Family Support Class Reduces Symptoms of Anxiety, Depression: Report

Troops and family members who participated in a military-run emotional support and family communication class had their anxiety and depression symptoms halved six months after leaving the program, according to a new report from the University of California, Los Angeles.

Researchers examined military family members at 15 bases with high troop deployments who used the so-called Families Overcoming Under Stress, or FOCUS, program. About 3,500 adults and 3,810 children were examined in the report, which looked at data gathered between 2008 and 2013.

Of the family members examined, about 23 percent of adults were at risk for depression and anxiety symptoms when they started the program while 30 percent of children had behavior problems identified by their parents, the report states. At the six-month mark, however, those rates had dropped to 11 and 14 percent, respectively.