Connecting Vets recently has the opportunity to interview the director of a new documentary titled "Stranger at Home" which focuses on how the U.S. military attempts, and neglects, to treat service member's mental health issues in the aftermath of combat. Director Beth Dolan grew up in a military household, with family members serving in conflicts ranging from WWI to Afghanistan, including two of her brothers.
"The veteran mental health story and filmmaking opportunity really walked into my life at a time when I was just beginning my own, more earnest path of recovery from the ripple effects of having grown up in an alcoholic home," Dolan explained to Connecting Vets. "As I lifted out of denial and acknowledged my own need for mental healthcare, education and self forgiveness, I began to connect the dots of understanding psychological injuries (traumas) more quickly and compassionately; for not only my experiences, yet for those of my family members as well — especially the ones who had served in the military."
Dolan worked on the documentary for years, eventually connecting with former Navy psychologist Dr. Mark Russell. "He was a decorated officer in the Navy, one of their top military psychologists, deployed at the onset of the Iraq Invasion, only to be told once he and his neuropsychiatry team arrived for the deployment that there really wasn’t a need for mental healthcare and treatment in the frontline field hospital," Dolan said.
From there Dolan also made contact with former military psychologist Dr. Charles Figley and former Army Ranger Steven Elliot who was involved in the operation that tragically led to the death of Ranger Pat Tillman in 2004. Together, the three men formed the main subjects that are followed in Stranger at Home.
"I’m most proud of the fact that me and my film team took on the bigger subject (rather than just hit on military PTS and suicides), which is…the thing behind the thing of why we still have a military mental health crisis in the first place," Dolan said. "I believe we spotlighted this truth with respect, a lot of love and creative artistry, while offering powerful solutions (policy changes) to shift us from a crisis state to a scenario where we are truly taking care of people who are coming back from service life."
Stranger at Home premiers on PBS on Veteran's Day, Nov. 11th. A full listing of airtimes can be found at www.strangerathome.org.
