We found this interesting feature on the New York Daily News which talked about a different kind of military boot camp. While the stereotypical image of boot camp consists of civilians being oriented as to what military life is all about, helping them develop habits and skills necessary to live the military life, the feature suggests a boot camp that will do the opposite: help veterans ease themselves back into civilian life.

Medal of Honor recipient Bob Kerrey and former Navy SEAL and Nobel Peace Prize winner Pete Wikul wrote a piece regarding the idea of what they termed as a “re-boot camp” for veterans, and cited various realities to support the need for one. Being veterans themselves, Kerrey and Wikul wrote: “We’ve felt the pain of transitioning back to “regular” life ourselves – and we know it can be rough.”

They pointed out that most service members – men and women alike – are unprepared to transition back into civilian life. It was noted how there were an estimated 185,000 veterans of the Iraq and Afghan wars who are unemployed; employment rates for veterans are known to be higher than that of the general public.

In addition to unemployment, veterans also have to deal with post-traumatic stress disorder, traumatic brain injuries and depression.

Among the things that they would like to see in a re-boot camp are psychological counseling, physical and psychological assessment of a service member’s capacity to work, and counseling regarding “the cultural shift from a strictly regimented life to a free and open lifestyle with unlimited choices and no regimentation.”