For individuals wishing to know more about PTSD and its effects on family members, the local National Alliance on Mental Illness (NAMI) chapter will show a 30-minute film entitled, “Coming Home: Supporting Your Soldier” Thursday, Oct. 8 at 7 p.m. at St. Mary’s Episcopal Church in Lakewood.

“It’s a very good film produced to help returning veterans readapt,” said Ginny Peterson, NAMI-Pierce Outreach Coordinator, during a telephone interview.

NAMI is a non-profit organization that provides advocacy for and education about mental illness and recovery.

When the NAMI Minnesota chapter — in conjunction with OptumHealth — sponsored the film, the local chapter jumped at the chance to show it.

“It offers help to veterans and their families,” explained Peterson.

The video focuses on the real-life experiences of three soldiers managing the mental health effects of combat. 

It also explains the signs and symptoms of distress, when it is important to ask for assistance, and what family and community members can do to help.

There is a lot of work ahead.

Nearly 33 percent of service members who have been deployed to Iraq and Afghanistan will experience mental health issues. 

And the numbers get worse.

In 2007, the suicide rate among Army veterans was at an all-time high.  Approximately 40 percent of homeless veterans live with a mental illness.  Nearly 30 percent of veterans treated in the veterans health system experienced depressive symptoms, two to three times the rate of the general population.

Joint Chiefs Chairman Adm. Mike Mullen recently said that community resources, private charities and concerned citizens are needed to help address the challenge of PTSD.

“Coming Home:  Supporting Your Soldier” is a step in that direction.

St. Mary’s is located at 10630 Gravelly Lake Dr. S.W.  For more information about NAMI-Pierce, call (253) 565-9000, ext. 20.

To raise awareness about mental illness, Oct. 4-9 has been designated as Mental Illness Awareness Week.

One of the maladies that MIAW and NAMI are highlighting is post traumatic stress disorder (PTSD).

NAMI is a 225,000-member organization with chapters in the 50 states and at numerous local levels.

The organization advocates for research and services to people with brain disorders and mental illnesses. 

Locally, NAMI-Pierce fosters recovery by sponsoring consumer support groups including a group specifically for those suffering from PTSD and similar issues.

NAMI holds family-to-family education classes, most recently in cooperation with the Veterans Administration (VA) Hospital at American Lake.

The issue of PTSD is of interest to the Fort Lewis community.