Help for PTSD

Many Americans feel it s the worst possible way to lose a soldier But climbing suicide rates in the military are as real as the war against terror Our Amber Schatz shows us the new way veterans can reach out for help NATS 23 30andamp quot I felt like a time bomb about to go off I m not myself anymore I have nightmares andamp quot These men and women are sharing what it feels like to go through post traumatic stress disorder 16 36 andamp quot They re not movie stars not paid for this but willing to step out of comfort zone and try to help other vets who ve been where you are andamp quot They re the face of the new andamp quot Courage Carries Onandamp quot campaign A program by the andamp lt a href andamp quot http www kxnet com t american-legionandamp quot class andamp quot kxInlineLinkandamp quot andamp gt American Legionandamp lt aandamp gt to get veterans and soldiers the help they need when facing mental illness Something many soldiers and veterans end up dealing with alone 2 11 andamp quot If you get an arm or leg blown off people can see that but when you have PTSD all people see is the weirdness andamp quot That misconception about our veterans is exactly what rehabilitation workers are trying to change But the biggest challenge they face Is getting soldiers to ask for help 6 19 andamp quot Just putting the uniform on to go serve takes courage you ve got to kind of draw on that same courage to pick up that phone and say I can t handle this I need help andamp quot Military leaders say at least 30 percent of veterans who serve in andamp lt a href andamp quot http www kxnet com t iraqandamp quot class andamp quot kxInlineLinkandamp quot andamp gt Iraqandamp lt aandamp gt and andamp lt a href andamp quot http www kxnet com t afghanistanandamp quot class andamp quot kxInlineLinkandamp quot andamp gt Afghanistanandamp lt aandamp gt suffer from PTSD and that we all need to work together to support our men and women 7 04 andamp lt a href andamp quot http www kxnet com t john-hoevenandamp quot class andamp quot kxInlineLinkandamp quot andamp gt Governor Hoevenandamp lt aandamp gt andamp quot In all we increased our funding just this last session from 300 000 for a re-integration program to about 1 4 million more than one million increase to make sure our members of NDNG return we re getting the help and assistance that they need to them andamp quot 12 24 Spry andamp quot The important part of all this is simply a heightened awareness of what young people all across military and veterans face when you consider what they ve been willing to do in the past to fight for freedoms we all so much enjoy andamp quot They re there for us so we need to be there for them 19 52 andamp quot If we could save one life through this campaign it would be worth it because if I can tell you I don t want anymore phone calls about this when I know help is available Amber Schatz KX News andamp amp gt Deremo says he plans to present the andamp quot Courage Carries Onandamp quot program at the national American Legion convention in August