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#PTSD Awareness Day - June 27th

You can make a difference today. Forward this to everyone you know. Help someone with PTSD. Maybe that someone is you.

Know where to get help for PTSD. Getting help is problem solving, not a sign of weakness.

Learn. Connect. Share.

Find 6 Ways to Raise PTSD Awareness. Learn the four symptoms of PTSD, what treatments work best, and:

• Try the self-help tools in PTSD Coach Online or a PTSD mobile app, like Mindfulness Coach.
• Meet Veterans who live with PTSD and talk about how treatment turned their lives: AboutFace.
• Help spread the word about today's effective PTSD treatments. Take part in the PTSD conversation on Facebook and Twitter. Everyone can contribute.

New Online

PTSD is a serious issue. Learn about it in a completely new way:

Watch the "What is PTSD?" whiteboard video (YouTube)

How to Talk to your Doctor about PTSD: A checklist and questions you might ask if you have been through trauma.

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For Providers

Thank you for helping individuals who go through trauma. Here is some help for you.

Free Online Training

Earn CE/CMEs. Conveniently view lectures and take multi-module skills trainings.

• From the War Zone to the Home Front Series: Dozens of ways to support the mental health of Veterans and families. A collaboration with the Home Base Program.*
• PTSD Continuing Education: Filter to find training to suit your needs. Includes the 8 module Skills Training in Affect and Interpersonal Regulation (STAIR) training and basics like the PTSD Overview Course.

Manuals for Disaster Response

If you provide services following disaster, you might know about Psychological First Aid for immediate response. Now you can learn Skills for Psychological Recovery, an intervention for use during the weeks and months after the event. Manual includes worksheets. In person training is recommended.

New Online

Handouts for Patients and Providers: Download Materials for Printing to print professionally or on a laser printer:

• Effective Treatments for PTSD (PDF)
• Benzodiazepines and PTSD (PDF)
• Helping Patients: CBT for PTSD (PDF)
• Helping Patients: Taper from Benzodiazepines (PDF)

Complementary and Alternative Medicine (CAM) for PTSD: Reviews the evidence on a variety of approaches being considered for PTSD.

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For VA Providers

2014 VA PTSD Consultation Program Lecture Series

Subscribe: Learn about our PTSD Lectures

Watch the video to learn more.

VA staff can sign up for VA Staff PTSD Updates to receive monthly registration instructions for these live lectures.

Next Lecture in the Series

• 7/16 at 2 pm ET - Niloo Afari, PhD, and Matthew Jakupcak, PhD on Pain and PTSD: Behavioral Mechanisms and Interventions

Mark your calendar for the 3rd Wednesday of each month at 2 pm ET.

Free PTSD consultation for anyone working with Veterans.
Call 866-948-7880 or
Email PTSDconsult@va.gov.

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Research at the Center

PTSD Brain Bank

Scientists make advances in treating and understanding health problems by studying brain tissue. The Center just launched the first ever national Leahy Friedman PTSD Brain Bank to investigate the impact of stress, trauma and PTSD in this manner. Read more.*

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PTSD in the News

#PTSD Awareness - June, 2014: Learn. Connect. Share. In observance of PTSD Awareness Month the Center presents the following profile of a Veteran Marine who is living with PTSD and turning her life around with treatment. Read "I Cannot Be This Person". Find more PTSD stories on VAntagePoint Blog.

PTSD Screening Available to Everyone. WMBF News highlights PTSD Screening in June. Read more.*

Thank You for Helping this Cause. Our thanks to Screening for Mental Health, Inc. and to all those who are working together to raise PTSD awareness. Tell us about your contributions to join the list. Complete the Raise PTSD Awareness Pledge (PDF) or email ncptsd@va.gov.

In service to those who are dealing with trauma, today on Awareness Day, please be sure to forward this update to others so they can subscribe. We send only one update per month to keep you informed of the latest PTSD developments.

The Staff of VA’s National Center for PTSD

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