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It Transforms All Of You: Lived Experiences Of Partners Of Iraq Combat Veterans With Traumatic Brain Injuries, Laurel Sue Cassidy

Doctoral Dissertations

Just over two million service men and women have been deployed to the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan over the past ten years. Conservative estimates suggest that nearly one fifth of those deployed sustain a blast induced mild traumatic brain injury (TBI). Nearly half of those in the service are married, meaning a large number of spouses unexpectedly find themselves navigating a “new normal” after their partner returns from combat with ongoing sequelae from a TBI.

Ultimately, a sizeable number of spouses of Iraq combat veterans with TBIs have found themselves in the role of caregiver. The large majority of …