Its a Fact, War In Ukraine Is Triggering Veterans:

Following the withdrawal of troops from Afghanistan and the ongoing war in Ukraine it would appear that a non stop combination of graphic news reports and 24 hours social media posts, has led to many veterans of all ages, struggling to cope with unresolved trauma and poor mental health. This has led to an increase in inquiries to the services we offer and in particular the AFCFT funded Mindfulness of Dream & Sleep course delivered in partnership with Charlie Morley.Charlie Morley is a bestselling author and teacher of Mindfulness of Dream & Sleep. His 2021 book, Wake Up to Sleep is a practical guide to these practices. He’s spoken at both Oxford and Cambridge Universities and the Ministry of Defence Mindfulness Symposium, Tony Wright CEO of Forward Assist argues that,

“The role of a social worker in providing care for veterans has never been more important.

“Social workers are highly trained professionals working to improve the quality of life and wellbeing of those individuals who are struggling.

“They are in the best position to help and support veterans and their families through either direct practice, crisis intervention, care coordination, community organising and person-centred care.

“As I have advocated in the past, UK social workers should train to specialise in providing and coordinating multi-disciplinary support to those that have put themselves in harm’s way to protect us at times like this.”

Read more here: https://www.basw.co.uk/resources/psw-magazine/psw-online/war-ukraine-triggering-veterans-warns-social-work-led-charity

The Importance of Sleep & Mental Wellbeing

Team Forward Assist are delighted to be partnering with fellow Winston Churchill Memorial Trust Travelling Fellowship recipient Charlie Morley in 2021. Charlie Morley has over 10 years’ experience in the field of sleep, dreams & mindfulness and has authored three bestselling books on the subject.

He is the lead facilitator and co-creator of Mindfulness of Dream & Sleep.

Although best known as an authorised teacher of lucid dreaming within the Tibetan Buddhist tradition he has been teaching on veteran’s mindfulness retreats since 2016 and has presented his work at the Ministry of Defence Mindfulness Symposium and the Defence Buddhist Conference.

In 2018 he was awarded a Churchill Fellowship grant to research “Mindfulness Based PTSD Treatment in Veterans” and continues to teach sleep & dream practices to armed forces veterans and civilians with Stress or Trauma Affected Sleep Patterns.

You can find out more about Charlies ground breaking work ‘Beyond mindfulness: Best practice for Veterans with PTSD’ by watching this fantastic video which captures his travels in Canada and the USA.

See: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GT70TiLFym4

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