U.S. Army veteran Jessica Higgins of Merrimack was 22 when she got married. She had just returned home from a deployment to Iraq, and was having a difficult time transitioning. “I got married quickly because I thought that it would solve all of my problems when, in fact, it ended up creating many more,” she said.
Her husband became abusive, and it took the birth of her daughter for Higgins to gather the strength to leave. With her three-week-old daughter in tow, Emma, she left California and moved back home to New Hampshire six years ago to create a new life.
Higgins and her daughter moved in with her family for a year or so. Even with family available during the day to lend a hand, the nights were particularly tough. “There were many nights when I didn’t sleep at all because I was the only one there, and then I would be up all day with her,” said Higgins. “The sheer exhaustion was overwhelming. I felt like I
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“We are very blessed to have many positive father figures,” said Higgins. “However, overcoming this guilt is a process and something I am still working on.”
Her biggest triumph is seeing her daughter become her own person. “As heart-wrenching as it is to see years go by so quickly, she amazes me each and every day in new ways,” Higgins said. She is proud who her daughter is – and who she is becoming as a person independent of her mom. She credits her family for being such a consistent support network throughout Emma’s childhood – and for her as well.
Higgins said Emma is responsible for her own transition into civilian life, helping her to finally bridge the gap that had been so difficult to achieve early on. “I had to learn how to build connections with people and trust again. Had it not been for her, I would have isolated myself in attempt to deal with my difficult homecoming,” said