In a remote corner of Germany’s Black Forest, echoes of war linger in the minds of Bundeswehr soldiers, who struggle with trauma years after their withdrawal from Afghanistan.
Mike, a military captain and image reconnaissance specialist, is among those affected. In mid-July 2013, he provided crucial coordinates that led to a U.S. Air Force B-1 bomber dropping a bomb on a Taliban position, killing 12 people.
The event left him with post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD).
An investigation for the Ministry of Defense will continue until the end of 2025 on a farm in Aichhalden, a village in the Black Forest. The aim is to determine whether close contact with horses can help traumatized soldiers.
Mike experiences strong feelings of guilt and talks about his experiences with great hesitation. “If I had known there would be that many people, I wouldn’t have given them the coordinates,” he says.
The therapy horse Kurt seeks closeness to Mike, which offers him some comfort. Mike hopes that working with the horses will help him feel calmer and more relaxed.
“I want to understand what I’ve been through, deal with it and actually live with it,” he adds.
For years after the bombing, Mike was afraid to tell anyone about the deadly mission, not even his wife. “I was always afraid of being labeled a murderer if I spoke about it.”
His irritability and aggression increased and he hoped that his teaching job as an aerial imaging assessor would help him cope with his trauma. However, his condition did not improve. The complete withdrawal from Afghanistan in August 2021 deeply unsettled his moral compass. He wondered what this was all for?
In December 2021, Mike was placed on medical leave due to depression and burnout. He is no longer able to fulfill his work responsibilities. Mike says that interacting with the therapy horse and contacting others in similar situations has allowed him to breathe a little easier.
“Brushing the horse helps me relax and connect with the power of the animal,” he says.
The Army, or Bundeswehr PTSD study into the effectiveness of equine-assisted therapies has been running at two locations in Germany since 2020.
By the end of 2025, 100 Bundeswehr soldiers are expected to undergo the therapy, said Christian Helms, senior doctor at the Bundeswehr Psychotrauma Center in Berlin.
The therapy takes place at the ranch of military psychologist Alexander Varn, who learned the equine therapy method during a scientific exchange at the US Air Force Academy in Colorado Springs.
Varn notes that the project is cost-effective for the Bundeswehr as it does not incur any costs beyond the salaries of the two-person support team. He is the private owner of the five therapy horses and manages the ranch.
Varn is supported by Jens Hölzle, who served in a French-German brigade and was wounded during a mission in Afghanistan in 2009. His comrade Sergey Motz was killed when their patrol was ambushed by the Taliban. Motz, a young corporal, was the first German soldier to die in battle since the end of World War II.
Psychologically stressful experiences can cause PTSD, with symptoms such as nervousness, addiction problems, sleep disorders, nightmares, aggressiveness and feelings of guilt and shame.
Last year, the Bundeswehr reported 322 new trauma-related illnesses, of which 197 were classified as PTSD.
“The feedback from the study participants has been very positive,” says Helms.
Varns adds: “There is a clear need for this kind of support.”
