University of Colorado, Denver (Denver, CO 80202-1702)
Jean Scandlyn (Project Director: December 2011 to May 2015)
Sarah J. Hautzinger (Co Project Director: December 2011 to May 2015)
RZ-51459-12
Collaborative Research
Research Programs
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[Grant products][Media coverage]
Totals:
$126,000 (approved)
$126,000 (awarded)
Grant period:
1/1/2013 – 12/31/2014
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The New Normal: Deployment Stress on a Post 9-11 Homefront
Completion of a multi-year study of returning soldiers diagnosed with traumatic brain injury and post-traumatic stress disorder, and the impact on individuals, families, and communities. (24 months)
What do multiple deployments ask of soldiers, families and surrounding communities? The "New Normal" presents soldiers returning from war to a particular American 'homefront' in the West. We begin with soldiers struggling to find paths "all the way home": especially those facing PTSD, brain injury and depression. We explore these not as individualized diagnoses but collectively in terms of cultural stigma and incompatibility with "Soldier' ethos." The project then turns from the soldier-hero to illuminate the 'supporting cast': spouses and other family members, providers of health and social services, and community organizations including anti-militarization protestors. Here the underlying metaphor shifts away from the hero's epic journey toward the baffling labyrinth that is war, drawing in the military and civilians. Finally, we explore fact-to-face dialogue in varied community settings, inviting readers to follow locals' journeys as they reckon with the post-9/11 wars.
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