In a Bomaderry house bathed in sunshine, Iraq war veteran Aaron Gray spends the morning helping his son assemble Lego. It’s a peaceful scene that couldn’t be further from the battlefields of Iraq in 2007.
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But for Aaron, who joined the army in August 2001, memories of Iraq are never far away. He suffers from Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD), which can be triggered by things the rest of us wouldn’t notice.
Last week, Aaron lent his name to a call by researchers from Edith Cowan University for a trial of MDMA therapy, in the hope it might just heal the unseen wounds of so many veterans.
Last year the drug known as ecstasy was approved in the US for trials in treating PTSD.
“I can get very agitated by things like the smell of diesel,” he said.
“Things lying on the side of the road or travelling under certain bridges also make me anxious.”
Aaron’s PTSD is a legacy of his service with the Australian Army in 2006-2007.
He served in Iraq as part of Overwatch Battle Group (West). On April 23-24, 2007, his unit was caught up in the Battle of Route Bismarck.
“It was essentially an 18-hour ambush where we lost two armoured vehicles to IEDs and we had to hold in place until we could actually clear the route and get everyone else out safely,” he said.
Aaron traces a large part of his PTSD to that epic encounter. It first manifested itself in anger but wasn’t diagnosed until after he was discharged.
He joined the Woonona-Bulli RSL sub-branch, where he came into contact with Vietnam veterans.
“They pulled me aside and recommended that I go see someone,” he said.
That was the start of a protracted battle with the Department of Veterans Affairs to have his PTSD recognised as a service related injury.
Aaron says he was made to feel like a criminal as he jumped through the bureaucratic hoops. “You’ve got to have the energy to fight for what you’re entitled to.”
While he’s now getting the support he needs, Aaron’s life is forever changed. He rarely leaves the house, cannot cope with crowds and leans heavily on his wife.
Family outings are rare because “I’m too scared I’ll ruin it for them”, he can’t face shopping centres and sometimes struggles at home. He says his wife is also paying the price for his service.
“She’s working a full-time job as well as looking after three kids, including me,” he said.
You’ve got to have the energy to fight for what you’re entitled to
- Iraq veteran Aaron Gray
