June is PTSD Awareness Month

Each month of the year is some named month. It just happens that June is PTSD awareness month. The purpose of PTSD Awareness Month is to encourage everyone to raise public awareness of PTSD and effective treatments. We can all help those affected by PTSD. As we are in June, and many of you are either dealing with PTSD yourself or know a loved one dealing with symptoms of PTSD, it seems apropos that we talk about how to educate the community about PTSD.

Educating the community about PTSD doesn’t necessarily mean you have to share your experience with PTSD. You can talk to the community about your experiences. You can attend a NAMI meeting, an AA meeting, or another community support group to talk about your experiences. You can lead a community Q&A about PTSD and share your story, ask others to share their stories and open it up to questions from the community. You can join forces with other people dealing with PTSD or other loved ones of people dealing with PTSD and share experiences with first responders who may be called while you or your loved one is in a flashback and how to notice a flashback and how to help someone in that situation.

About 70% of adults in America have experienced a traumatic event sometime in their life. Many of those people will heal from the traumatic event and the symptoms will not impact day to day functioning. However, in any given year, approximately 8 million adults in America suffer from PTSD symptoms. If you don’t have any or don’t want to share your experiences, there are many other ways to bring awareness to PTSD. Whether or not you or a loved one is dealing with PTSD symptoms, bringing awareness of PTSD is so important and easy. What are some other ways to bring awareness of PTSD to the community?

1. Head over to the VA’s website for information, materials to share, etc: National Center for PTSD
The VA even has a power point presentation you can use to teach others about PTSD.
2. Put fliers, brochures, etc out (hint: the VA website has printable ones) in your office or place of employment
3. Bring these fliers, brochures, wallet cards to the library, community center, senior center, police stations, fire departments, schools, your kids after school activities, your gym, anywhere you can think of, and ask if you can leave some there
4. Promote PTSD awareness on social media sites (facebook, twitter, linked-in, etc) – again, the VA has suggested social media posts for your use.
5. Watch and share youtube videos about PTSD and available treatments (see the VA for a link to youtube videos).

The VA has done all the research for you. All you need to do is head on over and grab the materials and use them all month, but especially June 27, which is PTSD awareness DAY. I challenge each and every one of my followers to bring awareness of PTSD and treatment to their community this month, and even stronger on June 27. Are you in this with me? If you have any questions or concerns about raising awareness, please call or email me (860-501-9767; 941-462-4807; meg@megberrylcsw.com). I will talk with you without judgment about PTSD and your concerns or questions.