Monday, February 28, 2011

Practitioners, family members and veterans are invited to the University of North Carolina Wilmington campus for a workshop on combat stress and Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) from 9 a.m. to 4:30 p.m., Friday, March 11, in the Burney Center.

Featured speakers are Richard Tedeschi and Major Thomas A. Jarrett, who will both speak on issues of stress prevention and post- traumatic growth after combat experiences. The workshop is presented by UNCW's School of Social Work.

Richard Tedeschi, professor of psychology at UNC Charlotte and a licensed psychologist who has practiced in NC for more than 30 years, will speak on the topic of "Post-traumatic Growth: Basic Concepts and Strategies for Facilitation in Warriors and their Families."
Tedeschi's presentation will focus on an outcome of combat experience other than PTSD, which involves significant positive changes in personal identity, ways of relating to other people, life priorities and spirituality.

Major Thomas Jarrett will speak on Warrior Resilience and Thriving: Thriving Through, Not Only Surviving, Your Combat Deployment to Return with Honor." Drawing from his own personal experience as a former Special Forces Qualified Officer and Combat Stress Control Officer, Jarrett developed and instituted the Warrior Resilience Training Program, the Army's first combat cognitive resiliency training program, during Operation Iraqi Freedom. He currently serves as Army Chief of Social Work at Fort Sill in Oklahoma.

Admission is free and open to the public but registration is required. Registration will take place at 8:30 a.m. before the workshop or in advance through UNCW's School of Social Work. For information or to registration instructions, go to www.uncw.edu/swk/.

CEU credits are available for practitioners who participate in this workshop.

Media contact:
Dana Fischetti, media relations manager, 910.508.3127 or fischettid@uncw.edu