THE MILITARY LIFESTYLE

In todays blog post we will be talking about an alternate way of living and thinking. About something that military service members use to get through another day of hell and torture.

Something that helps them cope with what they see and experience in the battlefield. If you want to know what gets them through the day — stick around!

COMPLEXITY

We are incredibly complex human beings with astonishingly difficult and compound everyday lives. We worry a lot about an immense amount of mostly useless things which will not impact us negatively in 5 years time.

It’s too distracting. It is difficult enough to manage every one of your problems as a civilian, but as a military service member, too much unnecessary and distracting thoughts can lead you to your imminent death.

Soldiers have to focus on one thing only — their mission. Your head needs to be clear of all worries and problems. You must be sharp and focused to complete the mission successfully and stay alive.

Life as a civilian can get very complex and puzzling at times. It is unstructured, chaotic and all over the place. The military is totally different in this regard. Structure and discipline are hardwired into the core of every military service member. This is why it is so hard for most soldiers to return to the ordinary lifestyle of a civilian.

So what do the soldiers do to keep their head clear and sharp all of the time?

PRIMITIVE LIFESTYLE

Now, what do I mean by “primitive lifestyle”? The answer is fairly simple, yet complicated to actually incorporate — stripping life to its very basics. Sleep, eat, fight, repeat. Sleep and food are two very underrated things. You might not have enough of both of those at all times. Cherish the moments when you do.

Don’t ask many questions and do what you’re told. Now the thing that I’m about to say can be and probably is extremely controversial, but this is the reality.

Sometimes you have to do horrible things to survive in the military. Sometimes these things stick with you to the very end. The blame, the anger and the fact that you didn’t do anything to stop this or that.

PTSD can be a bitch. Set your personal beliefs and opinions aside. Think about your brothers and sisters in arms. They are your number one priority. Things are never black and white, but you have to try and look at things this way.

The good and the evil. The black and the white. Sometimes to save yourself from the self torment later down the line, you have to make the choice of closing your eyes and doing what is asked of you.

I know how this sounds, it sounds horrible. I am in no shape or form advocating you blindly follow every order you get. You should never cross the line. You always need to do the right thing, no matter what, even if your career or even your life depends on it.

This is a very serious subject, and not all of us will see eye to eye. But I believe all of us can agree on the following. Doing the right thing can sometimes be difficult, but is definitely worth it in the end. Even if it effects you in a negative way.

CONCLUSION

It is hard to fight wars when your head and thoughts are all over the place. You need to be focused, sharp and disciplined enough to understand that you have a job to do, and that your feelings and opinions come second.

Stripping your life to its very basics is one way of surviving in the battlefield. It is definitely not for everyone, and so is the military. Stop thinking about tomorrow. Everything happens here and now!