Veterans turn to families to help cope with PTSD

With V.A. budget stretched thin, veterans turn to families to help cope with PTSD
Military families and veterans met at a conference in Tacoma
Jeff Van Sant
Q13 FOX News reporter
9:50 p.m. PST, February 4, 2012

TACOMA—
With the war in Iraq over and operations in Afghanistan winding down, there is an influx of veterans from both conflicts – estimated to be well over a million after a decade of war. Many are dealing withpost-traumatic stress disorder.

The United States Department of Veterans Affairs has estimated that as many as one in five veterans suffer from the disorder. And those numbers are causing an underfunded and unprepared VA system to be stretched thin.

Many veterans have turned to outside help. Military families and veterans gathered to discuss the challenges they faced at a conference in Tacoma.

“We need to be proactive instead of reactive, and get these young men and woman the help they need,” said Lauri Turner, whose son Jacob Andrews was an Afghanistan veteran.
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