Trainers of the program “Children and War. Teaching Recovering Techniques” Iryna Kokhanovska and Iryna Yoltukhivska work at the “Rokada” Charitable Foundation in Khmelnytsky. They love children very much. Thanks to their caring hearts and sincere work, over the past three months, more than 170 children have learned self-help techniques using the “Children and War” method. Girls, thank you, you are wonderful!
From May 30 to June 3, two online trainings on the program “Children and War. Teaching Recovering Techniques” were held. 70 new specialists were trained by the project trainers – Natalia Podoliak, Iryna Sukhova, Olena Bozhor. Participants from Kyiv, Dnipro, Chernihiv, Sumy, Cherkasy, Odessa, Mykolayiv, Trostyanets (Sumy region), Kremenchuk (Poltava region), Kamyanets-Podilsky and Starokostiantyniv (Khmelnytsky region) and other cities of Ukraine united around a common goal – to help children and adults affected by the war. We wish everyone fruitful work and a peaceful sky above your head!
We see in the photo happy children and adults who are being healed from the wounds of war. Almost a miracle. What’s the secret? How is this achieved? The personality of a psychological training coach is very important. As well as the personality of the teacher at school. The coach must be sensitive and attentive, deep and friendly to everyone. And it is very important when he/she enjoys its work. A happy teacher / coach and students are happy.
Creating a friendly atmosphere in the project, supporting young and experienced trainers of the program “Children and War. Teaching Recovering Techniques”, providing everything necessary, caring for the needs – the team of the project “Helping Hand for Ukraine” is doing everything to ensure that our psychologists have the mood and strength to work.
Feedback from project psychologists who recently received training in the program “Children and War” and in April-May 2022 conducted group classes for children and adults.
Mariana Kozosh (Gorokhiv, Volyn region): “We have completed the training “Children and War” with the group. There were many oral responses. All positive. One participant said she did not know how to live without our meetings now. People are asked to continue the meetings. It is so important for them to be listened to, accepted, understood”.
Olesya Kochkina (Rozhysche, Volyn region): “Thank you very much for your work! Very extensive and useful course, interesting and useful to work with children. The main thing is that we quickly see the results in children, their condition has improved, they have acquired new knowledge and skills, become more stable and confident; and we, the coaches, too!”
Diana Sport (Khmelnytsky): “Today I received a coach’s certificate. There is no limit to joy and pride. Hooray. The path was thorny and emotional, the range of emotions was different. It is really not easy to do now in the conditions of war. But we did it, we worked with children, parents and with ourselves as well. Thank you to the coaches for this opportunity. I wish everyone peace and tranquility”.
Maria Zamishchak (Drohobych, Lviv region): “Glory to Ukraine! Ms. Irina, we have finished working with adults. They are also satisfied. People are grateful that we brought them back to life – these are their words. They exchanged addresses, invited guests to Kyiv and Kharkiv. Thank you for your understanding, science, support, help. Thank you for being there and for being in this project”.
Marina Sokol (Gorokhiv, Volyn region): “Thank you for leading us through these difficult days of the war. I was very afraid to go where there is pain and uncertainty, I had not worked with someone else’s injury before. Thanks to my incredible co-coach Mariana, who was always there and helped to overcome my fears and doubts. Sorry, colleagues, I write a lot, but incredible emotions of joy are now filling my heart.
The joy of being able to go where it was scary, plus the joy of helping people, we pumped ourselves as professionals and did a good job. Happy to be a part of such an incredible project!”
Thank you for the provided photos of Yulia Zabara and Galina Shaida (Dnipro), Elina Panasenko and Sofia Berezka (Dnipro), Victoria Baranova, Tatiana Gurman and Nadezhda Gurman (Chernomorsk, Odesa region), Maria Ivchenko and Galina Gamal (Lviv).
