The first piece of homework literature I was given is called "After the War for wives of all veterans" The first paragraphs really spoke loudly to me:
AFTER THE WAR
Hundreds of thousands of women are facing a silent war, one which has been fought by millions of women before them.
Since the Gulf War, many of those millions of women are fighting it again.
Wives and families of veterans still fight this war alone, in our own homes, untrained, ignorant of the real enemy which once had no name and wasn't supposed to exist.
That enemy is Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder.
Many veteras spend the rest of their lives struggling with frightening symptoms and feelings--or the lack of feelings--brought on by traumatic stress. Those symptoms are the forces against which we may fight for the rest of our lives.
The rest of the booklet just continued to set off bells of understanding in my head and heart. I'm so glad we are finally getting this thing out of the closet where we can get help.
Thank God!
