally, a service dog. The fact that the dog needed walks finally got him back outdoors. I suppose this is just a long, rambing way of saying war is never worth the human cost. Especially when those returning are faced with a negative or indifferent country. I wish I had some answers.

[@zeroneutral]

I've taken concealment behind a vehicle due to rapid backfires from a motorcycle 😂

[@RussianOrthodox14]

@@Ancient_War I very much agree with your sentiment on the Iraq/Afghan wars. I served in '03 and '04 in Iraq as a private military contractor and was in the April and November battles of Fallujah '04 attached to USMC also in Mosul, Idlib, Baghdad, Ar Nasiriyah etc... I still remember getting spit on after returning through the airport.

[@Ancient_War]

@@RussianOrthodox14 I am so sorry you had that experience. No matter how "unpopular" a war is, American soldiers serve America and its people. They put their lives on the line for America. They don't get to pick and choose what wars or battles they fight. That should be enough to gain people's respect. Just remember, the people who spit on you have never done what you did, and probably never would. Thank you for your service.

[@richardshort3914]

My buddy's mother tells the story of when she was young just after the war she saw two Canadian veterans walking down the sidewalk when a jackhammer went off. They threw themselves to the ground. Got up. Dusted themselves off. Had a good laugh. And kept walking. That's probably the best attitude to have.

[@hamsred12hams]

Such BS. I heard/knew someone who jumped when something loud went off? Seriously?

[@gruntforever7437]

@@hamsred12hams wow you totally don't get it do you?

[@VinceA-jq6ds]

@@hamsred12hams Jumping at a loud sound is normal. Hitting the deck immediately while others stand around wondering what was that is NOT normal.

[@bikeman1x11]

@@VinceA-jq6ds hitting the dirt IS normal when the noises indicate pieces of lead may be coming your way

[@bobbobby-o2w]

@@gruntforever7437 Of course he doesn't get it. Probably still living in his grandma's basement

[@simongee8928]

Over thirty years after the war, my dad had an opportunity to watch the filming of 'Operation Crossbow'. Whilst he was on his way, an actor in German uniform came round the corner and my dad instinctively reached for where his Webley revolver would have been.

[@jomama55ful]

I remember when my dad returned from Vietnam in 1970. We were driving back from the PX (marine base exchange) and driving past the parade grounds when a funeral ceremony for a fallen officer was in progress. I heard the 105mm howitzers go off and remarked to my dad "wow, look at that!" (I was 15 at the time). I looked over to the driver's seat, and my dad was NOT there... We are doing 55 miles per hour down the road and my dad is NOT in the driver's seat. I looked down to see him curled up in a ball on the floor in front of the driver's seat. I grabbed the steering wheel to keep the car on the road and yelled "Dad! DAD!" He came out of the fog he was in and climbed out and back into the seat. He didn't say a word. Neither did I. Somehow, I knew there were demons he was fighting from that war... I have other stories, but this exemplifies the experience.

[@phil4986]

My dad was in the Korean war. He talked about that war for about ten minutes, in the thirty years I knew him. I am lucky to be alive, because he almost wasn't. I am still proud of my fathers service to America and I always will be. Thanks for coming home and giving me my life, Dad. I miss you.

[@timturrill]

And that, my friends, is why saying, "Thanks for your service" should be totally heartfelt + honest.

[@lt.lasereyez8891]

That'll help

[@tayninh69]

I am a Vietnam Combat Veteran. A few years ago on the 4th of July some neighbors who had been drinking for most of the day decided to throw a string of firecrackers behind me while I was mowing the lawn. The next thing I knew was that I was flat out on the ground and those people thought it was funniest thing that they ever had seen. I can relate to Major Dick Winters issue. It truly isn't any fun.

[@ChrisSmith-kw4gn]

My city used to have fireworks and now they have a drone light show because it seems ass backwards to commemorate the 4th with explosions that could ruin the celebration for our veterans.

[@noelignacio931]

Not to demean your tour in name, but everyone who went over there were COMBAT VETERANS, I’m sure you would agree!

[@kerryhill4470]

i do not believe you.

[@tayninh69]

@@kerryhill4470 To be quite honest, I don't really care if you believe me or not. Have a good one.

[@malcolmhayward4431]

@@tayninh69I believe you

[@freespeechordeath7826]

My great uncle, who was like a grandfather to me, was an NCO in the Pacific in WW2. He would have screaming nightmares i was told and do muster and roll call in his sleep nearly every night for years after he returned home in 1946. The reasoning behind the roll call was as a staff sergeant at first light he would call out the names of the men in his platoon and wait for a response from the foxholes scattered all down the line to find out who was dead, wounded, or missing from indirect enemy fire and infiltration attacks. He never spoke a word of the War.