On May 27, an online meeting of Ukrainian trainers of the “Children and War. Teaching Recovering Techniques” program took place within the framework of the “Helping Hand for Ukraine” project. There was a meeting with one of its authors and co-founders William Yule, a professor at the Institute of Psychiatry (London, England). The participants of the event put William questions, shared the results of their work, experience, discussed some changes and innovations of the program. They also spoke with Kateryna Yavna, the scientific editor of a handbook for practitioners of the “Children and War” program.
Recall that the methodology of the program “Children and War” was developed on the basis of evidence-based cognitive-behavioral approach to the treatment of post-traumatic stress disorder in children by a team of specialists from the Institute of Psychiatry (London, England) and the Center for Crisis Psychology (Bergen, Norway). It was then tested in a number of countries affected by the war or affected by natural disasters. These are Greece, Turkey, China, Sri Lanka, Iran and others.
With the start of hostilities in eastern Ukraine in 2014, the Institute of Mental Health of the Ukrainian Catholic University together with the Ukrainian Institute of Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (Lviv) and with the support of Dr. Denis Ouhryn from the Royal College of London organized training for trainers in Ukraine. It was at such trainings in Lviv in 2014 and 2015 that William Yule taught psychologists from Kyiv Natalia Podoliak and Iryna Sukhova, who have been selflessly and fruitfully working in our project for 7 years, passing on experience, knowledge and love to new coaches and everyone. who needs it.
Thus, in 2015-2021, the team of trainers of the “Helping Hand for Ukraine” project trained more than 600 new specialists of the “Children and War” program, who provided assistance to more than 4,000 children and 1,000 adults affected by the war. And since the beginning of the full-scale invasion of our country, about 700 new coaches have been trained, thanks to which in March-May 2022, more than 1,500 children and adults have received “healing from the wounds of war”.
We thank the founders of the “Children and War” methodology for such a practical, structured and effective program, which today helps us in Ukraine to work with the trauma of war. And a special and sincere gratitude to William Yule for this meeting, his time, experience, sincerity, for recognizing the work of our project and the desire for fruitful cooperation in the future.
On May 11-13, in Truskavets, Lviv region, in partnership with the “Voices of Children” Charity Foundation, a three-day training program “Children and War. Teaching Recovering Techniques” took place. Trainers of the “Helping Hand for Ukraine” project, that included the event, were Iryna Sukhova and Tetyana Oboyanska. The 15 participants were psychologists and volunteers from the city of Truskavets, as well as migrants from Kharkiv, Kyiv and Kryvyi Rih who temporarily reside in the city. Currently, there are more than 25,000 migrants in Truskavets. “The training took place in an old building, where the Museum of the People’s Artist of Ukraine Mykhailo Bilas is located, – says Iryna Sukhova. – In our room there was an old loom and cabinets with exhibits. Wooden stairs with railings creaked under the feet of participants. All this added to our conversations about war and healing some sacred meaning and significance. There was a feeling that all generations of Ukrainians from our land understand the pain and hatred of the enemy and join our desire for victory and a happy life for all Ukrainian children”.
In Volyn there is a small town – Gorokhiv. Small in size, but the people who live here have big hearts, loving and bright. Four wonderful trainers of the program “Children and War. Teaching Recovering Techniques” work in Gorokhiv with adults and children injured by the war. Thank you, incredible Marina Sokol, Maryana Kozosh, Maryana Davydyuk and Oksana Lugovska-Fesenko, for your love and inspiration! Photos and reviews of group participants will tell more about the work of our coaches.
I express my sincere gratitude to the organizers and lecturers for creating the group of psychological support! Your professional abilities and unsurpassed charisma, despite the war, inspire you to move, to live, to love … to invest a part of yourself in good deeds! The trainings conducted by you make me stop, rethink life before the war and during the war! They help not to lose myself, but on the contrary – help those who also need support! When we return to our hometown, we remember your instructions and advice in those moments when we stop ourselves and do not let negative emotions move us! You can realize the hope of perceiving the world differently!
Iryna, Brovary, Kyiv region.
