\u201cIn the first World War it was called shellshock, in the second world war it was sometimes called combat fatigue, then along comes the Vietnam War and they send these young men off to war and they do not look at their psychological health when they come home.\u201d<\/p>\n Through interviews and first-hand recounts, Dempsey provides an insight into how the wives and partners dealt with their husbands widely unknown conditions.<\/p>\n \u201cI interview women who had lived with Vietnam veterans and the stories they tell are incredibly sad and they\u2019ve lived very lonely lives,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n \u201cThese men typically can\u2019t socialise comfortably, they\u2019re difficult to live with, the women blame themselves and they hung around, they looked after the blokes and their kids, and they paid a great price in terms of their own mental health.\u201d<\/p>\n Dempsey said the government support is lacking for today\u2019s soldiers and she hopes the recently announced Royal Commission into Defence and Veteran Suicide will provide some hope for families.<\/p>\n In her book, Demspey interviewed Julie-Ann Finney, whose son David committed suicide in 2019 after two decades in the Navy.<\/p>\n Ms Finney has been who has been lobbying the government ever since, with the Federal Government finally announcing a royal commission earlier this year.<\/p>\n \u201cShe\u2019s obviously heartbroken,\u201d Dempsey said. \u201cAnd she said I\u2019m not going to let this happen to anyone else, with my grief I will try and change the world.\u201d<\/p>\n With over 18,000 Australian veterans on PTSD compensation, and over 400 veteran suicide cases since 2019, Dempsey said she hopes support for veterans improves.<\/p>\n \u201cThis isn\u2019t a book about blaming them, it\u2019s really looking at the consequences of war and governments very happily sending off young men, politicians sit in parliament and send them off,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n \u201cIf they\u2019re going to do that they have to look after them when they come back home.\u201d<\/p>\n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/timesnewsgroup.com.au\/bendigotimes\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/08\/When-He-Came-Home-201x300.png\")