Historically, Veterans Hospitals have focused on residential systems that combat veterans associate with being institutionalized, or outpatient treatment that assumes that the veteran has the emotional skills to live with combat stress related disorders on a day to day basis.
These system-based treatments often lack a personalized, individual solution based focus, neglecting the vital components necessary for ongoing health and family growth.
U.S. military conflicts often leave many veterans with broken families, homeless and drug addicted in the process. They become heroes without purpose, a wasted natural resource.
Because of the nature of our armed services and its majority population being male, treatment direction for combat stress has been based on a male treatment model. Of course, today that population has changed. In fact, we currently have the largest number of women in the armed services in U.S history. Granted, these female soldiers are not all regular military, many serve as national guardist and reservist. Basically, weekend warriors serving their country gallantly. Despite the efforts to close the gender gap, there are differences. Body, mind, emotion, sprit and environmental.
Our philosophy of working with families is based on systemic, structural family therapy, a short-term method focused on the present. The goals of structural family therapy include strengthening parental leadership, clarifying boundaries, enhancing coping skills and freeing family members from their entrenched positions within the family structure.