The Existential Vacuum among Military Personnel during Combat: Overcoming Existential Crisis through Logotherapy
Authors: Mariia Moskaliuk, Andrii Sofiichuk, Dmytro Kaluzhyn, Karina Skomorokhova
Under the guidance of Olena Rybchuk
Presented at the Student Forum on 27 February 2025.
“It is the dead of night. You are sitting in a trench. The silence here means only one thing: the lull before battle. Somewhere in the distance, artillery rumbles. But inside, it is even louder. A question cuts through your awareness: ‘What is all this for? How much longer? Will there ever be a different life?’
When war lasts for months and years, it takes away not only physical strength but also meaning. Our article is an attempt to answer the question of how not to lose yourself in this turmoil.
Viktor Frankl, a man who survived the concentration camps and lost everything, said: “A human being does not merely exist — they always strive for something greater than themselves.”
If the war continues, meaning in life must not be postponed until ‘afterwards’. It needs to be found here and now.”
An existential vacuum is a state in which a person loses their sense of meaning in life. For military personnel engaged in prolonged combat, it takes on a particularly acute form.
Main Causes of the Existential Vacuum in War
Changes in Previous Sources of Meaning
Before military service, there were other sources of meaning and points of reference: a person had a family, a job, and dreams. Amid constant combat, these sources of meaning seem distant or lost. A conflict of values emerges.
Prolonged Uncertainty and the Breakdown of Previous Connections
Monotony and exhaustion, constant combat. No clearly defined length of service. Lack of personal freedom. An inability to plan for the future. Separation from loved ones, family, and partners. The war drags on, with no clear end date and no guarantee that a “normal” life will follow.
Expectations and Reality
Disillusionment with the system. An inability to influence wider processes. The absence of change creates a sense of hopelessness. Kindness and gentleness are regarded as weakness. One’s own opinion is not always appropriate.
Psychological Detachment / Fear of PTSD
To protect themselves from the pain of loss, military personnel often shut down their emotions and, with them, their will to meaning. The constant activation of self-preservation instincts blocks other emotions. Fear of death or disabling injury. Continually witnessing deaths devalues life in general. Constant combat and the loss of comrades.
Viktor Frankl described this state among concentration camp prisoners and emphasized: “What matters most is not what we expect from life, but what life expects from us.”
Logotherapy is a method of psychotherapy based on the search for meaning in life, even in the most difficult circumstances. Frankl believed that a person could endure any suffering if they found their “why”.
How Can We Find Meaning in Fighting and Continuing to Live?
Finding new meanings in keeping with one’s own essence. Developing a sense of dignity in choosing to defend one’s country. Finding the people or purposes for whom or for which it is worth enduring all the trials of war. Finding meaning in everyday challenges, in supporting and taking responsibility for comrades, and in carrying out a combat mission.
Paradoxical Intention
Humour as the most effective way to ease tension, stress, and fear. For military personnel, humour can be a way to give voice to death, a subject that is taboo in peacetime life. Taking a situation to the point of absurdity in a light-hearted and amusing way. Reducing tension by openly discussing possible developments. Drawing up a plan of action for loved ones for any eventuality.
Self-Distancing and Returning to Meaning
Returning to meaning. Looking at oneself and one’s experience as an observer. Asking: Why am I here? What are my goals? What makes me unique? What is my superpower? If someone important to me were watching me as I did my most difficult work, what would they say? (Editor’s note)
Self-Transcendence
Every service member has something and someone they defend their country for. Usually, each has a symbol of their own “unarmed beauty and love”. It may be a partner, a child, parents, a home town, a school, or memories. This helps them understand their unique mission and that their presence is not accidental. To do difficult work every day, overcoming fear and exhaustion. To know what and whom they must return from war for, what useful things they can do after the war, and why their experience will be needed. (Editor’s note)
Examples
1. Meaning in Fulfilling One’s Duty
“I am not here for no reason. I am defending those who stayed at home. I am part of something greater.”
Carrying out a mission as a source of meaning.
Recognizing that your struggle changes the course of history.
2. Meaning in Relationships and Supporting Comrades
“I am fighting not only for myself but also for those beside me.”
Friendship and brotherhood as a source of support.
Even in the darkest times, support from others gives a sense of significance.
3. Meaning in Inner Growth
“I am growing stronger, discovering my limits, and learning not to give up.”
War reveals a strength within a person that they did not know they had.
Even amid chaos, it is possible to develop character, endurance, and resilience.
4. Meaning in the Future
“I must live through this, because there will be life after the war.”
Creating a mental image of a future worth fighting for.
Psychologically anchoring oneself in the future: who do I want to be after the war?
Logotherapy does not deny suffering; it helps find meaning in it. Frankl said: “Everything can be taken from a person except one thing — the last freedom: to choose their attitude in any circumstances.”
Socratic Dialogue
How long have you been fighting?
Your route into the military (volunteering or mobilization)
During your service, have you experienced a period of apathy, depression, or frustration?
What was the main factor that led to this?
If so, at what stage did it arise? (At the training centre, during direct participation in combat, or during leave and the return from it?)
How did you manage to overcome this state, and what helped?
Were you able to find meaning in this situation?
What helps maintain the morale of soldiers and comrades?
How does humour help you get through?
Does thinking about the importance of your mission help you overcome fear and frustration?
Why am I here? My goals.
What makes me unique, and what is my superpower? (What do I enjoy doing and do best, and how do I do it?)
If someone important to me were watching me as I did my most difficult work, what would they say?
Even in a prolonged war, it is possible to find sources of support. This is not a denial of reality but a way to preserve oneself within it.