[@mikechrisg467]

My dad had a similar experience but, it was in the earl 2000's. A jack hammer was started and being used. He looked me dead in the face and said " damn it sounded just like a german mg." At about 77 78 years old at the time he hit the pavement fast. Took him a couple of days to get over it. My mother said after he came home and was discharged from the hospital after being wounded in early april of 1945 that he would have nightmares. Horrific nightmares. Often she had to get him back in bed so he didnt hurt himself or someone else.

[@alangil3493]

22 years in the military. One 4th of July soon after I got home, I went to a family gathering. At one point I heard what sounded like a mortar launching a round. I quickly found the ground before the detonation, then started instinctivly moving out of the impact zone...it was a damned pyro mortar firework. Family thought it was funny, me not so much! My wife told them not to laugh because that sound sent me back to a very bad place. Last time I went to a fireworks event.

[@boostover3941]

I never saw combat but found myself in a similar incident. Months after leaving the Canadian Military on my way home from tobogganing, while crossing an ice covered street, a clap of thunder hit. I found myself flat on the ground in the middle of the street. I had not realized that thunder could happen in winter. I still shy away from loud noises.

[@svenderikjrgensen5335]

Overworked organs tends to be injured. This is logic if it is the liver or a hip. We never ( until now) accepted, that the brain is damaged after heavy overexertion. One example, a man from Danish minority fightting in German army in France during WW1. One day he was covered with soil af grenade hit. For 4 minutes. His comrades managed to dig him out. Before the war he was a proud and skilled farmer. After home coming he had frequent attacks of PTSD. But wife and friends managed to run the farm. And in fact he got an almost balanced and normal life. The psyciatric hospital was very good, because they had many similar cases. And he had served well before and after this incident. He is now a case story in Danish psyciatric history. It was not the length of duty, dead soldiers, but one afternoon with utter fear of life. Please if you are sceptic. Most people in direct combat returns with a changed personality. Not broken, but changed.

[@SMartinTX]

An uncle of mine, a World War II veteran himself, never talked about his war experience to his family but did so to my father, a Korean War veteran. There was a reason my uncle never talked about his war experiences to anyone except fellow veterans. He was in the 106th Infantry Division when the Battle of the Bulge broke out. The division was quickly surrounded by the German army and his regiment was the only one that was not captured. They had to fight their way out of the German trap. My uncle's family did not even know that until after he died but my father knew. My uncle asked my father not to tell about his war experiences to his family. I think the reason my uncle shared his experiences with my father was that my father was in the First Marine Division during the retreat from the Chosin Reservoir in the Korean War. My father and my uncle were both in similar situations, in units retreating while surrounded by a hostile enemy in brutal winter conditions.

[@sanjosemike3137]

It's difficult to remember or consider a greater soldier than Major Winters. To say that he was a hero is a gross understatement. He was absolutely brilliant, fearless and creative. Sanjosemike (no longer in CA)

[@TheGeonam]

I was Army 4th infantry Vietnam 68/69 lived 24/7 on some hilltop in the jungle stopping the NVA when we could from using their Ho Chi Minn trails. When I got home, I went a little wild with drinking, smoking and pills four about five years until I met my wife who loved me like I was, but she has never drank or smoked or taken pills her entire life. She had strong faith in the Lord and between her love and the Lord too life kind of straightened out. We are coming up on 50 years this year. I never talked Vietnam only to another Vietnam vet or veterans. I was at my parents house one day. Both my mom and dad at their kitchen table while I was picking up some things from my childhood. My mom asks me about what Vietnam was like. I said it was hot and humid. She said we know that, but we don't know what you did because you never talk about it. I told them I was proud to have worn the uniform. I never said anything else got my stuff and left. They are both gone today, and I only wish I would have told them.

[@v44n7]

thanks for sharing

[@maryeverett-patriquin1376]

I am so glad that your wife and your faith have been a source of healing. Thank you for your service. Enjoy your 50th celebration!

[@alsatful]

Mr Winters was a quiet man , He lived just down the street from my wifes parents , Never knew his story until Band of Brothers came out , very nice man

[@etsequentia6765]

I felt that. Right in the gut. They live with this, probably for the rest of their lives.

