The Silent Veteran: A Memoir - 9781928667070

The Silent Veteran Memoir, hidden for fifty years, is a close intimate true story that begins innocent enough with two brothers; the younger impulsive receives his military draft notice, and the older compulsive brother suffers nightmares fearing his younger brother's death in Vietnam. Unable to live with his brother's certain death, he relinquishes his student deferment and is drafted beside him. During combat training, their love and respect for each other grow. After training, the elder brother ensures his younger brother won't die and goes to Vietnam instead; the story follows him to Vietnam.He arrives at Tan Sun Nhut Air Base during a rocket attack that introduces him to the stark reality of war. Once settled, he is assigned a combat unit in the 101st Airborne and leads patrols into countless firefights and battles throughout the hills and valleys of Phu Bai. He forges meaningful relationships with his platoon, which keeps him alive. Over time, the relationships are lost. He is transformed from innocent to traumatized. The psychological destruction of fighting an unethical, immoral, impossible war has far-reaching consequences. Detachment, distrust, shame, guilt, hypervigilance, and intrusive, disturbing images haunt him, like millions of veterans, decades after the war. The story details his transcendence of post-traumatic stress to find sanctuary in education, and a career in psychology, which eventually pulls him into a rewarding and meaningful life.

Author: Vance Becker

Publisher: Postcards From Your Mindseye

Publication Date: Sep 05, 2023

Number of Pages: 285 pages

Language: English

Binding: Paperback

ISBN-10: 1928667074

ISBN-13: 9781928667070