Introduction

Combat stress reaction (CSR), now called «acute stress reaction» (ICD-10), refers to a transient anxiety reaction in the soldier, which has historically led to an inability to face the struggle of war. Most military, historical and medical analyzes of the activity carried out by the Wehrmacht in World War II reported no serious problems due to stress. The reasons are based on the exceptional quality of the small military units and the leadership of the German Army. However, over the years, it was no longer possible to avoid reporting the high number of casualties secondary to combat stress reactions, which has cast doubt on the myth of the German soldiers’ immunity to the stress of war.

Conclusions

At the end of WWII, the CSR was a common topic in official reports, meetings and guides. The psychiatrists who had the opportunity to report it were those who continuously underestimated the role of this stress disorder in the Wehrmacht. Thus, the widespread perception that the Wehrmacht did not suffer serious problems of emotional breakdown in soldiers, typical of combat stress, can be modified to some extent.

        · resumen en Español     · texto en Español     · Español ( pdf )