Post Traumatic Stress Disorder is a well-documented issue, but now a study is asking if doctors really know how to treat it. According to the Institute of Medicine, which carried out at study of PTSD treatments at the VA's request, flaws lay in the way the treatments were assessed:

"Most studies included in the committee’s review were characterized by methodologic limitations, some serious enough to affect confidence in the studies’ results. The committee reached a strong consensus that additional high quality research is essential for every treatment modality."

The study comes as the VA seeks to help treat the 12.6% of Iraq vets, and 6.2% of Afghanistan vets who've experienced PTSD.  Despite the sober findings, doctors did point to the one proven treatment:

“...exposure therapies,” where PTSD patients are gradually exposed to sights and sounds that essentially simulate their trauma to help them learn to cope."

While doctors debate how to treat PTSD, some in the military are working to counteract any stigmas associated with the disorder.

"Marine Col. Keith Pankhurst...said it wasn’t very long ago that he believed Marines who had PTSD just didn’t have what it takes to serve.  "I would have been the first to say, ‘What kind of weakness is that?’” He said. “It took a lot of education to overcome that attitude.”

At the same time, a group of "elder Combat Veterans" is taking PTSD matters into its own hands, and looking after those now returning from war.

"We older veterans have come to realize that if PTSD issues are not dealt with early on, after many years these disabilities simply become our way of life and we learn to live and deal with them - or not. Our younger Brothers & Sisters deserve better than this and need some kind of effective help now."

Still, PTSD doesn't happen to everyone undergoing the same situations:

"Certain factors predispose individuals to getting PTSD. For the military, the nature of the war itself is a factor. If the war is being fought in guerrillalike conditions—increasing the sense of danger and of being out of control—the disorder is more likely."

"Other factors include a history of previous losses, previous mental-health problems and not having a social support system."