Seminar to Be Held to Help Veterans with PTSD

Prosser Soldier Speaks of His Personal Experience with PTSD
Seminar to Be Held to Help Veterans with PTSD



Friday, 10-26-07

Prosser -- The numbers of soldiers and Marines with post traumatic stress are rising. It is now believed that one in five returning from the mideast will be forever changed by PTSD.

Billy Petersen of Prosser is a former Army Medic who has been diagnosed with severe post traumatic stress disorder. This morning, Petersen detailed his experience since returning from his second tour in Iraq.

Petersen finds himself reacting strongly to sounds. When a car backfires, his first response is to duck, and hit the ground. He doesn't like to drive. And he also avoids traffic circles. Petersen says Iraq has hundreds of them, and that is where insurgents hide the bombs (IED, or improvised explosive devices). He said he shakes when he is traveling in a traffic circle.
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