What it Felt Like to be in The Battle Feild

When looking back at the war one of the most common questions people ask is, what does it feel like to be in the field of combat. For many soldiers this is a very hard question to answer, because for many it is very emotional and hard to talk about. Though from what many say when you are in combat it either feels like the battle goes on for weeks or it was there and then it is gone. Also, another factor of the field of combat is the medical treatment that soldiers get and how well they are treated. 

To start this exhibit we are going to start at the beginning of each battle which is just you sitting in a war zone. This for many soldiers was a normal and not uncommon circumstance. For many veterans who had been fighting for a while it caused no stress to be in this situation. Though for new men in the field this was one of the most terrifying times. This is because you have no idea where the enemy is, if they are watching you, and if they are going to kill you. For many they felt high amounts of stress and anxiety from being in this situation for long periods of time. 

The next level of combat is the battle itself where you are actively under fire and have to fight.  Soldiers reaction to being in combat varies widely. For many the most exhilarating thing they have ever done, getting a rush of adrenaline making them feel alive. For others it is the most terrifying thing they have ever done, making everything feel slow and giving them an intense sense of fear. There are many who experience a wide range of emotions in between and including both ends of the spectrum.

After that combat medics would move in to take care of the wounded and injured soldiers. They would first decide if you were combat worthy or needed medical attention. If you where combat worthy you were patched up and stayed with your squad. If you were not combat worthy they would assess your damages as extreme wounds or less severe wounds. If you were marked as having extreme wounds

you were sent off in a helicopter back to the rear to get medical treatment. Though if it was extremely bad and beyond their capabilities they would send you to Japan to get even higher medical treatment. For the most part the soldiers were given high quality, and fast treatment. But there were exceptions to this, one of which was when soldiers wounds were left untreated and getting infected and needing extensive surgical treatment. This happened to a number of patients but not that many on the larger scale of the war.

For many this was an experience, that while filled with horrendous pain and suffering, was life changing. This was an experience that taught them about themselves and others around them. To this day many soldiers remember Vietnam as one of the most life changing events in their lives, and one that they would do again. It forever changed each man’s perspective on life and on the world.