[@NVRAMboi]

I would expect anyone who's been in combat under live enemy fire would be 'wounded' for the rest of their lives. I respect these men and women for what they continue to sacrifice for our benefit. Wish I could fix it for them, but I can't.

[@dsmith2568]

It’s not fun

[@bobbobby-o2w]

Just thank them.

[@kelleychilton2524]

@@bobbobby-o2w Sometimes some of the veterans don't want to be thanked, it makes some of them feel uneasy. I've known combat veterans (relatives and others) who don't really want that kind of recognition. They say that they just don't need it and/or feel embarrassed when someone thanks them for their service, even though they served honorably. I had an uncle who was wounded in Vietnam (he was a radioman) and he never wanted that kind of response from anyone. I only knew of maybe a couple of occasions when he talked about the war. I do remember that he said the morning he woke up on the transport ship and could see the Vietnamese coast in the distance getting closer was one of the lowest days of his life ... except for the day he got shot.

[@robcreel4257]

I knew a Vietnam vet who lived next door to me back in the late 80s, early 90s. The poor guy drank a 12 pack every day. He told me the fireworks and the smell of gunpowder on the 4th of July gave him flashbacks.

[@chipcook5346]

I have known a few Vietnam combat veterans. They have been a more tricky bunch to talk with than any other group. One lived next door. He flew helicopters. The only difference between your story and mine is that this guy drank whiskey.

[@kurtrussell5228]

The smell of fireworks and the smell of artillery and gun smoke is different.....i don't think I'd ever confuse the two

[@chipcook5346]

@@kurtrussell5228 Yes. Black powder is different. I hear the flashback guy feels pretty silly, since your assessment negates the man's experiences because, you know, making pronouncements from the spectrum alters the universe every time.

[@kurtrussell5228]

@@chipcook5346 .... I know the smell of combat....

[@chipcook5346]

@@kurtrussell5228 Nope.

[@philhamilton8731]

God Bless these men, the few who are left, and their legacy.

[@tupperlake100]

When I was younger, a neighbors son served with the U.S. Marines. He served in Korea. When he returned people could see he had severe mental problems. Back then we had never heard of PTSD.

[@mattd8411]

True hero wish we had men like this leading our country.

[@johnwayneschaefer8518]

32 years as a firefighter/paramedic in a city of 1.5 million, can’t imagine what my dad a medic in ww2 w a silver and bronze star experienced in 195 days straight in constant contact with the enemy

[@TrueOpinion99]

I remember getting pulled over after getting home from my first deployment (Afghanistan) because I was driving erratically. The cop thought I was drunk but I was sober...turns out my brain still thought piles of trash were indicators of IED's. Didn't even realize I was driving weird.

[@wbwilhite]

Guy Sajer wrote the same thing in his memoir "The Forgotten Soldier" about being in the Wehrmacht. The war was over. He was walking home on a road. He heard a plane overhead, and without thinking, he jumped into the ditch. He said it took him many years to adjust to ordinary sounds as harmless. For a long time, he was on high alert. Death always seemed a shot away. edit: RIP Guy Mouminoux (13 January 1927 - 11 January 2022) aka Guy Sajer (his mother's maiden name was used in the Wehrmacht).

[@williamfeldner9356]

When my cousin Leslie came home from Vietnam he could not sleep unless he had a rifle on his chest according to my Aunt. He had been assigned to a fire base on a mountain top in Vietnam, every night the VC would attack them and try and kill them… they often got through the perimeters"……..

[@notlisted-cl5ls]

everyone has a nam story. i do too. i was in the 309th field kitchen unit. the stacks of pots and pans will never leave me.

[@NorwayT]

I know the feeling… Diving for cover and grappling for my sidearm that isn't there. Still, what Major Winters and the 506th went through is just out of this world! SALUTE to this Band of Brothers and the FREEDOM they granted us all! Their Sacrifices - One & All - must NEVER be forgotten and must NEVER cease to be HONORED! Thank you kindly, History vs. Hollywood! 👍

[@iainanderson6775]

I remember reading 'The Last Tommy' by Harry Patch, the last survivor of WW1. In it, he described a light that would come on in the hallway of his nursing home at night just outside his room. The light would come through a small glass section at the top of his door. Each time, almost a century later, he had to fight the panic of thinking it was a flare sent up from the German trenches. The staff ended up covering the glass so it didn't happen anymore. Some things never heal quite right.

