As a therapist, Virginia Cruse was becoming frustrated with the rumors her clients heard about PTSD that kept them from getting better. Why did so many of them believe that PTSD had no cure? That they couldn't have PTSD because they were not in direct combat? That they didn't "deserve" to have PTSD, or didn't "deserve" to get better? The answer hit a nerve with Cruse: no one had taken the time to explain PTSD to Service Members in a way that made sense. Soldiers were losing their resiliency and optimism in a culture that propagated misinformation and went against the facts about PTSD, facts that are necessary to know in order to recover good mental health and salvage important relationships.

Told in the voice of a Soldier-turned-therapist who struggled through her own debilitating PTSD, The Soldier's Guide does not waste time cutting through the bull and getting down to brass tacks. It is a call to arms, offering facts, empathy, and direction, while urging Service Members to get the help they need, helping family members to understand the battlefield, and connecting civilians with a Warrior culture.