The veteran community has access to numerous programs for veterans struggling with post traumatic stress. Help is available through many channels for veterans, veterans’ caregivers, and veterans’ families. Children are getting a lot of attention these days, and deservedly so. Changes in Mom or Dad when they arrive home can be overwhelming. The person closest to the vet, the one directly in the path of the fire – the spouse – is sadly the one with the fewest resources for support.

No one but another spouse really understands. Friends and family quickly lose patience, both with the veteran, and with the spouse who struggles to hang onto the relationship.

To the women out there who need an understanding friend, who need to feel that they are not alone, I recommend visiting an online support group founded in 2001. Administrators at our local VA hospital and Vet Center refer women to this group. Just this morning, I heard of a woman who was given the web address by her doctor in Texas.

It’s a great site. You really are not alone.

http://livingwithptsd.yuku.com/