[@louiseju]

How these heroes suffered for liberating us in Europe. Eternal gratitude to them and their families from Denmark 🙏 ✨

[@joesantamaria5874]

I was honored to see Dick’s statue near Utah Beach a number of years ago. Despite the fact that it is on a relatively quiet country road, there were many American there paying their respects. Utah was very moving.

[@timburns4880]

PTSD is a terrible thing. Sometimes it never goes away. Glad Maj. Winters made it back alive and well. May he RIP.

[@neilreynolds3858]

It never goes away. You learn better means of coping with it. It changes brain structures and your brain chemistry.

[@greendeane1]

I joined the Army in '69 to get the GI bill. In the winter of '72 I was walking across a parking lot on campus with a professor and a couple of students when there was a backfire. I was instantly flat in the snow and slush. I was quite embarrassed, the professor who served in WWII on an ammo ship was understanding.

[@alfredeneuman6966]

My father in law (now gone) island hopped in the S. Pacific during WWII. He saw a good deal of action. His stories were amazing. At times despondent, he would even say, why don't they just kill me. My mother in law asked me to stop as he would sometimes have nightmares. So, I did.

[@JILOA]

I was stationed in Nuremberg Germany during Vietnam and on occasions we were sent out to guard a NATO ammo site. One day we were walking around and we heard a faint whistling noise from somewhere above us and one of the guys (there were three of us) immediately shouted "hit the dirt". As he dove to the ground, one guy hesitated a couple seconds then he hit the dirt, and I just stood there like dummy wondering what the heck was going on. There was no danger of anything like enemy attacks in Germany. But my friend had come from the war in Vietnam and still had those instant reactions from incoming mortar fire he came under in Nam. I'll never forget that.

[@uhlijohn]

Paul Fussel, author of "Modern War" and "Doing Battle", told the story about his experience in the WW2 ETO when a commanding officer of his told him NOT to take cover when enemy fire was incoming! Then, one day a German 88 was walking its fire down the line coming closer and closer to him and a small group of his outfit. There was a bunker or cellar nearby that they could take cover in but Fussel didn't do that because the commanding officer had already warned him and was watching him at that time. One of the 88 shells burst nearby, showered his small group with shrapnel, killing two and wounding Fussel. That was his last action. He was shipped back to hospital in the UK and thence back to the US and he was permanently disabled. Every soldier has not only the right but the duty to take cover in the face of withering enemy fire. What good is a dead soldier? Fussel also said that loud, unexpected noises could send him reeling. Bill Manchester said the same thing. It is something that is hard to get over when you see a lot of combat and are constantly exposed to ominous sounds of munitions sailing by and detonating near you.

[@neilreynolds3858]

Officers like that are a reason we couldn't trust the Army. We could understand why Charlie wanted to kill us but why did our side want us dead? They never could give us a reason that made sense.

[@mikedegnan5252]

It's been about 20 years since I've been in combat. And I still to this day take cover when something bangs real loud or a car backfires. The worst thing is once you realize you're ok, everyone around you is looking at you like wtf is wrong with this guy? It's embarrassing as hell.

[@petermorris3665]

I drive through Aldbourne almost every day and I regularly think of Dick Winters and his men stationed there in their run up to D Day.

[@hiwayman981]

My father grew up in Brooklyn toward the war's end (born 1938). He and his family lived in a tenement building, when a young serviceman came home after the war in Europe and lived upstairs from them. Every so often the young man and his parents would come down and visit my grandparents and father, for coffee or dessert. There was no T.V. at that time, so the radio provided music and entertainment, but as static found it's way over the waves during that time, a loud crackle was commonly heard over the speaker, especially between different broadcasts. And every time the radio crackled, this young veteran would instinctively leap under the kitchen table and shudder, just like he would have done toward a foxhole in some European hell during WWII.

[@cdjhyoung]

I grew up in a home where my father suffered from PTS - no D, it is not a disorder. From his fear of flying to his failed relationships with his family, to the nightmares that would wake my folks up nearly every night, he never escaped his shame of bombing civilians, the belief that his crew survived a bombing mission that took the lives of everyone else in his squadron. Only after he had been gone for nearly 30 years did some of my older cousins tell me how badly the war had destroyed him emotionally. His brothers drank themselves to death. My father just tried to push the world away and live a separate life on his little farm.

