Mobile soldier's wife adjusts to 'new normal' of PTSD

Mobile soldier's wife adjusts to 'new normal'
JON SOLOMON, al.com
November 14, 2012

MOBILE, Ala. (AP) — If Karen Valentin absolutely must go to Wal-Mart, she plans accordingly. The trip needs to occur during a time with small crowds. Her 53-year-old husband Jon often sits against a wall to see the doors.

It is, as Karen puts it, their "new normal." This existence in Mobile began when Jon returned as a National Guardsman from Iraq in 2005, and it's not going away. Jon suffered a traumatic brain injury (TBI) and post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) from a roadside bomb that threw him against a concrete wall, Karen said.

Karen is Jon's constant caregiver. He no longer drives, will never work again, can't handle finances, and doesn't do car rides or crowds well.

When Jon's TBI causes memory loss, his PTSD often kicks into high gear. It's a cruel cycle.

"He doesn't mean to, but a lot of times if he gets upset or aggravated because he's in a situation that makes him uncomfortable, I catch the brunt of it," Karen said. "He'll usually fuss and holler at me. It's just the stress of it all. Unless you live with someone who has traumatic brain injury, it's difficult to understand the impact of it."

Life for returning veterans can affect Alabama communities in ways many people may not notice. The Mobile/Pensacola area, where Karen lives, has produced one of the country's largest deployments of reserves and National Guardsmen.
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