WASHINGTON - One deadly after the deadliest shooting rampage on a U.S. military base, many are asking if there were warning signs.

One psychiatrist who treats Vietnam veterans and has dealt with a number of patients who have post traumatic stress disorder says, while we don't know the mental make-up of Nidal Hasan, the suspected gunman, warning signs may have been overlooked because of what Hasan does for a living.

Maj. Hasan, 39, may have been dealing with precisely the same stresses for which he was treating his patients. His family and a Congressman briefed on the issue say the army psychiatrist was adamantly opposed to his upcoming deployment and had hired a lawyer to get him out of the army.

"[He] apparently became very disgruntled in the mission in Iraq (web | news) and Afghanistan and voiced that to a lot of his colleagues," said Rep. Michael McCaul, a Texas Republican.

In an Internet posting earlier this year, Hasan compared suicide bombers to GIs who saved their colleagues by throwing themselves on a grenade. Doctor Norman Wilson, a practicing psychiatrist for forty years in Washington, says Hasan's job could have set him off.

"Being a psychiatrist in the military can be a stressful job because the soldiers--if they have PTSD -- can be quite difficult," Dr. Wilson said.

Doctor Thomas Grieger, a training director at Walter Reed Army Medical Center, where While Hasan was an intern, said Hasan had some difficulties that required counseling and extra supervision.

Earlier this week at Hasan's apartment outside Fort Hood, a neighbor said Hasan had been giving away his furniture and copies of the Koran.

But Doctor Wilson says the only real predictor of violence is a history of violence. And that while he doesn't want to diagnose Hasan from a distance, it's possible there were warning signs that went ignored.

Wilson says those signs may have included one or more of the following:

• A history of violence
• Recent angry outbursts
• Threats of violence
• A mood disorder
• A substance abuse problem.

Wilson says Hasan's profession may have prevented someone from picking up on any possible signals or deflected concern.
"We need to pay attention the warning signs, especially in the military," Dr. Wilson said.

Along Connecticut Avenue Friday, people talking about the shootings said they could see how Hasan's position may have played a role in the massacre.

"It might be also an issue of someone that's in the field might be a little bit embarrassed to ask for help because it would probably show that it's either a sign of weakness or you know, inadequacy, so they might be a little more likely -- less likely -- to ask for help than the average person," said Brian Frank, a Clarion, Pennsylvania, resident.

Terrence Clegg works with local at-risk kids. He says it's critical for counselors and doctors to share their emotions.
"When you deal with at-risk people or troubled people on a daily basis it's almost as though you need someone to talk to, you need an outlet, so I could understand where some of those feelings could come from, Clegg said.

Dr. Wilson says the U.S. military doesn't do enough to treat troops' mental health, that it needs to do a better job of destigmatizing PTSD, and let people know it's OK to need help and to get it.

 Email To Friend