SJR82 Summary

• Designates June 27, 2016, as Post-Traumatic Stress Injury Awareness Day in Alabama and June 2016 as Post-Traumatic Stress Injury Awareness Month.

• Advocates reframing post-traumatic stress as an "injury" rather than a "disorder" to reduce stigma and encourage affected individuals to seek medical treatment without fear of shame or retribution.

• Recognizes post-traumatic stress as a treatable and repairable brain injury resulting from combat, sexual assault, abuse, accidents, natural disasters, and other traumatic events.

• Urges the Alabama Department of Veterans Affairs, Department of Public Health, and Adjutant General of the Alabama National Guard to educate service members, veterans, families, abuse victims, and the general public about the causes, symptoms, and treatment of post-traumatic stress injury.

• Notes that proper and timely treatment can diminish suicide rates among those suffering from post-traumatic stress injury.