July 4th Fireworks and Wounded Warriors

by DiAnna Steele

What I’d really like people to know is that fireworks are particularly disturbing to our veterans. I’ve worked with wives of wounded warriors who tell me every year that their spouse experiences a spike in PTSD-related trauma around this time of year because of fireworks. How ironic that those who fought for the very reasons we celebrate the 4th of July are subjected to nightmares, terrifying flashbacks, and extreme emotional pain while we celebrate.

I enjoy personal fireworks as much as the next over-aged kid, but I won’t use them at the expense of those who fought for my freedom. I hope others will think twice about how their personal fireworks might be affecting others, especially our veterans. May I encourage The Havok Journal readers to attend a community fireworks program rather than set them off in neighborhoods? Perhaps you could even do the same as a way of saying ‘Thank You’ to veterans.

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This article first appeared in The Havok Journal on July 4, 2018.

DiAnna Steele is a blue star mom who hails from the American heartland. Raised a Kansas farm girl, she helps her family maintain an ancestral farm originally settled by her great grandparents in the 1800’s. A professional speaker and writer with over 20 years of public speaking experience for Fortune 500 Companies and major non-Profits, DiAnna served as a speaker and small group facilitator for Wives of Wounded Warrior retreats at U.S. military installations to support and strengthen caregivers of troops returning home from war with Post Traumatic Stress Disorder and/or Traumatic Brain Injury as well as other physical wounds.