Women and war: Opening Pandora's box - Intimate relationships in the shadow of traumatic experiences

War and Post Traumatic Stress Disorder go, unfortunately, hand in hand. And war seems to be raging around us, no matter where we are on the Globe. Commonly, the scientific literature addresses the trauma suffered by those who directly experienced the war, meaning the soldiers. The literature has not, adequately, addressed the effects that war has on those who did not participate in it, but who live with those who did. The family members, mainly the spouses, who welcome the soldiers back to everyday life, and who consequently experience secondary trauma, related to the damaging effects that the war had on those who experienced it firsthand. The book brings a firsthand account of women [spouses and children] who met their traumatized husband when he returned from the battleground, and attempted to integrate into a society that does not understand what they went through, and thus is not supportive of them. Some chapters describe the experiences of such a woman, and how she either triumphed despite very difficult and unfavorable home conditions or, on the other hand, remained traumatized. Other chapters recount struggles to survive during and post- WWII, offering alternate perspectives whilst the overarching theme of pain and suffering is ubiquitous. Some chapters have an academic focus, examining critical issues pertaining to this book. Finally, chapters end with a commentary, by a clinical psychologist, of the women, their experiences, the effects on their lives, and what helped them triumph, or not.