Veteran Mental Health: Why Support Matters Beyond the Fourth of July
- Matthew Herrera
- Jul 5
- 7 min read
Reflecting on Veterans' Mental Health After the Fourth of July
This past Fourth of July weekend, I found myself reflecting on the importance of mental health for U.S. veterans. This is a topic I am deeply passionate about. During my graduate studies, I completed my practicum at U.S. VETS: Outside the Wire, where I worked with student veterans attending local colleges and unhoused veterans navigating service connection, securing housing, and addressing untreated mental health disorders. Furthermore, I also have several family members who have served in the armed forces.
The Fourth of July can bring up many things at once: pride, gratitude, celebration, remembrance, grief, and sometimes pain. For some veterans, fireworks and public celebrations may feel joyful or meaningful. For others, they may activate memories of deployment, combat, loss, or experiences that remain difficult to put into words.
That complexity matters.
Veterans' mental health deserves attention not only during patriotic holidays, but throughout the entire year. Gratitude is important, but gratitude alone is not care. Veterans deserve spaces where their stories, symptoms, transitions, and emotional lives can be understood with nuance.
The Invisible Wounds of Military Service
Military service can shape a person’s identity, relationships, sense of safety, worldview, and nervous system. For many veterans, returning to civilian life is not simply a logistical transition. It can be a deeply emotional and psychological process.
RAND describes many post-deployment challenges as “invisible wounds,” including sadness, anxiety, guilt, anger, trouble concentrating, sleep problems, substance use, reliving traumatic events, and thoughts of death or suicide (RAND Corporation, n.d.).
The phrase “invisible wounds” is important because many veterans appear fine from the outside. They may go to school, work, raise families, maintain relationships, and continue functioning. Internally, however, they may be carrying trauma, grief, hypervigilance, depression, anxiety, or a sense of disconnection that is difficult for others to see.
Not all wounds are visible.
Not all suffering announces itself clearly.
And not every veteran will describe what they are experiencing as trauma.
Common Mental Health Concerns for Veterans
Veterans may experience a wide range of mental health concerns after service, and these concerns often overlap. RAND notes that veterans who have deployed are more likely than civilians to experience mental health conditions or cognitive injuries, and that one in five U.S. veterans of Iraq and Afghanistan experience PTSD or major depression (RAND Corporation, n.d.).
RAND also identifies several common post-deployment concerns, including family strain, sudden anger outbursts, difficulty adjusting to civilian life, alcohol dependence, traumatic brain injury, PTSD, and depression (RAND Corporation, n.d.).
Wounded Warrior Project similarly identifies PTSD, anxiety, and depression as common mental health challenges among warriors and emphasizes that veterans often need different forms of support depending on their experiences, symptoms, and stage of healing (Wounded Warrior Project, n.d.).
These concerns are not signs of weakness. They are often human responses to prolonged stress, danger, loss, transition, and the demands of military life.
PTSD, Trauma, and the Nervous System
Post-traumatic stress disorder, or PTSD, is one of the most widely recognized mental health concerns among veterans. It is also frequently misunderstood.
PTSD is not simply being “stuck in the past.” It is often the nervous system continuing to respond as though danger is still present.
RAND describes PTSD symptoms as including reliving traumatic experiences, avoiding reminders of trauma, losing interest in relationships or activities, and feeling on edge (RAND Corporation, n.d.).
For veterans, PTSD may show up as:
Feeling constantly alert or tense
Difficulty sleeping
Avoiding crowds, loud noises, or certain places
Emotional numbness
Irritability or anger
Intrusive memories or nightmares
Difficulty trusting others
Feeling disconnected from civilian life
Many veterans are not trying to be distant, guarded, or difficult. Their bodies may still be operating from survival mode.
That distinction matters because it shifts the question from “What is wrong with you?” to “What happened, what did your system learn, and what support might help now?”
Depression, Anxiety, and Emotional Overload
Depression among veterans can look different from person to person. RAND notes that depression can interfere with a veteran’s ability to work, sleep, eat, interact with others, and enjoy everyday activities (RAND Corporation, n.d.).
For some veterans, depression may look like sadness, hopelessness, or worthlessness. For others, it may show up as fatigue, irritability, physical pain, headaches, difficulty concentrating, sleep problems, or loss of interest in things that used to feel meaningful.
Anxiety can also be disruptive. It may appear as constant scanning, trouble relaxing, difficulty sleeping, irritability, avoidance, or feeling unable to fully settle into civilian life.
For some veterans, anxiety and depression are connected to trauma. For others, they may be tied to identity loss, isolation, moral injury, chronic pain, family stress, or the difficulty of finding purpose after service.
Adjustment to Civilian Life Is a Mental Health Issue
One of the areas I care about deeply is the transition from military service into civilian life, school, work, and relationships.
During my practicum at U.S. VETS: Outside the Wire, I worked with student veterans navigating local colleges and unhoused veterans managing adjustment disorders. That experience shaped how I understand trauma, resilience, identity, and reintegration.
Adjustment is not only about finding housing, enrolling in school, getting a job, or learning a new routine.
It is also emotional.
A veteran may be asking:
Who am I outside of service?
Where do I belong now?
How do I relate to people who do not understand what I experienced?
How do I manage anger, grief, anxiety, or hypervigilance?
