Retired Lieutenant Colonel Linda Fletcher told us about the organization she founded to combat Post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD).
 
Colonel Fletcher formed AMOH to educate the American public about a problem that has reached epidemic proportions.  There is nothing new about PTSD except the name (actually a misnomer), which was coined in 1980. Previously called "battle fatigue" or "war shock," it affects 30% of soldiers returning from war.
 
In terms of treatment little has changed since World War I: it is still nothing more than symptom management.  In 2010 some 300,000 Vietnam vets were receiving treatment for PTSD. Victims become strangers to themselves and to their families. More than 8,000 veteran suicides a year are attributable to PTSD.
 
Starting in July AMOH will begin weekly meetings in Traverse City at Horizon Books, and in November the group is bringing PTSD expert Dr. Jonathan Shea to the State Theater to talk about the condition. (Click on picture for a larger view.)