Welcome to the Alexandria Vet Center's WEB Page.

Our Mission

The Center is located at:

8796D Sacramento Drive
Alexandria, VA 22309

(703) 360-8633

(On Highway 1, approximately 1 mile north of Fort Belvoir)

The Center's Hours of Operation:

Monday thru Friday    8AM to 4:30PM

* Groups are held during the evening as well as during the day.
* Walk-in clients are welcome. Call for an appointment, if possible.

Readjustment counseling service

After war, some veterans experience psychological and social distress and difficulties in readjusting to civilian life. In 1979, the Department of Veterans Affairs established Vet Centers to provide assistance to Vietnam-era veterans with such problems. Congress later expanded Vet Center services to include combat veterans of Persian Gulf, Panama, Grenada, Lebanon, Somalia, World War II and Korea. These services are available in all 50 states, Puerto Rico, the Virgin Islands and Guam.

At the Vet Center, you can expect help from professional counselors who will treat you with respect and understanding. Many of the counselors are also war veterans, so they understand your problems first hand, and have the training and skills to help you solve them.

You can expect help from professional counselors who will treat you with respect and understanding.

The Vet Center staff members respect the privacy of all veteran clients, and hold in strictest confidence all information gathered in the course of counseling.

The Vet Center also has a network of federal, state, city and community resources to help you. We will try to address any concerns or problems you bring us.

We're here to help, but your success depends on you. We ask that you take the time and make the effort to stick with the program. We guarantee that if you do your part we will do ours.

There is no charge for the assistance you receive at the Vet Center because of your sacrifices and efforts for this country. Veterans applying for assistance are asked to bring a copy of their Military Separation or Military Discharge (DD214) with them.

Post-traumatic stress disorder

Post-traumatic stress disorder, usually just called PTSD, is a normal reaction to abnormal stress, such as experienced in combat, natural disasters or other violent situations. It may surface years after the initial trauma and prevent the veteran from having a well-adjusted work and family life. The Vet Center can help veterans with PTSD, but the disorder must first be recognized.

Symptoms of PTSD include:

Isolation	Rage	Sleep disturbances and nightmares
Avoidance of feelings	Survival guilt	Anxiety
Intrusive thoughts	Depression	Self-esteem problems
Difficulties dealing with authority	Substance abuse

For the men and women who proudly served their nation to include the following periods of eligibility:

WAR ZONE VETERANS - all eras, including:

VIETNAM WAR - 28 February 1961 to 1 May 1975

KOREAN WAR - 27 June 1950 to 27 July 1954 (eligible for the Korean Service Medal)

WORLD WAR II - Three eligible categories:

European-African-Middle Eastern Campaign Medal (7 December 1941 to 8 November 1945)

Asiatic-Pacific Campaign Medal (7 December 1941 to 2 March 1946)

American Campaign Medal (7 December 1941 to 2 March 1946)

VIETNAM VETERANS NOT IN THE WAR ZONE -  eligible until 1 Jan 2000, however, veterans who were Vet Center clients prior to 1 Jan 2000, remain eligible.

LEBANON - 25 August 1982 to 26 February 1984

GRENADA - 23 October 1983 to 21 November 1983

PANAMA - 20 December 1989 to 31 January 1990

PERSIAN GULF - 2 August 1990 to ----

SOMALIA - 17 September 1992 to ----

SEXUAL TRAUMA AND HARASSMENT COUNSELING - veterans of both sexes, all eras

NEW!! Now open: The VA Medical Center - Alexandria