KINGSLAND — The Chaplin Corps of the Veterans Administration is launching a new program for rural mental health counselors called Clergy Community Training.

The training is intended to help all counselors identify the unique experiences that all veterans face not only when seeking guidance but in dealing with the VA, according to release. 

The free training will be offered on Sept.11, and will be available in Kingsland, Camden County. It is available online at  https://www.patientcare.va.gov/chaplain/clergytraining/.

The training is modular with three basic modules and four that are optional depending on required needs, according to release. 

“The first module deals with the unique military environment and its long lasting effects on veterans. The second deals with issues such as ‘moral injury’ a recent discovery, PTSD, and PTSD is not what most people think. In movies the person goes back to war at the slightest hint of a trigger. It is more often a personality disorder-isolationism, overly protective, and secretive. The last required module is how the community and individuals can assist veterans. Veterans comprise 8 percent of the population but those from the Vietnam War and later “peacetime” conflicts may have an extremely distrustful attitude toward others,” the release explain. 

Although aimed for veterans, organizers shared that the training may be helpful for those suffering from PTSD following a car crash, overly restrictive parenting, abusive relationships and other life experiences. It may also be useful for those who love veterans and are looking for a better understanding of them, according to release.