United States: After the Vietnam War, programmes of psychological support for veterans developed, including group and individual psychotherapy. A study of group psychotherapy involving Vietnam veterans found a modest reduction in PTSD symptom severity following treatment (Fontana & Rosenheck, 1996; Schnurr et al., 2003). (Editor’s note)
Israel: Against the backdrop of prolonged military conflicts, systems of psychological and rehabilitation support developed for military personnel and veterans who had been injured during their service. Assistance includes psychological support, rehabilitation services and support for families, and is aimed at recovery and a return to civilian life (Israel Ministry of Defense, 2024, n.d.). (Editor’s note)
United Kingdom: Veterans of the Falklands War, like those who served in other conflicts, receive specialist psychological support, including from Combat Stress. The methods described by the organisation include cognitive therapy for PTSD and other approaches to processing traumatic experiences (Combat Stress, 2024, 2026). (Editor’s note)
Logotherapy in Work with Combat-Related PTSD: In the United States, Southwick and colleagues (2006) described the use of logotherapy as an adjunct to other approaches in helping veterans with chronic combat-related PTSD. This work addresses the existential dimension of their experience — loss of meaning in life and survivor guilt. (Editor’s note)
International experience highlights the importance of comprehensive psychological support for military personnel and veterans. Logotherapy helps address the existential vacuum — finding meaning and direction in life, including after combat experiences. Its inclusion in support programmes may contribute to improved psychological well-being and readaptation to civilian life. Southwick and colleagues describe the use of logotherapy as an adjunct to other approaches in helping veterans with chronic combat-related PTSD, particularly in addressing loss of meaning and survivor guilt (Southwick et al., 2006). (Editor’s note)
Working with War Veterans
Returning from war does not mark the end of the military journey. It is only the beginning of transforming trauma into experience. It is a search for new meanings, one’s uniqueness, and one’s mission.
Logotherapy as a Key Element of Psychological Support Programmes for Military Personnel
Logotherapy focuses on the search for individual meaning in life, which is critically important for veterans facing existential crises after combat.
Support in Overcoming Existential Crises among War Veterans:
Transforming Traumatic Experience:
Using logotherapy methods to transform negative experiences into a source of personal growth and motivation.
Developing strategies for overcoming feelings of guilt and post-traumatic stress disorder.
Restoring Meaning in Life:
Helping veterans rethink their life goals and find new meanings after returning from war.
Group Therapy:
Organizing group sessions in which veterans can share experiences and support one another in their search for meaning.
Creating a community that supports collective recovery and reintegration.
Support from Family and Society:
Helping people recognize their personal significance and role in society.
Family therapy.
Olha Kruhliak’s master’s thesis, “Specifics of Socio-Psychological Readaptation of Military Personnel after the War”, describes the use of logotherapy in combination with art therapy and self-regulation techniques. The author reports improvements in emotional well-being, reductions in PTSD symptoms and depressive manifestations, and a restored ability to formulate life goals. These results indicate a positive trend when logotherapy is used as part of comprehensive psychological support and readaptation for military personnel (Kruhliak, 2024). (Editor’s note)
Fear and anxiety are common reactions after traumatic events. These reactions do not in themselves indicate weakness (National Center for PTSD, n.d.). (Editor’s note) However, without adequate psychological support, this fear can lead to profound existential crises.
Sources for the Editorial Clarifications
Combat Stress. (2024). Annual report and accounts 2024. https://combatstress.org.uk/wp-content/uploads/2026/08/Combat-Stress-Annual-Report-2024-DIGITAL.pdf
Combat Stress. (2026, September). How we help. https://combatstress.org.uk/get-help/how-we-help/
Fontana, A., & Rosenheck, R. (1996). Improving the efficiency of outpatient treatment for posttraumatic stress disorder. Administration and Policy in Mental Health, 23(3), 197–210. https://www.ptsd.va.gov/professional/articles/article-pdf/id07116.pdf
Israel Ministry of Defense. (2024, March 25). אגף השיקום גיבש סל טיפולים חסר תקדים לפצועי המלחמה [The Rehabilitation Department has developed an unprecedented package of treatments for those injured in the war]. https://mod.gov.il/כתבות-ומבזקים/חדשות-משרד-הביטחון/אגף-השיקום-גיבש-סל-טיפולים-חסר-תקדים-לפצועי-המלחמה
Israel Ministry of Defense. (n.d.). Rehabilitation Department. https://www.mod.gov.il/en/departments/rehabilitation-department
Kruhliak, O. V. (2024). Spetsyfika sotsialno-psykholohichnoi readaptatsii viiskovykh pislia viiny [Specifics of socio-psychological readaptation of military personnel after the war] [Master’s thesis, Ternopil Ivan Puluj National Technical University]. ELARTU. https://elartu.tntu.edu.ua/handle/lib/47543
National Center for PTSD. (n.d.). Common reactions after trauma. U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs. https://www.ptsd.va.gov/understand/isitptsd/common_reactions.asp
Schnurr, P. P., Friedman, M. J., Foy, D. W., Shea, M. T., Hsieh, F. Y., Lavori, P. W., Glynn, S. M., Wattenberg, M., & Bernardy, N. C. (2003). Randomized trial of trauma-focused group therapy for posttraumatic stress disorder: Results from a Department of Veterans Affairs cooperative study. Archives of General Psychiatry, 60(5), 481–489. https://doi.org/10.1001/archpsyc.60.5.481
Southwick, S. M., Gilmartin, R., McDonough, P., & Morrissey, P. (2006). Logotherapy as an adjunctive treatment for chronic combat-related PTSD: A meaning-based intervention. American Journal of Psychotherapy, 60(2), 161–174. https://doi.org/10.1176/appi.psychotherapy.2006.60.2.161