MAY 18, 2017, by Leslie Wyman – The sun is high, and the desert wind blows sands in all directions. Perched high on the rooftops of a seemingly “abandoned” apartment building, Chief petty officer Chris Kyle waits for any insurgent targets that will pose a danger to his advancing unit.
4 hours into the extreme heat, Chris remains undaunted of the harsh desert conditions, still on the lookout for any threats. Armed with his Mk12 Marksman Sniper rifle, he looks unto the scope and sees his unit slowly advancing through the highly urbanized area.
Guided by pure instinct, he turns his gun and sights into a suspicious area on top of a much lower building. Behind a blockade made out of aluminum sheets, cinder blocks, and plywood, he sees part of a turban creeping out. Minutes later, Chris notices an all too familiar weapon coming out of the blockade: A rocket-propelled grenade launcher aims at the advancing U.S. Troops.
Chris calmly aims his rifle towards the insurgent. A thin metal sheet now covers the turban he saw earlier. Without vision, he visualizes in his mind the exact position of the terrorist. After a few seconds, U.S. troops below hear a powerful, single shot from Chris’s Mk12 Rifle, echoing through the streets.
In just a matter of few minutes, Chris Kyle and his unit averts disaster and safely goes through the city. The story above is just one of “American Sniper” Chris Kyle’s countless heroic acts during his tour in Iraq. Chris became an American hero when he saved the lives of hundreds of ground troops.
Life after Service
Upon coming home, Chris continued his service to his fellow men by heading a company specializing in tactical training and security for local law enforcement communities. He also went to FITCO Cares Foundation, to provide exercise equipment for veterans with disabilities and those with Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD).
Tragic Death
It wasn’t long when tragedy would strike him, his family, and the whole United States. Offering help to a deeply troubled veteran, Chris and his friend Chad Littlefield were tragically shot dead on a firing range. The assailant, Eddie Routh, was a troubled marine suffering from PTSD and Schizophrenia.
The Assailant
Source: http://www.ugogo.info/mbecat-eddie-ray-routh.asp
A tragedy like this is certainly avoidable if only proper diagnosis and treatment regimens are readily available for all members of the armed forces. PTSD is a disorder which hinders a person’s rational thinking by triggering a lot of traumatic images from the past. It highly disrupts an individual’s ability to sleep, causing a lot of restless nights on the bed.
With Schizophrenia, a more degenerative disease that causes a person to act irrationally and in Eddie Routh’s case, more violently. This condition requires a more strict approach to treatment, diagnosis, and maintenance drugs.
Both of these ailments significantly affect sleeping patterns. Disrupted sleeping patterns make things worse: Behavioral patterns become irrational, mental alertness drops, and cognitive processing becomes difficult. Certain drugs like Risperidone for Schizophrenia and Catapres for PTSD require doctor’s approval before using.
Particular beds or mattresses can also aid those with degenerative and neurocognitive diseases. It is important to put a lot of focus for improving sleeping conditions because sleep provides physical recuperation and mental rest.
Takeaway
Dubbed as the most lethal sniper in the history of the U.S. Military, Chris Kyle was certainly a real life hero. He saved countless lives during his tour in Iraq by protecting convoys, providing cover fire, and security sweeps for both advancing and retreating units.
After retiring from military service, tragedy awaited Chris’s return. In a more bizarre twist of events, Chris Kyle offered to help Eddie Routh who was suffering from PTSD and Schizophrenia. Chris ultimately paid the price and was shot by Eddie using his “own” weapons.
If there’s a conclusion to this sad story, Eddie was convicted of murder and is currently in prison for life, without the possibility of parole. Chris would go on living as a hero inside the memories of the entire United States Army, and the people he saved.
Author Bio: Leslie Wyman is a writer and an interior designer by heart. She is very particular with how beds affect the physical and mental conditions of men and women in the military. In her free time, Leslie enjoys going to the gun range where she practices target shooting with her modified AR-15.
