Author of "The Honor Was Mine"
|
|
A young combat veteran hides in his closet under a pile of clothes on bad days. Another, home for five days after a year of solitary work, can’t figure out how to talk to his wife. A commander’s spouse recounts the soul-draining effect of attending ninety-three memorial services . . .
When therapist Elizabeth Heaney left her private practice to counsel military service members and their spouses, she came face-to-face with unheard-of struggles and fears. The Honor Was Mine reveals the emotions running deeply—and often silently—in the hearts of combat veterans and their loved ones. For those unconnected to the military, this is an eye-opening portrait of the complex, nuanced lives of service personnel, who return from battling the enemy only to grapple with the fallout of war—all while readjusting to civilian life.
Presenting the soldiers’ stories—told in their own words—as well as her own story of change, Heaney offers readers an intimate perspective, not of war itself but of its emotional aftermath. Some of these stories scrape the bone; others are hopeful, even comical. Every one reveals the sacrifices of those on the front lines and the courage, grace, and honor with which they serve and struggle to truly come home.
When therapist Elizabeth Heaney left her private practice to counsel military service members and their spouses, she came face-to-face with unheard-of struggles and fears. The Honor Was Mine reveals the emotions running deeply—and often silently—in the hearts of combat veterans and their loved ones. For those unconnected to the military, this is an eye-opening portrait of the complex, nuanced lives of service personnel, who return from battling the enemy only to grapple with the fallout of war—all while readjusting to civilian life.
Presenting the soldiers’ stories—told in their own words—as well as her own story of change, Heaney offers readers an intimate perspective, not of war itself but of its emotional aftermath. Some of these stories scrape the bone; others are hopeful, even comical. Every one reveals the sacrifices of those on the front lines and the courage, grace, and honor with which they serve and struggle to truly come home.