How do I ask for help without feeling like I am failing?
These are not small questions. They deserve time, respect, and care.
Veterans Are Not a Monolith
One important point emphasized by Wounded Warrior Project is that veterans do not all need the same kind of support. Their mental wellness programs are described as personal and centered around helping veterans connect with resources that fit their needs (Wounded Warrior Project, n.d.).
That principle matters in therapy as well.
Veterans are not a monolith.
Some veterans need trauma processing. Some need support with anxiety or depression. Some are navigating relationship stress, anger, sleep problems, substance use, identity shifts, or grief. Some are students. Some are parents. Some are unhoused. Some are high-functioning professionals who look successful externally but feel disconnected internally.
Effective support should be individualized, not assumed.
Coping, Substance Use, and Survival Strategies
Some veterans cope with emotional pain through alcohol, drugs, isolation, overworking, emotional shutdown, or avoidance. RAND notes that people experiencing mental health concerns may turn to alcohol or drugs for temporary relief, even though this can lead to longer-term difficulties (RAND Corporation, n.d.).
It is important to approach these coping strategies without shame. Often, they began as attempts to survive. To sleep. To quiet memories. To reduce pain. To feel in control. To avoid being overwhelmed.
Therapy can help veterans understand what their coping strategies are doing for them, what those strategies may be costing them, and what healthier forms of support may be possible.
What Therapy for Veterans Can Offer
Therapy for veterans should be respectful, practical, and trauma-informed. It should not reduce a veteran to a diagnosis, but it also should not minimize the impact of military service, deployment, family separation, trauma, loss, or reintegration.
In therapy, veterans may explore:
PTSD and trauma symptoms
Anxiety and hypervigilance
Depression and emotional numbness
Anger and irritability
Sleep difficulties
Substance use patterns
Adjustment to civilian life
Relationship and family stress
Identity, purpose, and meaning
Grief, guilt, or moral injury
The goal of therapy is not to erase the past. It is to help veterans carry their experiences differently, reconnect with themselves and others, and build a life that feels more grounded and sustainable.
My Clinical Lens
My approach to working with veterans is shaped by my practicum experience at U.S. VETS: Outside the Wire, my family connection to military service, and my broader clinical work with trauma, anxiety, OCD, relationships, and life transitions.
I believe veterans deserve care that is collaborative, trauma-informed, and respectful of their lived experience. Strength does not have to mean silence. Resilience does not have to mean isolation. And seeking support does not erase what someone has survived.
Depending on a client’s goals, therapy may include:
Brainspotting
Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT)
Somatic approaches
Relational therapy
Trauma-informed care
Attachment-focused work
Exposure and Response Prevention (ERP), when OCD or intrusive thoughts are present
For veterans, therapy can be a place where experiences are taken seriously without judgment. It can also be a space where the veteran is not required to translate everything, minimize everything, or hold everything alone.
Veterans' Mental Health Deserves Year-Round Attention
The Fourth of July can remind us to honor military service. But honoring veterans must include caring about their mental health after the fireworks end.
Veterans deserve more than symbolic gratitude. They deserve access to meaningful support, effective care, and spaces where the complexity of their experiences can be understood.
If you are a veteran struggling with anxiety, depression, PTSD, trauma, adjustment stress, relationship difficulties, or feeling disconnected from civilian life, you are not alone.
Support is available.
And seeking therapy does not mean you are weak.
It means you are human.
Therapy for Veterans Across California
I offer therapy for adults, veterans, high-functioning professionals, creatives, men, and individuals navigating trauma, anxiety, OCD, relationship stress, and major life transitions.
I provide online therapy throughout California and in-person therapy in Pasadena.
If you are adjusting to civilian life, navigating school or career transitions, managing trauma symptoms, or simply feeling like you have been carrying too much for too long, therapy can provide a space to slow down, gain perspective, and reconnect with yourself.
To learn more, visit www.therapywithmattherrera.com.
Frequently Asked Questions About Veterans' Mental Health
What are common mental health concerns for veterans?
Common concerns can include PTSD, depression, anxiety, sleep difficulties, substance use, anger, adjustment stress, traumatic brain injury, and relationship difficulties (RAND Corporation, n.d.; Wounded Warrior Project, n.d.).
Can veterans experience depression without feeling sad?
Yes. Depression may show up as irritability, fatigue, physical pain, difficulty concentrating, sleep problems, loss of interest, or feeling disconnected from others.
Is therapy helpful for veterans?
Yes. Therapy can help veterans process trauma, manage anxiety and depression, improve relationships, navigate civilian life, and build healthier coping strategies.
Do you offer online therapy for veterans in California?
Yes. I offer online therapy throughout California, as well as in-person therapy in Pasadena.
What therapy approaches do you use?
Depending on the client’s needs, I may integrate Brainspotting, CBT, somatic approaches, relational therapy, trauma-informed care, attachment-focused work, and ERP when OCD or intrusive thoughts are present.
References
RAND Corporation. (n.d.). Veterans’ mental health issues. https://www.rand.org/health/projects/navigating-mental-health-care-for-veterans/mental-health-issues.html.
Wounded Warrior Project. (n.d.). Mental health and wellness. https://www.woundedwarriorproject.org/programs/mental-wellness.
