'We didn't understand it': New exhibit shines light on PTSD challenges for Canadian soldiers

LETHBRIDGE — A new, temporary exhibit is shining a light on post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) and the challenges it presents for military members as well as the general public.

"We've had soldiers come back through, getting the treatment, getting back into life and that's the biggest thing," said Sgt. Anthony Lapthorn, who spent six months in Afghanistan and saw the impact of PTSD on soldiers first-hand.

"Before that, we didn't know what it (PTSD) was -- we didn't understand it."

Prior to the First World War, mental illnesses and nervous conditions were less understood and less acknowledged.

By the end of the war, more than 10,000 Canadian soldiers were diagnosed with PTSD.

Shell Shock: The Long Road to Recovery is helping show that change in PTSD awareness over the years.

"Seeing this display is telling that evolution," said Maj. Robert Mein, commanding officer of the 20th Independent Field Battery.

"Being shell shocked, being soldiers being cast away and pushed away, not getting any benefits, not being treated as full members of society to now being fully embraced, we're having those conversations and we're appreciating that this is the kind of injury that could happen to literally anyone."

But Mein says PTSD still impacts many.

Between 1998 and 2015, 16.4 per cent of regular-force veterans who left the Canadian Armed Forces were diagnosed with PTSD.

"I can guarantee that all of us, if we think about it for a few minutes, can think of somebody who has gone through some terrible trauma that they were significantly affected by," Mein said.

The Lethbridge Military Museum is just one of multiple stops the exhibit will make across the country.

"We're very fortunate," said Ray Romses, chair of the Lethbridge Military Museum.

"This display has been loaned to us on a temporary basis from the Canadian Centre for the Great War, which is in Montreal."

"We do have a great military museum here and to have a real, first-class display that's telling the story, I think it's a bit of a big deal," Mein added.

The new exhibit, on display until Oct. 4, is open to the public every Wednesday from 12 to 4 p.m.