Review: The Fire Within: Shedding Light on Trauma (original) (raw)

Journal of Veterans Studies

A 2012 report released by the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) concluded that an estimated 22 veterans a day commit suicide, renewing national attention to the growing epidemic of self-harm by our nation's former service members (Kemp & Bossarte, 2012). "22 a day" evolved from a statistic to a public outcry, supporting suicide prevention interventions within the VA healthcare system and sparking efforts outside the VA by non-profit groups like Mission 22, Stop Soldier Suicide, and 22 Too Many. While the statistics have since been revised to 20, the fight to end veteran suicide is still fervent as veterans represent a disproportionate percentage of the total number of suicides each year (Shane & Kime, 2016). Research likewise heightens the attention to mental health issues resulting from, or exacerbated by, military service or veteran reintegration, especially posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD). Despite a thorough treatment in the DSM-5 (Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders), PTSD among veterans remains misunderstood, often by civilians but also by military service members, their families, and even mental health care providers (including those within the VA). Most individuals with PTSD would argue that to understand it, you must experience it. From this belief, The Fire Within: Shedding Light on Trauma enters the conversation about PTSD. The Fire Within offers 22 personalized accounts of PTSD written by soldiers, Marines, and military family members who experience it or who have been impacted by it. The goal of this compilation, as explained by the book's lead editor and Army veteran, Mat Vance, is to underscore the range of PTSD in its origins and manifestations as a disorder 1 , as well as the veterans' varying approaches to treatment, coping mechanisms, stigma, and outlooks for the future. Vance himself is a published author, having released a memoir about humor in combat, The Funny Side of War: For the Sick and Demented (Outskirts Press, 2015). While each perspective adds valuable nuance to the way we (those unaffected directly or secondarily) understand PTSD, The Fire Within collectively seeks to raise awareness about invisible injuries while dispelling common misconceptions. Sadly, many of their stories also underscore negative perceptions of mental health among current service members and inadequacies in the VA healthcare system. The voices of the collection's contributors are raw, honest, and unapologetically insistent in telling their truths and positioning themselves in the contexts of other veterans they know and love. Of the 22 authors, 21 are veterans (Army, Marine Corps, and one Navy SEAL) and one, Amy Miner, is the widow of a veteran. Her story, as I'll explain later, is one of the most heart-wrenching. The book is divided into six sections: three chalks, two resupply spots, and a concluding story. For the civilian audience, Vance explains that a chalk is "military jargon for a small group of troops that are loaded up and ready … mentally and physically prepared to do what is necessary to complete the mission" (2017, p. xvii). Thus, the main contributors to the collection are organized into small groups. 1 While some readers may dispute the use of the term "disorder" to describe PTSD, I'm adopting the clinical classification from the DSM-5. In the manual, PTSD is now included in a new category: Trauma-and Stressor-Related Disorders.