[@GOODJMR]

They shouldn't fret. Those Germans knew exactly why they were being bombed. They knew what Hitler was doing to the Jews & when the allies were taking over Germany they understood it was God punishing them. ❤

[@Zgreasewood]

Small story, before WWll Dad played Pro Baseball, he fought at the Bulge got a Bronze star at Remagen, army held him in europe as he spoke Polish, he interviewed cocentration camp victims, took a lot of photos. Meanest man you ever met, 210 lbs of angry man , sullen. WE KIDS took a beating, he never understood what he had become. You get a chance, contribute to the V A. Lot of sullen types still there who need to know someone cares.

[@TheMarman57]

Years ago, I came home from action - I can't and won't say where - but I was walking towards a bus stop in my home village when a car nearby backfired. I was through and behind a hedge flat face-down in somebodies private front garden quicker than you can blink. I was suddenly back where I had just returned from. But when I regained my surroundings and stood up and extricated myself from the garden, people at the bus stop were understandably looking at me as if I was some kind of nutcase. It took me a few years for loud noises not to have that kind of effect on me - a firework display would sometimes conjure up images in my mind and I would have to snap out of it. Over 45 years later I still have the sharpness of instincts when I hear something that reminds me of combat - it never leaves you.

[@philstaples8122]

My great grandfather served in WW1, Grandfather in WW2, Father in Malaya and Suez, I served mostly in Germany in the 80's. Older ancestors have served in the Boar War and way before that, it's a bit of an army family as many are all over the world. I was never really told the stories until I was in the army and had been in for a year or more by my older family members because I hadn't joined the club until then. It's a hard life, very rewarding and you get to meet some fantastic people doing it but it's not for everyone. I've a few friends that suffer from what is not called PTSD, it never affected me even though I was right next to a few when they got it. I think it's down to your belief system if you believe that everyone is born good you may end up with it because they're not. Some people are evil at birth and when you meet someone like that it changes you. I did once jump over a wall on bonfire night when some fireworks went off and felt pretty foolish about it after but I'd been blown up in Ireland a few years before so I didn't feel too foolish. That wasn't PTSD it was self preservation...

[@sigguy1361]

Sad as I am to see these war heroes pass away I’m comforted by the fact that they are now at peace and no longer battling their memories 70-80 years later. 🙏🏼🇺🇸🫡

[@scasny]

Soon as he mention the fence my heart ache a little. You can hear the pain in his voice.

[@twistiefe]

Even after coming back from 6 month deployments you have those random episodes, shit like sitting at home after being back 2 weeks and you start panicking because your rifle isn't in arms reach, takes a few seconds to snap out of it. these blokes were overseas for years. my grandad went to WW2 from other side of the world when war was decleared in 1939 and came back in 1946 after the occupation of Japan, I can't imagine the shit he went through.

[@DwightStJohn-t7y]

My uncle came home to Canada and basically SAT on the farm for two years. finally a group of his school friends in his small town intervened, got him out on the highways maintenance contract and on with his life. I spent a month with my two cousins, his kids, and saw a lot of medals and guns in the house, pretty beat up. And probably most were "spoils of war".

[@infoscholar5221]

I understand. My dad fought in some of the most hellish battles of the South Pacific - Guadalcanal, New Georgia, Bougainville - and you better believe he brought that home with him. With time and distance, I realize that he endured simply more than he could bear. Many times more than anyone could have. And he had already lived through the Great Depression, as a train - riding hobo. Another era.

[@cleanwillie1307]

My father was an infantryman in the 5th Infantry Division which was part of Patton's 3rd Army. They landed in Normandy in early July 1944 and fought across Europe, winding up near Prague at the end of the war. His unit saw a lot of combat but he never talked much about it. My mother told me that a few months after he came home they were standing in line outside a movie theater, queueing to buy tickets when a car in the street backfired. My father was immediately on his belly. He still had episodes where he would just start shaking well into the 1950s. Combat can really mess you up.

[@davidberry6046]

I remember my Dad, who served as a medic in the ETO in WWII and later, In Korea, during that conflict. One of the few times I ever saw him get emotional was when he started to talk about the difficult times a lot of these men experienced after returning home and attempting to adapt to civilian life. He always regretted that the US military didn't give these men the support they needed. They were expected to just "man up" and "deal with it." When he found out that the VA was successfully helping many of these men who suffered with PTSD, he told me, "It's about time!"

[@StevesSlideandJazz]

My dad got PTSD really bad in Guam and nobody knew he was unhappy for decades. Finally a dr. gave him prozac and he began to feel better.

[@jackieyu4787]

My great uncle came back with shell shock. He sat in the back bedroom and wound start screaming get away from me but there was no one there. He died in the mental hospital

[@charlessedlacek5754]

Had a grand uncle, my grandfather's older brother, served in Europe as a combat medic and helped liberate daucau. The nightmares never left him and he killed himself in 1955. Started up the car in his garage and drifted off to eternity.

