PTSD car tags could bring hope and healing to Alabama, but support is urgently needed
A push for a new PTSD awareness license plate in Alabama is in jeopardy.
It needs more pre-commitments to support counseling services for those suffering from post-traumatic stress disorder. About 500 people have committed to buying the license plate, but that number is still not enough to get these tags on the back of cars in Alabama.
The initiative, led by Sojourn Counseling in Vestavia Hills, aims to provide quality mental health care to anyone, regardless of their ability to pay.
"Our mission statement here at Sojourn is to provide quality mental health care to anyone, regardless of their ability to pay," said Beau Armistead, director of Sojourn Counseling.
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Armistead works one-on-one with PTSD patients, including sexual assault victims, first responders and military veterans. He envisions these car tags as little billboards broadcasting the message that there's hope for healing from PTSD.
"Coping is great when you're in the healing process. But coping is not the life plan," Armistead said. "You don't want to set out to figure out how you can cope with PTSD the rest of your life. I want to figure out how I can heal from PTSD. And that's our goal here, to help people find healing."
However, that healing comes at a cost. In 2024, Sojourn Counseling served over 800 clients and provided more than $300,000 worth of sliding scale and pro-bono services. The PTSD license plates would provide key funding, allowing Sojourn Counseling to expand their services.
"We need the financial help to be able to do that," Armistead said. "I don't ever want to turn anyone away because of financial reasons. And so the more money that we have coming in to us, that allows us to give away more services. That's very beneficial."
Armistead dreams of seeing these PTSD license plates on the back of cars across communities in Alabama, but that dream is in jeopardy. If Sojourn Counseling doesn't secure a thousand pre-commitments by the end of May, these car tags will never be a reality.
Sojourn is trying to make it as easy as possible for people to get on board. The group will even cover the $50 pre-commitment fee for the first thousand people to sign up for the tag.
"We're going to take that information from that form and go to the DMV website and register your plates for the people who do that. And we're going to use our credit card to pay for it," Armistead said.
This is an important project for Armistead because of its important message that can be displayed on the back of cars across the state driving across the country.
"I want every veteran, every first responder, and every person who's living with PTSD to hear that there's hope for healing," Armistead said. "Not to live with this idea that you just manage PTSD and you just live with it, but you can heal from it."
To learn about the license plates and how to pre-commit, .
If you or someone you know needs help, you can talk with the Suicide & Crisis Lifeline by calling or sending a text message to 988, or you can .
If you are a veteran, press 1 when when you call 988 to talk to a responder qualified to support veterans or click here to chat online with the .