Honor Those We Have Lost, By Caring For Those Left Behind, Says TAPS Founder
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE | August 12, 2008
BETHESDA, Md. – Helping survivors connect with each other through peer-based emotional support programs and offering grief coping strategies were the key messages delivered yesterday by Dr. Dan Sudnick of the Tragedy Assistance Program for Survivors to the “Paving the Road Home: The National Behavioral Health Conference and Policy Academy on Returning Veterans and Their Families.” Sudnick presented: “What Works: Meeting the Needs of Military Families and Children” and talked about the organization’s work with the families of the fallen.
Sudnick described the heart and soul of the TAPS philosophy - its peer-based emotional support programs - which connect more newly-bereaved survivors with those who have walked grief’s road a little longer. Trained peer mentors connect widows with widows, moms with moms, and brothers with brothers – to talk about how to cope with a loss that has shattered family relationships and isolated its weary survivors. Online peer-based support groups are confidential and provide a place to connect with others. The organization’s National Survivor Seminar and Good Grief Camp, as well as its year-round seminars and programs, offer face-to-face connections and grief resources.
Approximately 4,710 service members have died in support of Operation Iraqi Freedom and Operation Enduring Freedom in Afghanistan. But as Sudnick and TAPS executive director and founder, Bonnie Carroll, point out, the impact of these losses goes far deeper than a number – extending into the very fabric of American life.
For every active duty military death, there are at least ten people – parents, spouses, siblings, children, and others – significantly affected by the loss. In addition to military losses, hundreds of additional deaths have occurred among deployed employees and support contractors of other government agencies assigned to the economic reconstruction of Iraq and Afghanistan. TAPS has expanded its policy of “inclusion” to include the surviving family members of these other brave Americans who serve the mission.
“A third of the survivors helped by TAPS are children, many of whom have lost a parent,” said Carroll. “Children find a safe place to deal with their grief in our camps and programs among others who have experienced a similar loss, and adults also find resources that help them deal with their pain. Our goal is to remember the love, celebrate the life , and to share the journey together.”
Approximately 4,710 service members have died in support of Operation Iraqi Freedom and Operation Enduring Freedom in Afghanistan. But Carroll points out that the impact of these losses goes far deeper than a number – extending into the very fabric of American life. For every active duty military death, there are at least ten people – parents, spouses, siblings, children, and others – significantly affected by the loss.
Because a military loss is often violent and unexpected, many survivors carry the lingering effects of traumatic grief. Typical symptoms of traumatic grief can include insomnia, anxiety, depression, a lack of appetite, irritability, and an inability to concentrate. Symptoms can last a year or longer. Many survivors report that they feel isolated and alone, unable to find others who empathize with their experiences.
“Helping the military families and children left behind after a loved one dies in the line of duty, and helping our nation’s veterans, should be top priorities for our country,” said Carroll. “A number of organizations, including the military, healthcare providers, and nonprofit organizations, are reaching out to fill these needs. But we could all do more. We honor those who have made the ultimate sacrifice, by caring for those left behind.”
The conference brought together federal, state, and local partners to build on lessons learned and to adopt novel approaches in resolving critical issues challenging returning veterans and their families. Organizers stated that goals of the conference included strengthening behavioral health systems through community collaboration, encouraging and fostering veteran-to-veteran peer support networks, and focusing on suicide prevention and mental health promotion.
The conference was sponsored by the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA), the Department of Defense, and the Department of Veterans Affairs. Partners for the conference were the National Association of State Mental Health Program Directors and the National Association of State Alcohol and Drug Abuse Directors. The conference website is www.returningveteransconference.com
TAPS is the national organization providing compassionate care for the families of America’s fallen military heroes. TAPS provides peer-based emotional support, grief and trauma resources, seminars, case work assistance, and 24/7 crisis intervention care for all who have been affected by a death in the Armed Forces. Services are provided free of charge. For more information go to www.taps.org or call the toll-free crisis line at 800.959.TAPS.
Media contact: Ami Neiberger-Miller, 202.588.8277, ami@taps.org
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