[@GOODJMR]

I've been reading as much as I can about the holocaust. It's so horrific that the public isn't shown all of it. It is not right that men and women were murdered & it's not right that men and women had to see it first hand. The horror should be shown so people today can get that feeling inside them that it can never happen again. ❤

[@sailingnomad4963]

Had a great uncle whose hair started growing in bone white after liberating Daucau. He never spoke of the war but he wife once shared that he would often get up and his sheets would be soaked through. He would just sit in the dark at the kitchen table quietly smoking cigarettes the rest of the night.

[@johnzajac9849]

True story: In 1970, several soldiers, who had returned with the 9th Inf Div to Schofield Barracks, were walking in the International Center located in Honolulu. Suddenly, there was a loud bang, possibly caused by a car backfire. All of the soldiers immediately hit the ground. Passersby broke out into laughs and titters, showing they had no idea why the soldiers reacted that way to the sudden sound.

[@hamsred12hams]

It's not a true story. The old 'car backfire/loud bang' story is well repeated and complete BS. Just note to how many comments here with similar stories of someone I knew....balked at loud bang. Pathetic.

[@johnzajac9849]

@@hamsred12hams It is!!!! It is!!!!!!! It is true, you git! BWAAAAAAA-AAAAAAAAAAA-AAA-aaaaaaaaaahhhhhhhhhh!

[@VinceA-jq6ds]

@@hamsred12hams apparently your situational awareness is minimal. Lots of things make loud unexpected noises.

[@slick4401]

I had a friend, long gone now, who as a conscript soldier was sent to Malvinas/Falklands for the last month of the 1982 conflict there with batch of last ditch reinforcements. He was not the same guy when he came back. We were best friends, but he simply would not talk about it. When he got sick with cancer and undergoing chemotherapy, he suddenly opened up. Perhaps it was the strong painkillers that got him talking, I don't know. But he told me some very ugly stuff that I had not even suspected. He participated in only one battle that took place at night and lasted a few hours. In the morning, he was taken prisoner by the Brits, who treated him very decently but put him to pick up the dead and the wounded. He was not wounded himself or anything, but that single battle left him unable to withstand strong sudden noises, firecrackers and the dark. Every Christmas and New Year he would pack and go camping in the desert so he would not have to suffer the fireworks in town. His mother told me that he had nightmares every night. He had become a heavy drinker by the time he got terminally ill. I often think about it. One battle, one night was enough to cripple his emotions. Imagine those guys who had to go through years of it. Vietnam, World War Two, the Eastern Front. War is hell.

[@TXOriginal]

My Gpa was part of V Corps as a radio lineman. He did an interview with the local county museum in 2004. He was trying to talk about landing at Omaha beach and pushing up the coast. He said when they made it inland a lady amd her kids warned them of Germans ahead so he went to investigate. He found a German tank unscathed he said when he climbed up smd looked inside he wished he hadn't. In the interview he grew silent and paused the interview because he was crying. I don't know what he saw but he remembered it in his 80's as if it was yesterday.

[@sarcasmo57]

Bad ass dude.

[@jamesmasonaltair]

I admire this man as one of the greatest infantry company commanders ever produced by the United States. He is the poster child for what every combat commissioned officer should aspire to.

[@greglippman4214]

What Dick Winters told about is NOT PTSD. That kind of response is a learned and experienced automatic self-preservation reaction, especially after having been around so much shooting and / or combat. It is a learned and used reaction. Martial artists have similar reactions to attacks, and I have seen it happen hundreds of times in both realms of fighting.

[@JessCausey]

My Grandfather stormed the beaches of Normandy. He wouldn't watch Saving Private Ryan because he didn't want to relive that trauma.

[@jerrybrown3726]

I served in Iraq and Afghanistan and I wrote these words as a tattoo for me Memories of events far away and long ago Visit me and shape my life today I smell, touch, see and feel the pain, guilt, the loss and the regret of yesterday Yet this may be the greatest gift of my humanity and the best sign that I was once a soldier but I am now, a simple man with an eternal soul Many cannot or will not understand The Soldiers Heart

[@andrewbird57]

My dad was captured at Dieppe in Aug 1942. The raid was badly botched and most of the Allied soldiers were killed, or captured by the Germans, my father included. He was a Sgt in the Canadian regiment Essex Scottish. It was some of the most savage combat of the entire war, with one of the most intense aerial battles of the war going on overhead. Much of his regiment was slaughtered on the beach by German machine gun positions embedded in the cliffs above the Dieppe beaches. He was a POW for almost three years. Toward the end of the war, the Germans marched him around Northern Germany for months in brutal winter conditions. I was born 12 years after the war ended. I didn't know my father well, he NEVER talked about his war experiences with me. He was seriously alcoholic as long as I can remember. He got repeated DUIs. He died of an alcoholic's disease when I was 15 in 1973.

