The Day After He Left for Iraq: From Goodbye to Welcome Home

Army wife and first-time author Seligman plumbs the depths of depression and despair in this frank memoir of coping with her husband David's deployment to Iraq. Besieged by feelings of abandonment, anger and resentment, the author panics when confronted with the “burdensome” responsibility of being a single parent, dealing with soiled diapers and her daughter's separation anxiety. When her husband re-enlists without consulting her, she feels betrayed and her despair intensifies until she learns to “function like a robot.” David's homecoming does not spell relief; the author continues to feel “dead inside” and is “unwilling to sympathize” with David's postdeployment issues: his chest pain, anxiety and nightmares. With the passage of time, the author begins to “feel normal” again and makes steady progress in “learning how to deal with” the separation inherent in military life. Despite the pervasive self-pity that suffuses Seligman's account—and a self-centeredness that might put off some readers—her memoir offers valuable insight into the often heavy and anonymous burden shouldered by military families. (Oct.)