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SALT LAKE CITY — The handover of Sgt. Bowe Bergdahl by the Taliban to American troops in Afghanistan last weekend took maybe a minute. But Bergdahl’s recovery from his five years in captivity will take much longer.
Currently, he’s in Landstuhl, Germany, undergoing a military post-captivity reintegration process. The program was instituted after the Vietnam War, and it’s been in place ever since.
“There will be a whole range of examinations and tests that will be done,” said Dr. Howard Weeks, an assistant professor of psychiatry at the University of Utah. “A lot of his examination will focus on his mental health, how he survived, what types of symptoms that he may be having, such as depression or anxiety.”
The debriefing process is open-ended, and it could take weeks before Bergdahl returns to the U.S. There are still many questions that require answers in regard to his captivity.
The road ahead will be filled with challenges for Bergdahl. It can be a difficult process to return to civilian life. He’ll struggle with even simple things, Weeks said.
“Just coming back into the real world and to be able to walk into a grocery store and have the freedom of choosing what you want to eat or what you want to buy can be very overwhelming," he said. "Having that freedom of being able to do what I want — I can go to sleep whenever I want or to be able to get up and walk out of the room — that is going to be a huge adjustment for him.”
Having that freedom of being able to do what I want — I can go to sleep whenever I want or to be able to get up and walk out of the room — that is going to be a huge adjustment for him.
–Howard Weeks, psychology professor
Bergdahl hasn’t spoken with his family since his release, and there’s no timeline for when a reunion will take place. When it does, it will likely be at a military facility in San Antonio, Texas, where he will be sent after his debriefing in Germany.
Bergdahl’s release was certainly a happy time for his friends and family. POW/MIA organizations across the country are also thrilled.
“It's excellent news,” said Kurt Falkner, executive director of the POW/MIA Awareness Organization of Utah. “Anytime we get anybody accounted for, whether they be missing or a POW — and Bowe was our only prisoner of war confirmed alive — it's very exciting for us.”
Related:
Bergdahl's hometown cancels celebration amid furor
Sgt. Bowe Bergdahl's hometown abruptly canceled plans Wednesday for a welcome-home celebration, citing security concerns over the prospect of big crowds — both for and against the soldier.Falkner said his organization had been in contact with the Bergdahl family in Hailey, Idaho, ever since the capture.
He agreed Bergdahl’s return to civilian life will have its challenges. “He's not going to just come home and say, ‘Here I am. Everything is going to be fine,’ because he's spent five years with somebody watching him all the time.”
“It can take a lot of time, and you need a lot of help and support," Weeks added. "That's where families and communities can be supportive, as well as his treatment team, his doctors and therapists, and his clergy, if he’s religious. And that's why it's an open-ended process, because it can take weeks and months and even years for some people to fully integrate back.”
