Back from the Front: Combat Trauma, Love, and the Family

Author: Aphrodite MatsakisPublisher: Sidran PressPaperback:ISBN 10: 1886968187ISBN 13: 978-1886968189To write about the combat veteran is to write about fortitude, dedication and selflessness, and about experiences unfathomable to those who have never known the indescribable horrors of war. To write about you the veteran s spouse or partner is to write about another kind of loyalty and perseverance and yet another kind of pain and sadness. The trauma of war can affect not only the warriors, but their partners and children as well. Often it is you, the veteran s partner, who helps sustain the veteran during his or her depressions, anxiety attacks, and post-traumatic reactions. It may also be you, and perhaps you alone, who has sustained your veteran s will to live during his or her most anguished moments. Unfortunately, some veterans vent their anger (at themselves or at others whom they felt betrayed them) on the people they love and who love them the most their partners and children.