After the War Zone
A practical guide for returning troops and their families
Authors: Matthew J. Friedman, Laurie B. Slone, Copyright @ 2008
- Coping with common reactions
- The aftereffects of "battle" mind
- PTSD - what it is and is not
- Home, work, and community concerns
A highly practical, user-friendly guide to homecoming--including common after-effects of war zone exposure and how to cope--for returning troops and their families.
Two experts from the VA National Center for PTSD provide an essential resource for service members, their spouses, families, and communities, sharing what troops really experience during deployment and back home. Pinpointing the most common after-effects of war and offering strategies for troop reintegration to daily life, Drs. Friedman and Slone cover the myths and realities of homecoming; reconnecting with spouse and family; anger and adrenaline; guilt and moral dilemmas; and PTSD and other mental-health concerns.
With a wealth of community and government resources, tips, and suggestions, After the War Zone is a practical guide to helping troops and their families prevent war zone stresses from having a lasting negative impact.
A Handbook for Family & Friends of Service Members
Before, during and after deployment
Copyright 2010
The team behind the award-winning PBS series, This Emotional Life, in partnership with the Defense Center of Excellence for Psychological Health and Traumatic Brain Injury (DCoE) developed this FREE handbook to help you – the family friends and support network of our country's service members – understand what to expect from deployment, build the skills to strengthen or repair your relationships, and gain the tools to keep your family and personal community strong throughout the duration of your separation.
The handbook & accompanying film will help you:
- Be aware of the stressors and feelings you may encounter throughout deployment
- Develop skills to become more resilient despite these stressors and feelings
- Identify outside resources that may be useful to you, your family, and your friends throughout deployment
Coming Back Together
A guide to successful reintegration after your partner returns from military deployment
Author: Steven L. Sayers, Copyright @ 2014
When a partner or spouse returns from war, it is a time of joy; but it is also a time of transition, challenges, and uncertainty. The truth is that the process of reintegration can last for years, and it can be a particularly difficult time for both returning heroes and their families.
If your partner has recently returned from war, or if they will be returning soon, you should be prepared for the unique challenges that lay ahead. Your loved one may suffer from psychological and physical wounds, experience “battlemind,” a condition that leaves them constantly anxious and on-edge, and they may even have post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD). If they are uncommunicative, you may feel like you are living with a stranger, and struggle to recreate the bond of intimacy you once shared.
In Coming Back Together, clinical psychologist Steven L. Sayers offers real tools to help you reestablish family routines and build a stronger sense of intimacy with your partner after a military deployment, even if they are resistant to help. The challenges of reintegration can come as a surprise, but you can arm yourself with the skills needed to face this difficult time and help your partner build the resilience needed to heal. This book will be your guide.
Courage After Fire
Coping strategies for Troops returning from Iraq and Afghanistan and their families
Authors: Keith Armstrong, Dr. Suzanne Best, Dr. Paula Domenici
Copyright @ 2005
The bravery displayed by our soldiers at war is commonly recognized. However, often forgotten is the courage required by veterans when they return home and suddenly face reintegration into their families, workplaces, and communities. Authored by three mental health professionals with many years of experience counseling veterans, Courage After Fire provides strategies and techniques for this challenging journey home.
Courage After Fire offers soldiers and their families a comprehensive guide to dealing with the all-too-common repercussions of combat duty, including posttraumatic stress symptoms, anxiety, depression, and substance abuse. It details state-of-the-art treatments for these difficulties and outlines specific ways to improve couple and family relationships. Courage After Fire also offers tips on areas such as rejoining the workforce and reconnecting with children.
Includes:
- Reconnecting with loved ones
- Combating war reactions
- Returning to work and community
- Resources to help with readjustment
Down Range to Iraq and Back
Authors: Bridget C. Cantrell, Ph.D., Chuck Dean, Copyright @ 2005
There are some things people don’t get over easily — pain from the past is one of them. Trauma changes people: It changes values, priorities, worldviews, and most of all…it changes how we relate to others. Painful, life-threatening experiences take people beyond the normal day-to-day life, leaving them stuck behind defensive walls that keep them from re-entering the world they have always known as “home”. So how does it happen? How do we lose the loving closeness with those around us? And better yet, how do we re-gain what pain has robbed us of?
Down Range is not only a book explaining war trauma — it is required reading for anyone seriously interested about how to make healthy transitions from war to peace. Bridget C. Cantrell, Ph.D. and Vietnam veteran, Chuck Dean have joined forces to present this vital information and resource manual for both returning troops and their loved ones. Here you will find answers, explanations, and insights as to why so many combat veterans suffer from flashbacks, depression, fits of rage, nightmares, anxiety, emotional numbing, and other troubling aspects of Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD).
Everyone Serves
A handbook for family & friends of service members
during pre-deployment, deployment and reintegration
Author: Blue Star Families, Copyright @ 2013
This handbook has been designed to address a subject that’s not discussed enough: the full spectrum of emotions that accompany a military deployment life cycle. That means not just looking at post-deployment reintegration but also examining other parts of the equation: pre-deployment, deployment, and reunion periods.
