Caring for the invisible wounds that warriors bring home

...Today, through counseling and drug therapy, Derrick has more good days than bad. Yet problems persist.

He doesn't like being around people but misses companionship in the isolation of the farm, which he rarely leaves. He wants to be left alone but gets lonely. His 23rd birthday passed on Sept. 28 without celebration.

He tries to keep busy at the farm with the herd of Hereford cattle and hay fields to tend to, fences to fix. The busier he is, the less the images of war invade his mind.

He can't go into a house -- even his own -- without checking every room. If he goes to a restaurant, he has to sit in a booth with his back to the wall so he can see who's coming at him. Sometimes, when driving, his heart beats out of his chest if he spots a trash bag or other litter along the road that he thinks could be an IED. There are nightmares and flashbacks...

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