00                CS FOR HOUSE JOINT RESOLUTION NO. 30(MLV)                                                               
01 Urging the American Psychiatric Association to change the term "post-traumatic stress                                   
02 disorder" or "PTSD" to "post-traumatic stress injury" or "PTSI"; urging the governor                                    
03 to support usage of the term "post-traumatic stress injury"; respectfully requesting that                               
04 the Alaska delegation in Congress champion this change of designation in the United                                     
05 States Congress; and designating June 27, 2016, as Post-Traumatic Stress Injury                                         
06 Awareness Day.                                                                                                          
07 BE IT RESOLVED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF ALASKA:                                                               
08       WHEREAS the brave men and women of the armed forces of the United States who                                    
09 proudly serve the nation and risk their lives to protect the freedom of its citizens deserve                            
10 empathy for and attention to their physical, mental, and emotional well-being; and                                      
11       WHEREAS hundreds of thousands of American service members have been                                             
12 clinically diagnosed with post-traumatic stress disorder, and the injury affects an estimated                           
13 total of 7,700,000 Americans; and                                                                                       
14       WHEREAS it is estimated that thousands of Alaskans suffer from combat-related                                   

01 post-traumatic stress injury; and                                                                                       
02       WHEREAS combat-related post-traumatic stress is significantly pronounced, given                                 
03 that many men and women in the armed forces are highly exposed, often daily, to traumatic                               
04 events, including life-and-death situations, for weeks, months, and even years; and                                     
05       WHEREAS service members and veterans often struggle with combat-related post-                                   
06 traumatic stress for years after leaving service; and                                                                   
07       WHEREAS the extreme survival skills and defensive behaviors acquired as a result                                
08 of service are often difficult to manage; and                                                                           
09       WHEREAS, during the American Revolutionary War, a post-traumatic stress injury                                  
10 was called "nostalgia"; during the American Civil War it was known as "soldier's heart";                                
11 during World War I, it was called "shell shock"; during World War II, it was called "battle                             
12 fatigue"; during the Korean War, it was called "gross stress reaction"; and during the Vietnam                          
13 War, it was called "Vietnam combat reaction"; and                                                                       
14       WHEREAS a post-traumatic stress injury occurs after a person has experienced a                                  
15 trauma and can result from the stress of combat, as well as rape, sexual assault, battery,                              
16 torture, confinement, child abuse, car accidents, train wrecks, plane crashes, bombings, or                             
17 natural disasters, and is characterized by numerous symptoms, including flashbacks,                                     
18 avoidance, hypervigilance, nightmares, re-experiencing, anxiety, emotional numbness,                                    
19 alienation, cognitive deficits, irritability, insomnia, fatigue, and thoughts of suicide; and                           
20       WHEREAS post-traumatic stress can occur at any age, including in childhood; and                                 
21       WHEREAS post-traumatic stress has historically been viewed as a mental illness                                  
22 caused by a preexisting flaw in the person's brain or character; and                                                    
23       WHEREAS many people still believe post-traumatic stress injury is incurable; and                                
24       WHEREAS, in fact, post-traumatic stress is a very common injury to the brain that is                            
25 treatable and reparable; and                                                                                            
26       WHEREAS the United States Department of Defense, the United States Department                                   
27 of Veterans Affairs, and the National Institute of Mental Health have made significant                                  
28 advances in the prevention, diagnosis, and treatment of post-traumatic stress injury and its                            
29 symptoms; and                                                                                                           
30       WHEREAS the term "post-traumatic stress disorder" carries a stigma of                                           
31 misconceptions that the injury is a disorder that is not repairable or treatable; and                                   

01       WHEREAS that stigma discourages people who suffer from post-traumatic stress                                    
02 from seeking proper medical treatment; and                                                                              
03       WHEREAS service members, veterans, first responders, and victims of abuse, crime,                               
04 and disaster, as well as their family members, see that the negative associations of having a                           
05 psychological disorder keep some people from seeking treatment; and                                                     
06       WHEREAS efforts should continue to be made to make the condition less                                           
07 stigmatizing and more honorable to increase the number of those affected who voluntarily                                
08 seek help and assistance; and                                                                                           
09       WHEREAS proper and timely treatment can reduce suicide rates among all citizens,                                
10 particularly veterans; and                                                                                              
11       WHEREAS all citizens who suffer from post-traumatic stress injury deserve                                       
12 recognition, and those who have received those wounds while serving our nation and                                      
13 defending our freedom deserve respect and special honor; and                                                            
14       WHEREAS the American Psychiatric Association uses the term "post-traumatic                                      
15 stress disorder" in the latest edition of the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental                               
16 Disorders;                                                                                                              
17       BE IT RESOLVED that the Alaska State Legislature believes that the term "post-                                  
18 traumatic stress disorder" should be universally changed to "post-traumatic stress injury"; and                         
19 be it                                                                                                                   
20       FURTHER RESOLVED that the Alaska State Legislature urges the American                                           
21 Psychiatric Association to change the term "post-traumatic stress disorder" to "post-traumatic                          
22 stress injury" in the next revision of the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental                                  
23 Disorders; and be it                                                                                                    
24       FURTHER RESOLVED that the Alaska State Legislature urges the Governor to                                        
25 support usage of the term "post-traumatic stress injury"; and be it                                                     
26       FURTHER RESOLVED that the Alaska State Legislature respectfully requests that                                   
27 the Alaska delegation in Congress champion this change of designation in the United States                              
28 Congress; and be it                                                                                                     
29       FURTHER RESOLVED that the Alaska State Legislature designates June 27, 2016,                                    
30 as Post-Traumatic Stress Injury Awareness Day to bring awareness to the people suffering                                
31 from post-traumatic stress injury and encourages people to reach out to their fellow citizens to                        

01 provide support and eliminate the stigma associated with this injury; and be it                                         
02       FURTHER RESOLVED that the Alaska State Legislature encourages the                                               
03 Department of Military and Veterans' Affairs and the Department of Health and Social                                    
04 Services to continue educating service members and veterans, victims of abuse, crime, and                               
05 natural disaster, their respective families, and the public about the causes, symptoms, and                             
06 possible treatment of post-traumatic stress injury.                                                                     
07       COPIES of this resolution shall be sent to the Honorable Barack Obama, President of                             
08 the United States; the Honorable Ashton B. Carter, United States Secretary of Defense; the                              
09 Honorable Robert A. McDonald, United States Secretary of Veterans Affairs; General Joseph                               
10 F. Dunford, Jr., Chair, United States Joint Chiefs of Staff; the Honorable Bill Walker,                                 
11 Governor of Alaska; Brigadier General Laurel J. Hummel, Commissioner, Department of                                     
12 Military and Veterans' Affairs; the Honorable Valerie Davidson, Commissioner, Department                                
13 of Health and Social Services; the Honorable Craig Stowers, Chief Justice of the Alaska                                 
14 Supreme Court; Renée Binder, M.D., President, American Psychiatric Association; Joshua                                  
15 Sonkiss, M.D., President, Alaska Psychiatric Association; and the Honorable Lisa Murkowski                              
16 and the Honorable Dan Sullivan, U.S. Senators, and the Honorable Don Young, U.S.                                        
17 Representative, members of the Alaska delegation in Congress.