If you or someone you know is looking for a place to start their journey to recovery and healing from PTSD, addiction, or depression, you may find these links and the below information helpful.

It is possible to recover, heal, and live with almost any type of issue or disorder with the right guidance and support. Please don’t be afraid to reach out for help in your area and talk to a therapist, counselor, mentor, or other trusted professional who may be able to help you figure out a plan of action. There is always a way to make things better, even if sometimes we have to fight to find the right way. Don’t give up!

For a comprehensive list of the symptoms of PTSD, this link covers many of them. 

The National Association for Mental Illness: this is a helpline with staff are on call to answer questions about symptoms, treatment options, local support groups and services in your area, and legal issues.

Healing From Trauma: An excellent read that will help you understand almost everything you are going through, have gone through, and where you can go from here.

The International Society for the Study for Trauma and Disassociation: For children and adolescents, specifically, this offers a wealth of information including what to do if you feel you or your child have been misdiagnosed.

There is also great information for parents at Smarter Parenting.

The Crisis Text Line: If you are a teen who feels overwhelmed, in urgent danger, and have nowhere to turn, send them a text.

The World Trade Center Health Program: If you think you might have physical or mental health symptoms resulting from 9/11, this program provides specialized medical and mental health care to survivors affected by the attacks at no out-of-pocket cost. Inquire if you lived, worked or went to school or daycare south of Houston Street or in parts of Brooklyn within 1.5 miles of the WTC site. The World Trade Center Health Registry conducts surveillance of health of enrollees by sending out and analyzing responses to periodic follow-up WTC health surveys.

Suggested Therapy for PTSD:

Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT): A form of therapy aimed at helping you develop skills to change patterns of thought and behavior that are causing you distress and creating difficulty in your day-to-day life.

Dialectical Behavioral Therapy (DBT): This is like CBT, with the addition of a specific set of skills: mindfulness (staying present in the moment) distress tolerance (the ability to handle stress and pain in tough situations without trying to change it) emotional regulation (how to change feelings that are uncomfortable or upsetting without reaching for something outside of yourself to do it) and interpersonal effectiveness (how to ask for what you want and communicate effectively while maintaining healthy relationships with others).

Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing (EMDR): Another form of therapy used to treat PTSD by helping your brain and your body process the actual traumatic memories and all of the physical and emotional sensations associated with that memory to find relief.

When we talk about “skills” we talk about the ability to do something well, and of course, a skill has to be learned and practiced. Soon enough, it becomes a natural part of who you are and what you do, which is pretty awesome. The original definition of skill means “to make a difference.”

What To Do If You Think You Have a Problem With Drinking or Using:

If you think you may have a drinking problem, check out this questionnaire to get a sense of what may or may not be “normal” drinking. This is also a great test to take. If your substance of choice is not alcohol, you may want to take the test with your “preferred” substance in mind.

Try dropping into any local 12-step meeting, take a seat, listen and share. These meetings are free, anonymous, confidential, and take place in almost every city in the world. If you search for “Intergroup” or “AA” and your city and state, you will most likely find a list off days, times, and locations.

You also may want to find a therapist, counselor, or local rehab that can give you more information and a plan of action.

Just remember: the majority of us cannot do it alone.