[@GOODJMR]

And they were fighting for what? Yes, to save France and England. Yes, to end Hitlers conquering of Europe. And yes, especially to stop the extermination of the Jewish people. It was an honorable & just fight. And those who fought on our side, who fell or were captured & lived through it will always be heroes. ❤

[@patnor7354]

@@GOODJMR وعلى الأقل ليس علينا التحدث باللغة الألمانية. ... it was a giant waste of blood and gold. No wonder that so many veterans admit their friends threw their lives away for nothing and if they had know what the future would be like they wouldn't have fought.

[@GOODJMR]

@patnor7354 nice bait. Your comment is too cynical to warrant any value. I'd suggest try reading material from bonified scholars & researchers that aren't from the middle east. You are giving too much of your life away listening to those who have a vested interest in turning people against the west.

[@neilreynolds3858]

POWs get what's called Complex PTSD (CPTSD). It's even worse.

[@andrewbird57]

@@neilreynolds3858 Yes, I believe he suffered from CPTSD. He was in a POW camp for enlisted men and non-commissioned officers. Since he was a non-com, he didn't have to work, and he didn't, because that would be helping the German war effort. He did some work for the Red Cross in the camp, but otherwise he was mostly idle for the nearly three years he was a POW. I know he suffered greatly, I didn't really understand when I was 15.

[@catlee8064]

2008 was my last tour, after 18 yrs served. To this day, i still cant really socialise, hate fireworks, nightmares 2-3 times a week, claw at the wall in my sleep, drink too much.

[@Sterlingkataadem]

Thank you for saving us.

[@tericonnelly3197]

I am so proud of everyone who has served in the military for the American 🇺🇸

[@yoyozen1]

Everyone suffers. The veterans suffer and their families suffer, it's gut-wrenching. My father wanted to be happy, he did, and at times he was. At other times the war overcame him. Really, there should be help, but there just isn't.

[@johnanderson1245]

Being in combat and then returning to a normal civilian environment can do that. When I was a kid we had a guy on our street who was in Vietnam. He was out taking a walk one time and I was approaching him from behind on my bicycle. When he heard that clicking sound that bike used to make back then when you stopped peddling he damn near jumped out of his skin. Even scared me. My father was a WWII vet and when I told him about it later he sat me down and explained to me about some of the after effects of war. Lesson taught, lesson learned.

[@rebeccasjodal9769]

I remember once when a friend of mine who had gone through torture while being interrogated, with electric shocks, just tensed up and looked terrified when I told people that I had had some electrotherapy at the massage I went on. I didn't know that she had gone through such hell until then

[@KirkSwanum]

I was in the National Guard. Didn't see combat. But I was in an artillery unit. I got PSTD, just from being close to 155mm cannons going off. Now, loud noises make me feel like I am jumping out of my skin. And that is from just being around cannon fire 2 days a month every other month for 3 years. I can't imagine how messed up I would be if I was exposed to that on a daily basis for 4 years.

[@lonnietoth5765]

When they were making " Band of Brothers " , he was invited to go over sea's where they were filming as an advisor . They were doing a scene where the men were in a Duce in half with the canvas covering the back . When winters threw back the canvas and saw the actors dressed in the back . he closed the canvas , and left ! Walked off the set and went home . he said ,when he looked into the truck , he saw ghosts ! Good enough for me !

[@jeffreyhansen2806]

I was in Vietnam. I had a similar incident involving a jackhammer. I didn't hit the ground but it was close.

[@Whargoul100]

My grandfather was in Korea. I was born in the late 70's and i totally remember my grandpa screaming in his sleep. When i was 12 i asked him what his nightmares were about. This is the only time and the only thing he ever said to me about the war, he said my name, I had to shoot and kill children your age and younger along with their mothers and it haunts me every day. I gave him the biggest hug 12 year old me could muster that day. He never spoke to me about it again and he passed away in 1998.

