The Washington State Department of Veterans Affairs has implemented a new program called Vet Corps. This program provides numerous benefits to veterans and their families from job searches to helping them sleep at night.
Green River Community College holds a Vet Connect meeting the first Wednesday of every month to get veterans together so they know they are not alone in their daily struggles; however, on February 3rd the Vet Connect meeting was anything but ordinary.
Licensed Psychologist Diane Nakamura spoke about Beverly Ann Dexter’s new method that could help veterans overcome PTSD driven nightmares. Simply stated, the method is called No More Nightmares. The program is not meant to work in one night, but is a practiced skill that can help change unsettling dreams into visions of success. She emphasized that there is no such thing as a bad dream and that dreams are not meant to be analyzed.
The planned dream intervention teaches veterans to stay asleep during the nightmare, but to learn how to create a bridge in their mind that will allow the dream to end successfully. The dream intervention does not have to be realistic, but could be anything from ordinary to magical. Each person is different and must learn what type of intervention works for them. The intervention is not meant to change the dream, but to continue in the desired manner. By writing down the dream or feelings from the dream and the intensity, veterans can then return to the same situation the following evening and continue with the story line that they control rather than being controlled by their mind and memories.
The speech hit home for every veteran in the room. She was able to connect with them and provide a new alternative that will eliminate one of their many daily struggles. This is one way that the Washington State Vet Corps program is helping many veterans and shows the potential to help more of those who have sacrificed so much for every American.
~Brianne Leimbach
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