 In World War II, the number rejected came to 14 out of every 100 men called up. It's impossible at the induction stage to predict which of those who remain will become casualties of the new stresses of army life. For these stresses will vary widely in kind and degree for each man depending upon assignment and other environmental factors. A man of light gray mental health who is subjected to great stress may become ineffective in a short time. A man of darker shade who encounters milder stress may be able to stand the strain much longer. Each man's resistance to stress is strongly affected by other unpredictable factors such as the kind of leadership he gets. Good leadership raises efficiency. Bad leadership lowers it. It also depends on the incentive or desire to carry on. The stresses of army life commence immediately upon induction. The recruit is yanked out of his civilian environment and plunged into a routine where individual freedom is replaced by regimentation and privacy is thrown out of the window. A man isn't even alone when he goes to sleep. Gone are the comforts that help to counteract the strains and stresses of living. Gone is the daily homecoming and all that it means. Any way you look at it, digging a trench is hard work. But for a man like Joe Smith whose energies are already depleted by emotional tension, uncertainty and worry, it's twice as hard. Joe is sweating it out, but he's a fish out of water and the strain is beginning to tell. The obstacle course is a nightmare to him. As in childhood, he's still afraid to jump. He loses his appetite. He sleeps poorly. Finally, Joe Smith cracks. He is undergoing an anxiety reaction, the most common form of psychoneurosis. The sentry has a depression form of psychoneurosis in which the loneliness of the environment has been one of the crucial factors. The soldier with the back trouble has a conversion reaction. His emotional disturbances and anxiety have been converted into bodily symptoms that are as real to him as though they actually had a physical basis. Sometimes an inner emotional conflict becomes too painful to bear and a sudden loss of memory or amnesia occurs. This may bring a decrease in suffering to the patient but at the cost of his normal functioning. All of these cases are forms of psychoneurosis. But this patient has a mental illness of an entirely different kind. Suffering from delusions of persecution, he has what is called a psychosis. While in the acute phase, he is regarded as insane. This condition, psychosis, must not be confused with psychoneurosis. Psychoneurosis is not insanity. Any major health problem, the first step must be preventive, aimed at lightening the average shade of gray of our army personnel. High morale is most important in this connection. It can be fostered by developing basic morale-building attitudes, belief in the justice of our cause, confidence in weapons and training, recognition of personal ability, pride in the unit, and confidence in leaders. To build morale is a function of command. Morale is the first essential of preventive psychiatry. As an important morale factor, the Medical Corps aids the soldier in making the mental adjustment to army life. All right, what about this thing fear? Your heart starts pounding, you breathe faster, you're tense all over, but at the same time, your hearing and sight become sharper. So fear isn't entirely a bad thing. Actually, it's nature's way of getting you alerted in the face of danger, so that your body is ready to act in a split second. Now everyone feels some fear. A similar program for officers supplies basic information on psychiatric questions. But there are quite a few men with minor psychiatric disturbances who with the proper help at the right time will make the grade and become efficient soldiers. Therefore, it's important for all of you to know some of the outstanding symptoms of nervous or emotional illness, so that if a man is having trouble, he can get treatment early. Now, suppose a quiet, mild mannered... Yes, in every case, early treatment is essential before the condition becomes more severe and much harder to cure. Take Joe Smith. His commanding officer knows that his symptoms are not mere indications of momentary fright. He's been watching Joe for some time and realizes that he may be sick.