Continuing Actions: A Warrior’s Guide to Coming Home

Not every returning veteran has full-blown PTSD, but many, if not most, experience a difficult transition from active duty to civilian life. Sheehan (After Action) here creates a manual for them. His theory is that the return is every bit as much a part of the warrior’s journey as training and active duty. Influenced by Joseph Campbell’s monomyth of the hero’s journey, he believes there is an “absence of guidance for the final stage of this journey.” Analogizing the process to a military operation, he suggests that much of what soldiers experience in uniform can help them out of it. The key is reversing the compartmentalization that soldiers in combat need to survive—at home, compartmentalization can wreak havoc. However, the author warns, “Some memories need to be treated like the HAZMAT they are.” Self-care, buddy-care, and professional help are the “framework for safety” necessary to manage the “danger involved with excavating the emotions and reactions of our past.” Ultimately, the book reminds those who may experience a loss of identity when they leave active duty that they remain trained soldiers who know how to identify and destroy the enemies keeping them from their objectives. This is a useful, no-nonsense guide. [em](BookLife) [/em]