About 1,300 soldiers from the North Dakota National Guard have served or are serving in Iraq during this war on terrorism.

Between 7 percent and 30 percent of them, according to a Guard estimate, will suffer symptoms of post traumatic stress disorder. To help soldiers and families deal with the situation, the Guard has hired a full-time chaplain and two social workers.

In addition, it will hold a course today and Wednesday to train soldiers, their families and others in "psychological first-aid." The two-day course will be held from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. both days in the theater at the Raymond J. Bohn Armory.

"It's being held as an awareness (device), so more people are educated as to signs and symptoms of (PTSD)," said Maj. Jackie Huber, the Guard's Family Support coordinator. "By recognizing that, if they see some of those signs in people they can get them into a professional for further help."

The session is called the Trained Crisis Responder Course, and is designed to help people identify and reduce stressful reactions to such things as war and lengthy deployments. Local soldiers served in combat zones for up to a year.

Bernadette Ternes, a Guard social worker, said she and the other counselors haven't determined an exact number of soldiers affected by PTSD, but said the problem is significant. Ternes said this week's workshop can help.

"I've gone through the course, and it provides very good information," Ternes said.

The course is open to anyone in the public who'd like to attend, Huber said. The National Guard will supply the materials at no cost. When finished, participants will receive certification that will allow them to assist agencies such as the Guard or police in the event of a local emergency.

Instructors will be Linda Engelman and Jody Harms.

(Reach Tony Spilde at 250-8260 or tspilde@ndonline.com.)