By BECKY KISER
Hays Post
Post Traumatic Stress Disorder has a lifetime prevalence among the U.S. general population of 8.7 percent, and the rate can be higher for military veterans, according to Ken Loos, High Plains Mental Health Center Manager of Community Education and Outreach.
PTSD is also tough on family members.
Family members should be “as supportive and patient as possible,” Loos advised, but cautioned “it can be very hard to do.”
“A lot of individuals who come back from serving in Iraq and Afghanistan are first-responders who continue to be exposed to trauma in their jobs–firefighters, law enforcement, EMTs, doctors and nurses.
“Whether it’s the VA system, your family doctor, the local health department or community health program, reaching out for help (for PTSD treatment) is not a sign of weakness. In fact, it’s a sign of strength, and something you’re doing not just for you but also for your family and your community,” Loos said.
“Try very, very hard not to take anything personally. But as you see your loved one perhaps becoming more and more agitated, more paranoid, pulling back from family and children– that can hurt any of us when we really care about someone we love. They don’t do it to be mean necessarily. The issue might be they’re afraid of hurting others, they’re afraid of getting close, they’re just not quite ready to be back in the ‘normal’ world.
“When you think about it, our soldiers are trained to do some pretty tough things, and then they come back to a world where those skills may not transfer exactly.
“The bottom line for family members is to know when your limits are reached. We can’t be therapists or counselors to the ones we love. That’s when it’s time to reach out for professional assistance and not to be afraid to do that,” urged Loos:
“At High Plains Mental Health Center, we’ve seen some veterans more willing to come in for a first session when a family member comes with them so it doesn’t feel like ‘yeah, I’m the whole problem.’
“They can feel that ‘it doesn’t just impact me; it impacts my family too, and I want to improve for them, maybe even more so than just for me.'”
Loos said some counselors at High Plains Mental Health are veterans themselves.
Others, like Loos, who do not have military experience, have participated in a National Council of Behavioral Health program, which teaches about military culture and what military members and their families go through.
“I feel better prepared to understand and to listen. In order to help, we don’t all have to go through the same thing.”
High Plains Mental Health Center serves 20 northwest Kansas counties.