— from Lawrence Hughes —

Friday, Dec. 13, 7 p.m., American Legion:

Free screening of documentary on treating military veterans with PTSD

Military veterans seeking help to cope with Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) can now get free or low-cost counseling sessions using the Emotional Freedom Technique (EFT), thanks to the Veterans Stress Project.

This informational meeting about the EFT and its benefits is open to the public and will be held on Dec. 13 at 7 p.m., at the Orcas Island American Legion Post 93 located at 793 Crescent Beach Drive in Eastsound. At the meeting, a 78-minute documentary from the Veterans Stress Project will be followed by a question-and-answer period. Refreshments will be served.

The Emotional Freedom Technique, also known as “tapping,” has helped thousands of vets eliminate stress and depression. As one veteran says in a testimonial, it just “wipes the slate clean so you can start over.”

According to the Veterans Stress Project, an estimated 300,000 veterans returning from Iraq and Afghanistan suffer from Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder. Little was done to rehabilitate the veterans returning from Vietnam. The result was thousands of lives ruined by alcohol and drug addiction, mental illness, suicide, and spousal abuse — to say nothing of the high emotional and medical costs borne by society as a whole. The Veterans Stress Project is determined not to allow that to happen with our Iraqi and Afghani vets.

The Veterans Stress Project is an initiative of the National Institute for Integrative Healthcare, a nonprofit research and teaching institution not affiliated with the government or any religious group. For information, visit https://stressproject.org/.

For additional information, contact: Larry Hughes at 347-244-0507.