Excellant summary.
Fortunately we now have very effective treatments for PTSD,
We have Brain scans, SPECT analysis ( Dr Amen) ...EEG therapies ( similar to biofeedback); good medications when used appropriately, and many new cognitive behavioral and EMDR therapies; new medications and therapies for substance abuse. Vets are getting better, and sooner in their lives. This not only helps them, but their families, especially their children...who now have a healtheir parent.
The sooner the treatment the less time it has to fester in the brain. Family support is very necessary as you mention. PTSD can be set off by things persons would never consider. Words, common smells, weather, a TV show, you name it. I'm a firm believer in therapy as in seeing a therapist and talking it out along with any additional methods used. Going to a shrink once every few months for pills won't do it. It will mask symptoms but not help eliminate the disorder itself. The therapy sessions be it one on one which is usually the first six months to a year or group which can last 5 or more is the most important part of it. They are the ones to retrain the mind and stop the circle thinking or bad movie as I called it.