More than a decade ago, the Department of Veterans Affairs opened the National Women's Trauma Recovery Program (WTRP) as part of the National Center for PTSD at Menlo Park, CA. The WTRP, designed to treat women veterans with post traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), is the first residential program of its kind and is open to women across the country. Many of the women who are referred to the program were sexually assaulted during their military service and suffer what is now referred to as Military Sexual Trauma (MST). The WTRP is intensive 60-day residential program with a strong emphasis on interpersonal skills. The initial two weeks of treatment involve psychological and psychosocial assessments in order to develop comprehensive treatment plans. Women come into the program in classes, or cohorts, and work together to problem-solve, learn effective communication, and better manage their PTSD/MST symptoms.
Here's a list of key links:
- An overview of the Women's Trauma Recovery Program (WTRP), linked here.
- A statement about who's eligible to attend, linked here.
- The application itself, linked here.
The WTRP progam is headed by Darrah Westrup, Ph.D. She has some positive, uplifting things to say about the program itself, including this quote: "our program is all about helping women reclaim their sense of worth and personal power." For more of her remarks, click here. For more about Darrah Westrup, Ph.D., click here.
