Nearly 700 U.S. service members have been wounded by drone and missile attacks in the Middle East, with most experiencing traumatic brain injuries that military officials have downplayed as "minor concussions" even as veterans describe years of debilitating symptoms that follow them home.
Joe Shearer, 40, of Colorado Springs, Colorado, was only recently diagnosed with traumatic brain injuries from blasts he suffered while fighting in Iraq 21 years ago. A mortar round knocked him down and made him vomit. A roadside bomb later sent a shock wave through his body before headaches and sleeplessness set in for days. "As long as you got back up and could go back on patrol, that's kind of what you did," he said.
Shearer came home at age 19, denied he had PTSD and didn't know what a TBI was. Plagued by nightmares, sleeplessness and headaches, he initially turned to drugs to self-medicate and considered suicide. He later got help for PTSD, but it took years for him to consider that he suffered traumatic brain injuries. He was working for the Wounded Warrior Project and screening fellow vets for TBIs when he realized he checked many of the same boxes. He still struggles with dizziness, migraines and forgetting daily tasks and responsibilities to his wife and children. "I know that some of that stuff is stereotypical, but for me, it's got a different ring to it," he said. "There will be no memory of the conversation happening."
A Pattern of Inadequate Care
Pentagon chief spokesman Sean Parnell last month called the vast majority of injuries over a two-week period "minor concussions," a characterization that contrasts sharply with the long-term struggles veterans describe. More than 500,000 service members were diagnosed with TBIs between 2000 and 2025, with 82% of cases considered mild and not all of them related to combat. Advocates believe the injuries could still be undercounted because symptoms often overlap with post-traumatic stress disorder and other conditions.
Democratic lawmakers are calling for an investigation into the care wounded troops received after an Iranian drone strike in Kuwait that killed six U.S. soldiers this year. Wisconsin Sen. Tammy Baldwin pressed the military in a letter on Wednesday to release the findings of its investigation into the March 1 attack. "I spoke directly with Wisconsinites who sustained traumatic brain injuries from (President Donald) Trump's war in Iran and went weeks without so much as a screening, let alone specialized care, for their injuries," Baldwin said in a statement. Defense Health Agency spokesman Peter Graves said in an email that "it is policy that service members are screened for TBI."
The Science of Blast Injuries
Doctors can't predict who may have lasting effects from a TBI, and repeated blows increase the chances of lasting problems, including chronic traumatic encephalopathy, or CTE. Dr. James Kelly, an emeritus professor of neurology at the University of Colorado School of Medicine and chief medical scientist at the Invisible Wounds Foundation, said, "The blast wave itself can be injurious," and added, "It's a different cellular injury. Blast is a different thing than a blunt injury to the head."
Dr. David Okonkwo, a University of Pittsburgh brain trauma specialist, said it's imperative that people recover from a concussion before doing activities that put them at increased risk of another. That guidance stands in contrast to the reality many service members face, where returning to duty quickly is the norm.
Army veteran Frank Sonntag, 75, of Queen Creek, Arizona, experienced memory loss after a TBI from a mortar blast in Iraq 22 years ago. It took 30 minutes to write an email. Colleagues told him he spoke one word every 10 seconds. He considered suicide before being diagnosed after he got lost driving home. Neurologists prescribed medication for his migraines, among other treatments. "Speech therapy was one of the greatest things I had," Sonntag said. "They taught me how to practice the words I was speaking and how to put sentences together again."
Recovery Remains Possible
Kelly Parker, director of independent services at the Wounded Warrior Project, said, "If you've seen one TBI, you've seen one TBI." She said screening, early treatment and support can be crucial to returning to a more normal life, and that physical, speech and art therapies can lead to improvements. "There's still so much we don't know about the brain, but one thing that we do know is it can heal itself," Parker said. "We know that new neural pathways can be created, and we absolutely believe that the brain can adapt. We've seen it happen."
Army veteran Spencer Milo, 41, of Parker, Colorado, has dealt with migraines, seizures and forgetfulness after a first TBI in Iraq 18 years ago, when his Humvee smashed into a wall to evade fire, and a second from the blast of a suicide bomber in Afghanistan 15 years ago. "I've had fellow service members that were even with me on those days, and they're like, 'Dude, why can't you just kick it?'" Milo said. "I really wish it was that simple. It's tough because when you can't see something, it's hard to believe that it's really there."
Americans are bracing for more chaos in the Middle East as the war in Iran drags on, though specific polling data wasn't available.
Why This Matters:
The gap between Pentagon characterizations of "minor concussions" and the lived experiences of veterans reveals a systemic failure to adequately screen, treat, and support service members who bear the invisible wounds of war. With nearly 700 troops already wounded in the current conflict and more than half a million diagnosed with TBIs over the past quarter-century, the human cost of military engagement extends far beyond battlefield casualties. Democratic lawmakers' calls for investigation into delayed care after the March drone strike highlight accountability gaps that leave injured service members without timely treatment. The stories of veterans like Shearer, Sonntag, and Milo—spanning suicide attempts, years of misdiagnosis, and permanent cognitive impairment—underscore the need for robust public health infrastructure and veteran support systems that don't rely on injured troops to self-identify their conditions years after the fact. When those who serve return home with injuries the military minimizes, society's obligation to provide comprehensive care becomes both a matter of justice and institutional responsibility.