Invisible Scars

"The Korean War (1950-53), was a ferocious and brutal conflict that produced over four million casualties in the span of three short years. Despite this, it remains relatively absent from most accounts of mental health and war trauma. Invisible Scars provides the first extended exploration of Commonwealth Division psychiatry during the Korean War and examines the psychiatric care systems in place for the thousands of soldiers who fought in that conflict. Fitzpatrick demonstrates that although Commonwealth forces were generally successful in returning psychologically traumatized servicemen to duty and fostering good morale, they failed to compensate or support in a meaningful way veterans returning to civilian life. Moreover, ignorance at home contributed to widespread misunderstanding of their condition, and veterans were often deprived of public space in which to grieve. This book offers an intimate look into the history of psychological trauma and assesses the impact of the Korean War on the development of military psychiatry. In addition, it engages with current disability, pensions and compensation issues that remain hotly contested and reflects on the power of commemoration in the healing process."--

Invisible Scars provides the first extended exploration of Commonwealth Division psychiatry during the Korean War and the psychiatric-care systems in place for the thousands of soldiers who fought in that conflict. Fitzpatrick demonstrates that although Commonwealth forces were generally successful in returning psychologically traumatized servicemen to duty, they failed to compensate or support in a meaningful way veterans returning to civilian life. Moreover, ignorance at home contributed to widespread misunderstanding of their condition. This book offers an intimate look into the history of psychological trauma. In addition, it engages with current disability, pensions, and compensation issues that remain hotly contested.

Like the best of memoir writing, My Invisible Scars is alternately brutally honest, sad, triumphant, tense, motivating, uncomfortable, and unforgettable. Relying on journals that she has kept since childhood, Canadian author Willa-Mae E. Scot articulately recounts in (mostly) chronological order the highs and lows of her long life, beginning with her early childhood in a small Saskatchewan town. Willa-Mae writes candidly about terrible disappointments, life-threatening ordeals, and her incredible and unwavering determination to put aside countless negative experiences, and live, embrace, and enjoy life to the fullest. This memoir is a must-read book for anyone whose life has been derailed by the unexpected loss of a loved one, violence, family break-up, infidelity, addictions, abandonment, or by poor, sometimes non-existent, choices. Those who have suffered through trauma and struggled to put that trauma behind them will see their journey reflected in these pages and be reassured that, even when down at rock bottom, they can find a way to be happy again. My Invisible Scars is instructive and inspiring, enlightening and engaging, and a great testament to its author’s tremendous courage and forthrightness. Most of all it is a testament to her enviable ability to offer forgiveness to the many people who have hurt her, and then gracefully move forward in life.

During these harrowing times of social and economic turbulence, romantic relationships are often prone to issues of control and power plays between two partners. Perhaps one makes more money than the other, feels as though he or she does more around the house in terms of chores and duties or carries the emotional load of the relationship more than his or her partner. Otherwise resolvable problems such as these can be, in many cases, catalysts for a form of abuse that might not leave the victim with any visible cuts and bruises but is damaging and hurtful.

Invisible Scars is the compelling story of the very beautiful Emmie. At the age of 18, she moves to sunny Spain with her doctor father, and her younger brother, Danny. This close family unit isn't quite what it seems, however, and it isn't long before trouble finds her. She's on detention on her first day at school, she's attracting the wrong kind of attention, and she's drinking. But behind all the bravado and nonchalance, she's self-medicating, and dulling the pain in an attempt to keep her invisible scars hidden. From dark family secrets, abuse, kidnapping, hospital stays, mental health struggles and Stockholm syndrome, to suicides, pregnancy, and a whole host of psychological challenges, Emmie's world is spiralling out of control. And when her mysterious mother returns after disappearing for more than 10 years, she brings even more danger to this troubled girl's life. Will Emmie ever escape the clutches of her destructive father? How long can she find the strength to keep dusting herself off after these disturbing threats to her life? And will she finally find the happiness she deserves with Damon? Join Emmie as she struggles through her addictive and unpredictable journey through a life that no one would ever want to experience.

“An unforgettable look at the peculiar horrors and humiliations involved in solitary confinement” from the prisoners who have survived it (New York Review of Books). On any given day, the United States holds more than eighty-thousand people in solitary confinement, a punishment that—beyond fifteen days—has been denounced as a form of cruel and degrading treatment by the UN Special Rapporteur on Torture. Now, in a book that will add a startling new dimension to the debates around human rights and prison reform, former and current prisoners describe the devastating effects of isolation on their minds and bodies, the solidarity expressed between individuals who live side by side for years without ever meeting one another face to face, the ever-present specters of madness and suicide, and the struggle to maintain hope and humanity. As Chelsea Manning wrote from her own solitary confinement cell, “The personal accounts by prisoners are some of the most disturbing that I have ever read.” These firsthand accounts are supplemented by the writing of noted experts, exploring the psychological, legal, ethical, and political dimensions of solitary confinement. “Do we really think it makes sense to lock so many people alone in tiny cells for twenty-three hours a day, for months, sometimes for years at a time? That is not going to make us safer. That’s not going to make us stronger.” —President Barack Obama “Elegant but harrowing.” —San Francisco Chronicle “A potent cry of anguish from men and women buried way down in the hole.” —Kirkus Reviews

In this tell all book, Dr. Billings chronicles the VA & the Military's decision to use brain/mind altering medications for residual effects of combat stress, why they do it, the effects on veterans/soldiers, and how new integrative treatment programs are helping vets return to normal, healthy lives, without brain/mind altering psych medications.

In Wounded by Words, the authors explore how emotional abusers isolate, disorient, and indoctrinate their victims and how their unkind words leave lasting scars.