Veterans experience a wide range of mental health challenges, from anxiety and PTSD to sleep disorders and substance abuse. The numbers reveal a startling state of affairs: fewer than 50% of veterans in need receive mental health treatment after a tour of duty. Roughly 17 veterans die by suicide each day.
Although there has been significant progress in raising awareness of veteran mental health challenges, barriers prevent them from receiving the care they need.
Common barriers include:
- Stigma — Due to a culture of strength and independence, many veterans struggle to admit their challenges and fear that seeking mental health support could impact their careers.
- Lack of access to care — The VHA provides mental health services but struggles to reach all veterans, and with half of U.S. counties lacking mental health professionals, access remains limited even with non-VHA provider options.
- Difficulty navigating benefits — Many veterans struggle with benefits navigation, with some unaware of available services and others facing difficulties with the paperwork and processes needed to receive care.
With Grokker, you can reduce those barriers by providing access to expert-led content and leveraging AI to facilitate benefit navigation. Here’s how.
Providing veterans with accessible, expert-driven resources
Grokker offers expert-led solutions that can help you fill gaps in mental health care for the veterans in your workforce. Our content and intelligent benefits agent complement clinical programs so veterans can access a more holistic continuum of care.
Here are some of our best resources for veterans.
Program: Breaking Free from Stress with Cognitive Behavioral Therapy
Cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT) is a treatment approach that allows people to explore the relationship between their thoughts, feelings, and behaviors. CBT is widely used as a treatment for various mental health challenges, including addiction, anxiety, and PTSD.
In Breaking Free from Stress with Cognitive Behavioral Therapy, Clinical Psychologist Catherine Wilkholm provides an overview of what CBT is and how it works. She also teaches some basic CBT techniques that promote relaxation and counteract negative thoughts.
This program can be a good entry point for someone who’s considering seeking mental health care but is concerned about what the treatment may actually entail.
Program: 7 Steps to Better Sleep
Insomnia is the most commonly reported symptom among veterans of the Vietnam, Iraq, and Afghanistan wars with PTSD. Lack of sleep doesn’t just lower the quality of their daily lives — it’s also associated with an increased risk of obesity, type 2 diabetes, and cardiovascular disease.
In 7 Steps to Better Sleep, Sleep Expert Natasha Kerry guides participants through practical techniques designed to promote deep, restful sleep. This one-week program combines stretching, breathing techniques, and mental exercises to prepare the mind and body for a good night’s rest.
Video: Yoga to Calm The Mind
Yoga can be a powerful tool for calming the mind and releasing tension in the body. The VA and many other veteran-related organizations recognize it as an evidence-based approach to integrative care.
In Yoga to Calm The Mind: Manage Stress, expert instructor Siri Peterson leads a one-hour flow designed to help participants find peace in the moment. The only equipment needed is a mat and two large blankets.
Intelligent Benefits Agent: GrokkyAi
Finding and accessing the right benefits is a persistent challenge and often leads veterans to go without care. Understanding and accessing employer benefits can easily become overwhelming.
What if you could reduce that burden by making it easier to navigate the health and wellbeing programs that you offer? GrokkyAi™ is an intelligent benefits agent that makes it easy for employees to get instant relief for their wellbeing challenges.
With GrokkyAi, employees simply ask a question and are provided with the high-impact lowest acuity intervention. For example, you can ask Grokky for help sleeping through the night, and it will respond with an expert-led video program focused on improving your sleeping habits.
Learn more about how GrokkyAi works here.
Supporting veterans with a holistic, persistent approach
Veterans have complex mental health needs, and it takes an integrated approach to help them address their challenges. You can close gaps in care and make it more accessible with Grokker’s expert-led resources and intelligent benefits agent. Whether a veteran is starting their mental health journey or looking to maintain healthy practices, our resources help them achieve their goals.
