Military PTSD forum planned

Mainers affected by changes in a military service member’s mental health may want to mark their calendars for Saturday, June 7, when the Maine chapters of Veterans for Peace will host the third annual symposium on post-traumatic stress disorder.

According to Deer Isle resident Dud Hendrick, a Vietnam veteran and president of one of the two Maine chapters of Veterans for Peace, as many as 20 percent of military service members who have served in Iraq and Afghanistan have at least mild symptoms of PTSD. The likelihood of developing PTSD goes up with each deployment, he said.

Symptoms of PTSD include heightened anxiety, nervousness, depression, anger, sleep disorders, nightmares and flashbacks. Untreated, PTSD may lead to violence against others or self-destructive behavior, including suicide or attempted suicide.

Treatment includes cognitive and behavioral therapy as well as medications.

According to the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs Web site, PTSD affects about 30 percent of Vietnam veterans, 10 percent of Gulf War veterans, 11 percent of veterans of the Afghanistan war and about 20 percent of veterans of the Iraq war. The Web site is www.ncptsd.va.gov.

The PTSD symposium is open to military veterans, men and women currently serving in the military, family members and loved ones, health care professionals, and others interested in the

well-being of American troops and veterans.

Speakers at the event include:

. Penny Coleman, a documentary photographer and journalist from upstate New York whose husband took his own life after serving in the Vietnam War. In 2006, Coleman published her most recent book, “Flashback: Posttraumatic Stress Disorder and the Lessons of War.”

. Tod Ensign, director of Citizen Soldier, a GI and veterans’ rights advocacy center based in New York City. Ensign, a lawyer, has represented several Iraq war veterans who have been denied treatment for their mental health complaints.

. Rosemary Masters, director of the Trauma Studies Center of the Institute for Contemporary Psychotherapy. A specialist in treating psychological trauma associated with family violence and sexual abuse, Masters is also an experienced provider of Eye Movement Desensitization Reprocessing therapy, which has proven effective in treating some cases of PTSD.

Afternoon workshop sessions will allow participants to work with one of the three speakers.

The event is 8:30 a.m.-4:30 p.m. at the Abromson Center at the University of Southern Maine in Portland. For veterans, service members and family members, the cost of the daylong program is $25, with some financial assistance available. For professionals, the cost is $50. Lunch is included.

To preregister or for information about the symposium, contact Hendrick at 348-2511 or dudhe@verizon.net.

The national Veterans for Peace organization was founded in Maine in 1985. There are now 130 chapters nationwide, with about 7,000 members. For information, visit www.veteransforpeace.org.

mhaskell@bangordailynews.net

990-8291