PREPARING FOR DEPLOYMENT

Fortunately, VA’s National Center for PTSD offers online resources for identifying the condition and how to get help for yourself, a friend or a family member. And the Department of Defense Centers of Excellence for Psychological Health & Traumatic Brain Injury have put together some low-tech suggestions and high-tech apps that can help you or a loved one better manage holiday stress.

Of course, sometimes it helps to talk with a professional. And the responders and staff at the Veterans Crisis Line at the Department of Veterans Affairs make sure that they are accessible at all times, including the holiday season. The recent HBO film about the VA crisis linefeatures a sequence on Christmas Eve. The responders understand that PTSD and depression don’t take a holiday. If anything, they can become more intense at those times of year when people are expected to “make merry.”

Veterans and their loved ones can receive confidential support 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, 365 days a year.

• Call 1-800-273-8255 and Press 1
• Chat online
• Or send a text message to 838255

For more information, visit https://www.veteranscrisisline.net/.

And if you’re interested in a job on the Crisis Line or supporting Veterans in many other ways, please visit VA Careers.