Strachwitz was promoted to "Oberstleutnant" (lieutenant colonel) of the Reserves on 1 January 1942. He had left the Eastern Front at the end of November 1941, returning home to receive treatment for the numerous injuries he had sustained over the year. From 1 December 1941 – 9 January 1942 he stayed at hospitals in Oppeln and Breslau. He then went on an extended leave, staying in Groß Stein and Alt Siedel, before returning to the Eastern Front in mid-March 1942. He received the 1939 version of the Wound Badge in Silver on 17 March 1942.