Samaritan Center and NAMI Central Texas Partner to Offer Group for Survivors of Military Sexual Trauma (MST)
Austin, Texas – December 7, 2020
Samaritan Center (https://samaritan-center.org/) is offering a group to support survivors of Military Sexual Trauma beginning December 2, 2020 and ongoing each Wednesday.
The Department of Justice (2018) reported 20,500 service members were sexually assaulted in 2018. Of those 13,000 were women and 7.500 were men. The term “sexual assault” includes vaginal, oral and anal rape, and other unwanted physical sexual contact that is aggravated, abusive, or wrongful attempts to commit these actions. In 2015, the VA reported 1.3 million outpatient visits for Military Sexual Trauma (MST) related care. These shameful statistics mean that many MST survivors reside in the metropolitan area surrounding Austin. The Samaritan Center recognizes the great need to care for these women and men who have experienced life changing and traumatizing MST.
In addition to providing individual and family therapy to these survivors, the Samaritan Center is pleased to announce the beginning of an ongoing virtual support group available free of charge to veteran survivors of MST. The group will combine Paul Levine’s somatic experiencing exercises for trauma with a manualized program called “Help End Abusive Relationship Tendencies (HEART)” that focuses on issues survivors deal with after the occurrence of personal violence. Somatic experiencing helps the individual to reconnect with their body and release the trauma energy stored there. The group is designed to offer survivors opportunities for personal growth as they work toward healing their trauma(s).
Interested veterans or active-duty military personnel are invited to participate in the group on Wednesday’s from 4:30 p.m. to 5:30 p.m. The group will maintain this Wednesday schedule and interested parties are welcome to join the group at any Wednesday.
To join a group, just call Samaritan Center front office at 512-451-7337, option 8.
Groups will be offered virtually through safe and secure telehealth. The link will be provided prior to the first meeting. Therapists are trained on how to teach participants how to setup and use the software.
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Samaritan Center’s philosophy is based on a holistic belief that there is a close relationship between the mind, body, spirit and community. This philosophy is the foundation of their multidisciplinary team approach to mental health. They provide professional counseling, integrative medicine, peer support, and wellness education that are accessible and affordable for all. Their Hope for Heroes program serves veterans and military families facing service-related trauma and stress for free. Samaritan Center’s website is also a resource, samaritan-center.org.
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December 1, 2020
Samaritan Center