The authors observe that many men view combat as a positive event in their lives. They postulate that individuals who suffer from chronic post-traumatic stress disorder maintain their symptoms because these perpetuate the memory of rewarding, intense wartime experiences. This often inhibits adaptation to peacetime circumstances. The average Vietnam era soldiers were between 17 and 23 years of age. These young people formed warrior identities before they consolidated a mature sense of self. Combat circumstances required them to depend on their group for survival; phase-appropriate autonomy was deferred. They were repatriated to a society that rejected and devalued Vietnam combatants and offered no positive mirroring experiences. Most frequently, the authors believe, psychotherapists reflected similar values as well as idiosyncratic anti-war biases. These professionals focused on the negative combat experiences and failed to validate the positive, adaptive aspects of the veteran's warrior personality. Thus, they could not help their patients grow into coherent, independent, mature human beings.