In my new novel Your Forgotten Sons, a work of historical fiction which is inspired by a true story, World War II soldiers in the Graves Registration Service are relentlessly bombarded with the horrors of war, as their job entails retrieving, identifying, and burying the dead, a breeding ground for psychological damage. No doubt, many came home with deep invisible wounds that no one acknowledged as real. And that attitude about mental illness continued until recently.

Today, with the help of many well-known individuals, the stigma has lifted, especially with athletes like Simon Biles and Michael Phelps, and artists like Lady Gaga and Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson having come forward with their own mental health issues.

Now mental health is an everyday conversation in America. Unless, of course, one is in the military. A scene in the 1970 movie Patton still resonates. Actor George C. Scott—who won an Academy Award for playing the title character—slaps a hospitalized soldier suffering from PTSD and calls him a “yellow-bellied coward.” Yes, the film is over 50 years old, still the continued denial that service people can struggle with mental illness remains.

But why? Dr. Jeffrey A Liberman in his Psychiatric Times article “Solving the Mystery of Military Mental Health: A Call to Action, said, “…the idea of psychological weakness is antithetical to military culture with its ethos of strength and invulnerability. Thus, military leaders were disinclined to recognize and accept the possibility of psychic injury.”

Liberman goes on to say that because mental health issues like PTSD, which “is commonly associated with functional impairment, substance abuse, suicidal ideation, impulsivity and violence,” have no visible signs and can’t be proven by diagnostic tests the military can easily ignore them.

The sad thing is the military establishment has put its collective mind to a problem in the past and good things happened. Note that 80% of severely wounded combatants prior to the first World War I died. Today, 80% survive. So why can’t they put that same positive effort behind helping military personal suffering from mental illness?  

The United States Department of Veterans Affairs says an average of 20 veterans die by suicide daily. In the United Service Organizations article “Military Suicide Rates Are at an All-Time High; Here’s How We’re Trying to Help” Danielle DeSimone wrote, “Suicide rates among active-duty military members are currently at an all-time high, since record-keeping began after 9/11 and have been increasing over the past five years at an alarmingly steady pace…For military families and parents, whose active duty loved one already sacrifice so much to protect our freedom, this trend is extremely troubling.”

Sadly, it’s estimated that 60 to 70% of military personnel who experience mental health issues don’t seek help, fearing their careers will be in jeopardy if their commanding officers find out.

Isn’t it time we did better?

Your Forgotten Sons

Inspired by a true story

Anne Montgomery

Bud Richardville is inducted into the Army as the United States prepares for the invasion of Europe in 1943. A chance comment has Bud assigned to a Graves Registration Company, where his unit is tasked with locating, identifying, and burying the dead. Bud ships out, leaving behind his new wife, Lorraine, a mysterious woman who has stolen his heart but whose secretive nature and shadowy past leave many unanswered questions. When Bud and his men hit the beach at Normandy, they are immediately thrust into the horrors of what working in a graves unit entails. Bud is beaten down by the gruesome demands of his job and losses in his personal life, but then he meets Eva, an optimistic soul who despite the war can see a positive future. Will Eva’s love be enough to save him?

Release Date: June 6, 2024

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