[@BradahBri]

My father is pretty tight-lipped about his time in Vietnam but he did share that when he got back stateside, he was with a few other guys in an empty barracks that the gunny thought it would be a good idea to wake them up by throwing a trash can inside. He said they all jumped out the windows without thinking… he said they didn’t call it anything back then.

[@Cinci541]

Here's to hoping you can find some piece. I was with the 101st from 72 to 75

[@revolvermaster4939]

My Grandmother’s brother was in “The Bulge,” as a kid I used to ask him about the war, he would steer me onto another subject, never said a word about the war.

[@Caselliification]

You can take the soldier out of the war,but not the war out of the soldier.

[@GaveMeGrace1]

Thank you.

[@timhayes45]

What a legend this guy is!

[@Menyhard]

Thank you sir

[@spiff1003]

Oh, easy company is followed all the way from boot camp in this most excellent movie / series. This is my definition of heroes.

[@Baistegenx]

Imagine how they feel now, looking at what our "society" has become

[@VinceA-jq6ds]

To all the naysayers here in the comments. I did not see anything even close to what Maj Winters and many others did in combat. You never fully recover. Air raid sirens still make me very uneasy. Loud noises have me getting ready to dive to the deck, sometimes I even get there. Anyone who surprises me is likely to get a reaction they did not expect. No, you never fully recover. My little tastes of PTSD make me wonder how the heck men like Maj Winters ever deal with life and my respect for them and their ability to do so is unlimited. For those who downplay what he had to say, all I can say is, you try it, then you'll know. Sometimes, knowing is not better.

[@neilreynolds3858]

I had a friend, like most now dead, who pulled a knife on his mother when she tried to wake him up one morning when he got back. He lasted 3 days with his family before he had to leave. I only tried to punch mine. After that, she let the dachshunds wake me up. The vicious little killers thought it was fun. God bless the beasts of the Earth.

[@para1324]

Sights, smells, sounds, movement, built into the brain. Muscle memory kicks in. Full respect sent to all these studs of the first order. 🫡🇺🇸🙏

[@boxonothing4087]

Your worst scars can't be seen

[@jarmstrong2843]

It's been over 53 years since being in NAM. Fireworks on the 4th, a clap of thunder, a backfire of an auto engine will send me to the deck to this very day. I love what the firework on the 4th represent, but I also hate them because I get so many flash backs from artillery, rockets, mortars that rained down upon my unit in combat. Now, I retreat to the country side for a few days before and after the 4th to avoid those sounds. The younger generations and my contemporaries who never served do not have an understanding of those reactions I experience. I hope they never gain an understanding of those sounds by personal experience. It's something you never forget.

[@jamesscheidt4278]

My parents both talked a little about PTSD from the war but back then they called it "Shell Shock".

[@ericvantassell6809]

no, it didn't "fail to capture". It was way outside their scope.

[@johngaltjkt62]

Band of Brothers is far better OVERALL than Saving Private Ryan. SPR of course has the outstanding landing sequence and the last battle is very good. The movie itself has too many Speilbergism's and his annoying habit of trying to soften things that should be unsparing..

[@SWVA2TX]

I think one of "The Pacific's" great strengths is how it looks at Eugene Sledge's struggles after the war.

[@JohnWilliams-iw6oq]

The same in Australia, a car would backfire and the street would be littered with men dressed in suits sprawled on the ground. My dad's company had a B24 crash into it, burning fuel and live 500lb bombs everywhere. He was one of 13 survivors out of a company of 240 men.

[@gruntforever7437]

Everything have ever heard from the combat vets I have talked to is that its the SOUNDS that do it. Like with WInters, that kids stick on the fence sounded like a MG44 and that was a very deadly German machine gun. He had seen many troopers die from it; almost killed several times himself. It would have been remarkable if he had not violently reacted to that.

[@VinceA-jq6ds]

Sounds are the strongest for me. Smells are a close second.

[@neilreynolds3858]

We're much more aware of sounds than people who haven't been in combat even with the hearing loss. I can tell you almost everything that's going on in the neighborhood all the time. Sounds were an early warning of danger: If something doesn't sound right, there's probably something wrong. I was sitting around the kitchen table watching TV with a guy who had been in Cambodia and a couple of other guys who were civilians. There was a small sound of a stick breaking outside the window and both of us turned instantly to see what it was. The other guys didn't hear it. One of the guy's wife called it our super senses. We hear it, evaluate it, and come up with a possible scenario about what it means in a flash.

[@Redemption7825]

The narrative at the end should say to those who are critical can pound sand. That’s all that needs to be said.