Remember all the VFW halls when we were kids, with the old guys from WWII and Korea? The cheap beer, BBQs and BS sessions where a home-brewed version of peer counseling for PTSD.

So these spiffy programs with fresh-faced, shiney happy counselors are going to share exactly what frame of reference with the guys getting off the planes from Kuwait?

If you want to effectively treat PTSD, A) you're going to need BTDT counselors and B) you're going to have to leave the door and/or phone line open for when Joe gets around to admitting to himself "I need to talk to that counselor guy".

Next year will be the second and LAST time I'm demobbing : there'll be one thing on my mind - 1. how fast can we do this Kabuki dance and 2. when do I see my girlfriend? My motivators at that point will be the same as Joe's, even tho' I'm a (comparitively) old guy and I'm aware of the importance of monitoring my own emotional state.

You want to make this work, with limited resources in Alaska? I'd whistle up your state VFW coordinator and work with him to create a gateway for us - so whether it's the day after we get home or three years later, we can reach out for someone to talk to and not necessarily have to do it after two or six pitchers of Bud.