This FREE guide helps you:
- Build resilience
- Strengthen relationships
- Learn coping strategies
- Prepare for and manage reunion and reintegration
Includes video, checklists and resources
Life After Deployment
Military families share reunion stories and advice
Author: Karen M. Pavlicin, Copyright @ 2007
Life after Deployment captures the tender and moving stories of military families during their reunion. Service members and their spouses, parents, fiancees, and children share the joy and anxiety of homecoming, the adjustments of living together again, and how they coped with anger, depression, PTSD, injuries, grief, and other challenges.
Some families had fairytale endings. Most worked hard to rebuild their relationships after much time and change. A few suffered great losses. These military families talk candidly about what their experience was really like, offering hope and advice to others who walk this journey.
Reintegration
A military spouse's Biblical guide to surviving after the homecoming
Author: Carrie Daws and Kathy Barnett, Copyright @ 2015
Deployments are inevitable in military life. Short or long, relatively safe or extremely dangerous, time away from our men is standard issue. How can the family left behind best deal with the transition before and after deployment? And what should we do if he comes home different? Those who deal with long separations due to a career know that the first weeks back can be trickier than when you first began living together as a couple, particularly if the mission was stressful or life-threatening. While the Bible doesn’t specifically mention reintegration, God still gives us great advice on preparing our hearts and minds so that our marriage can thrive even through Reintegration.
Reuniting after Military Deployment
Help for the transition
Author: Rob Green, Copyright @ 2011
Your excitement at the prospect of reunion is tempered with anxiety. You have heard the stories of divorce, discouragement, and depression. Will your account be any different? In Reuniting after Military Deployment: Help for the Transition, Rob Green of Faith Biblical Counseling assures you that successful reunification is possible because of the help found in Jesus Christ. Green offers practical advice for seeking to understand your spouse's struggles, reevaluating schedules and responsibilities, and using your new family time with purpose. By taking steps to intentionally transition out of "deployment mode" and back into the unity God has given you as husband and wife, you can rebuild a family that is stronger than ever.
The Road Home
Smoothing the transition back from deployment
Author: Elaine Gray Dumler, Copyright @ 2009
The Road Home is the newest addition to the I'm Already Home book series which is widely used by more than 56,000 military families. This comprehensive resource meets the specific needs of families in all branches of service transitioning back to "real life" as their service member returns from deployment. Many military families struggle with both the joys and challenges of the reintegration process and they're looking for answers. Continuing in the tradition of supplying great information, stories and support websites to service families, The Road Home helps you quickly find information about the issues and concerns that are personal to you! Some of what you'll find in The Road Home: Homecoming - beyond the balloons and parties; "What do you mean by that?" - Improving communication; "But Dad said I could!" - Tackling discipline while maintaining a united front; "How the heck did my butt get so big?" - Image, sex and intimacy; "Am I normal?" - Adjusting to your new normal; "What do I do now?" - Getting back in the swing of things with family, job and community; "I did not sign up for this!" - Combat Stress, PTSD, wounded warriors, dealing with loss; "You need attention too" - The unique needs of blended families, single service members and extended families...plus so much more! You'll also find over 250 military focused web resources and military discounts for continued assistance. Reunion isn't all about balloons and parties--it just starts there. During your tour of duty things changed...as they had to. Now it's your job to adjust to those changes, find your family's "new" normal, and settle back into your life together. The Road Home is the beginning of your journey.
Turning Your Heart Toward Home Workbook
A workbook for re-integration and re-adjustment
Author: Bridgett C. Cantrell with Chuck Dean
Perhaps we now have the opportunity to make up the ground we lost when our troops came home from previous wars. “Turning Your Heart Toward Home” is a course that utilizes many lessons learned from the past. It provides tools for warriors to reintegrate with their loved ones upon returning from their military assignments.
The combination of educational skills and experiences have structured this powerful course entitled “Turning Your Heart Toward Home”. This vital information addresses and resolves many of the destructive issues surrounding relationship reintegration when soldiers return home from war.
During the course, war veterans and family members alike are directed to the core concerns that work against healthy reconnections. Using step-by-step inventories participants are guided toward rebuilding healthy relationships.
Wheels Down
Adjusting to life after deployment
Authors: Bret A. Moore and Carrie H. Kennedy, Copyright @ 2010
As a military service member, you're looking forward to life after deployment and being back home among family and friends. But adjusting to "normal" life again can bring its own challenges. You're not the same person you were when you left on deployment.
This book, written by military psychologists Moore and Kennedy, is a down-to-earth guide that's full of practical advice. The authors talk straight about both the joys and challenges of returning home, advising that one size does NOT fit all when it comes to making the transition. They share thoughtful, constructive tips for dealing with unwanted surprises like relationship break-ups, financial problems, and kids who are suddenly strangers.
Experiences shared by many returning service members, like sleep disturbances, anger management, and learning to live with "hyperstartle," are also discussed. For those whose transition has been more difficult, chapters on identifying the signs of PTSD, living with disturbing memories, and seeking relief from suicidal thoughts are particularly valuable.
A final appendix is the definitive guide to support services for military members, with resources on everything from kid's books to financial management web sites.
While You Were Away - 101 Tips for When They're Back
A reunion guide for military families
Author: Megan Egerton-Graham, Copyright 2011
This book provides 101 practical tips to help military families successfully re-unite after an extended absence or deployment of a family member. These tips provide clear and easy activities to help families through this happy but challenging time.
Copyright 2008 - 2018 Benita Koeman, Operation We Are Here. All rights reserved.
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