Photo By Staff Sgt. Darwin Seehusen | Iowa Army National Guard Soldiers from the 2nd Brigade Combat Team, 34th Infantry...... read more read more
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FORT POLK, La. - As more than 2,000 Soldiers from the 2nd Brigade, 34th “Red Bull” Infantry Division, Iowa Army National Guard, headquartered at Boone, Iowa, pass the midpoint of their annual training at the Joint Readiness Training Center (JRTC) on Fort Polk, Louisiana, they've faced extensive challenges to both body and mind.
Oppositional forces, composed of Soldiers from across the country, challenge the Red Bulls at every turn, mounting direct and indirect attacks on Iowa Soldiers, convoys, equipment and operating bases. In turn, the Red Bulls conduct counter-attacks of their own in this realistic, relevant and rigorous, force-on-force training exercise.
All combat scenarios are safely waged through the use of a Multiple Integrated Laser Engagement System (MILES). The MILES gear is essentially a laser tag system. If a Soldier is “hit,” an alarm sounds on his equipment and he becomes a “casualty.” The “casualty” is then rushed to a medical facility, where combat medics sharpen their own skills through intense training exercises of their own.
Fortunately, none of the casualties from the MILES fire fights are real – their injuries are only notional.
For actual, real-world injuries, Soldiers are treated at the JRTC Aid Station Rear (JAS-R). Manning this aid station is a team of Iowans ready to treat real-world casualties so they can return to the exercise.
“We support those in the field who get real-world injuries. We do what we can here, keep them if they need to be kept, and then send them back to the fight,” said Spc. Ashley Sadewasser, a Guttenberg, Iowa, resident and combat medic with the 209th Medical Company, Iowa Army National Guard.
Despite all the safety features factored into any exercise, there will always be risks when running over rough terrain in temperatures ranging in the upper-90s.
“They're running around out in the field, so there's a lot of ankle and knee injuries. There's also a lot of heat casualties with this heat down here,” said Sadewasser.
Heat casualties can be deadly if not treated properly. JAS-R serves as a welcome oasis, treating Soldiers urgently, lowering core body temperatures as quickly as possible to safe levels.
As a preventative measure, all Soldiers are required to carry an ample water supply and consume food loaded with more than enough fuel to keep them going.
“The Meals, Ready-to-Eat have everything – and more – that we need to keep us going out there in the field,” she said.
Even if a Soldier is fortunate enough to make it through a simulated fire-fight without any twists, sprains or bruises, there’s still the possibility of opening some deep, emotional scars.
The Red Bulls are not unfamiliar with real-world combat. Many of the Soldiers going through this exercise are Afghanistan combat veterans, and have faced the rigors of war.
“Three cases of Soldiers with previously-diagnosed Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder have come in,” said Pablo Sanchez-Barranco, a Sleepy Hollow, New York, resident and a psychiatrist with the Iowa Army Medical Detachment, Iowa Army National Guard. “JRTC is a very realistic exercise, and Soldiers experience some triggers from combat.”
Some of the most common triggers are bright flashes of light, which often remind Soldiers of improvised explosive devices, and smells. In fact, JRTC’s Modern Operations on Urban Terrain (MOUTS) live-fire village uses a “smells of the battlefield” machine, which recreates a variety of smells – ranging from burning garbage to decomposing bodies.
Soldiers who relive those traumatic experiences are given solace at the JAS-R. They are able to relax and decompress before returning to the field.
“We bring them in; they have a chance to shower, put on clean clothes, hydrate and eat,” said Sanchez-Barranco. “They come in very anxious and tremulous, but we give them a quiet, non-stimulating room to relax in.”
After Soldiers have had a chance to sleep and rest, they are re-evaluated. They are either sent back into the exercise, sent to a hospital, or return home for further evaluation.
However, PTSD only accounts for a minute part of the mental health issues treated by the JAS-R. The simple act of being away on annual training is sometimes enough of a stressor for Soldiers to seek counseling.
“The fatigue, stress, lack of sleep and environmental factors start to add up,” said Sanchez-Barranco.
On top of that, some Soldiers bring issues like financial or family troubles from home to annual training. The pressure mounts until that Soldier starts to shut down.
“They push through it for a long time until they dip into their reserves,” he said, “but then the reserves run out.”
Again, the JAS-R is available for rest and revitalization, assisting Soldiers with physical or psychological needs so they can get back into the exercise.
Whether it’s a necessary break from the oppressive heat of Louisiana, or the constant stress from such a realistic, high-tempo exercise provided by JRTC, the JAS-R is there to ensure Soldiers return warrior-ready to complete the mission.
| Date Taken: | 08.05.2015 |
| Date Posted: | 08.06.2015 16:26 |
| Story ID: | 172386 |
| Location: | FORT POLK, LA, US |
| Hometown: | GUTTENBERG, IA, US |
| Hometown: | SLEEPY HOLLOW, NY, US |
| Web Views: | 238 |
| Downloads: | 0 |
This work, JAS-R: Ensuring battlefield soldiers remain warrior ready during annual training, by SSG Chad Nelson, identified by DVIDS, must comply with the restrictions shown on https://www.dvidshub.net/about/copyright.
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