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Guest Post: Program Helps People 'Seeking Safety'

June 2, 2017  |  Addiction, Alcohol, Counseling, Drinking, Enews, Mental health, Partners, Ptsd, Sobriety, Stress, Trauma

One of our provider partners, Talbert House, offers a look into a program designed to help people find hope in dealing with the effects of Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD).

When adolescents and adults are struggling with trauma, Seeking Safety, a present-focused, community-based curriculum may assist them in attaining coping skills to maintain safety in their thoughts, feelings, behaviors, and relationships. At the Clinton County Jail Talbert House Clinical Service Provider Leo Fugate can often be found conducting the Seeking Safety curriculum. While not limited to those suffering from Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD), these sessions assist individuals, many of whom are veterans, attain safety from substance abuse and/or trauma which can frequently be influenced by PTSD.

“As a veteran who has struggled at times with PTSD,” Leo says, “I believe the Seeking Safety groups are a positive for individuals both in the jail system as well as outside the judicial system. For many, this is the first time they have been offered another way to look at one’s self from a different perspective. This provides a glimmer of hope that they can change given the opportunity to do so as well as have the tools to help direct the path to change.”

After the session is completed, Leo takes veterans aside and shows them a free resource from the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs. After installing an app on their smartphone, Leo shows veterans how to track their individual symptoms as well as create a chain of support including phone numbers of loved ones and therapists. When a crisis hits, often caused by PTSD, this list immediately provides a way for them to find support and seek safety.

For more information about Talbert House’s Seeking Safety groups and services for those suffering from PTSD, visit www.talberthouse.org.