ABSTRACT
We ask our armed forces to take risks; that is the nature of the military contract. And members of the armed forces accept this, acknowledging in the final analysis that they may pay with their lives, the ultimate risk-taking act. Nowadays, with a volunteer professional military most ought to enlist with this consequence in mind; some, indeed, are positively attracted to the challenge. For the two authors of this book, both middleaged, unfit academics, it may seem strange that there are those who seek the opportunity to go to war. In this monograph, we have naturally concentrated on those for whom war was a searing, terrifying experience, which may have taken years to overcome, if at all. Changing diagnostic terms, treatments and explanations for war syndromes have been explored in attempt to gain a realistic understanding of why soldiers break down and how likely it is that they can be returned to active duty.