My dear girls Maryanka and Marinka! Honestly, I fell in love with you, revealed my psychological problems, such as self-doubt, overcame some fears, I understood what I needed, and for the most part I understood what I wanted in this life, I managed to cope with PTSD. You are incredible, it is a pity that I did not have the opportunity to meet you before. It’s just that fate brought me to be with you. You are the only ones who helped me.
Olena, Gorokhiv, Volyn region.
At the beginning of March this year, my family moved from Mykolayiv to Gorokhiv. It was a quick but difficult decision. For 8 weeks Gorokhiv has been home to me, my husband and our children. We were greeted with great care and warmth. But psychologically it was very difficult. We felt guilty that we had gone; devaluation of щгк feelings (because someone had to go through much more); isolation, irritability, anger, apathy, mood swings; shame to accept help; detachment from reality, inability to make plans for the future; grief for parents and the inability to hug them; a lot of fears; poor sleep, various disorders of the body. The social worker introduced me to Marina Sokol, and so I got into a group of women who became very close to me in our cohabitation. They gave me the tools to help me cope with my feelings. I learned that everything that happens to me is normal at such an abnormal time, and others have the same feelings. The openness of other women was healing for me. The war also released my old dragons and I managed to put them in order. They sleep quietly in caves, and some flew away. For me, these meetings were like a treasure. It is difficult for me to convey value in words, but I am grateful with all my heart and soul. And many thanks to those who made this program possible for me for free.
Elena, Mykolayiv.
Once again, I am sincerely grateful to you for the time, for the knowledge and the usual everyday conversations about everything! Thank you all, girls! No wonder we met with you! Each of us needed it!
Inna, Kharkiv.
You are wonderful and each of you has its own improbability. I don’t even remember when I had such a cool and useful time before our acquaintance, 2 hours flew by like 2 minutes. THANK YOU. It is simply impossible to convey all the emotions and impressions I received during the lesson, everything was unsurpassed! I met confident and successful girls. I really liked the atmosphere of trust in our group, thanks to which I felt real changes. I am proud of each participant of the incredible project.
Tanya, psychologist, Gorokhiv, Volyn region.
Since the beginning of the full-scale war in Ukraine, a team of Kyiv psychologists from the “Helping Hand for Ukraine” project has trained more than 300 new trainers in the program “Children and War. Teaching Recovering Techniques”. We truly thank you, Iryna Sukhova, Natalia Podoliak and Olena Bozhor, for your dedication, love for your work and people, for your experience and care for the emotional and psychological health of Ukrainians! Most novice coaches are already working with children’s and adult groups on this program and need supervision. Because what is supervision? It is an opportunity to receive support, answers to questions and additional training. You ask, “Why to study again?” There is an answer is in the parable.
One day a student called a teacher to a competition because he was sure that he knew and knew as much as he did, and even more. He offered him to cut firewood (a young student would be definitely smarter than an old teacher!), and he agreed. They started in the morning – the work was in full swing. Within hours, the student heard the teacher’s ax fall silent on a nearby lawn. “Yeah, tired!” – and the student began to cut even faster. In the afternoon the ax fell silent again, then again … The student was very tired, but did not stop for a second. When we summed up in the evening, it turned out that the teacher had won. “How could this happen?! I heard that you stopped and didn’t cut!” Shouted the student. “Yes it’s true. I stopped because I was sharpening my ax at that time”, – the wise teacher replied.
On May 5 in Drohobych, Lviv region, certificates were awarded to new trainers of the program “Children and War. Teaching Recovering techniques”. Drohobych currently has high-level psychologists. We wish you, dear colleagues, inspiration in your work and do not stop in your professional growth! The participants of the festive meeting shared their experience in Drohobych, Stebnyk and Truskavets. As a result of this work, more than 60 children and adults received psychological assistance and more than 300 people (including militarians, migrants, children) were able to get acquainted with some techniques of this program. “It is not difficult to work on the “Children and War “program, and the results are very pleasing”, was the only opinion that united all those participants at the presentation of certificates. And there is a lot of work ahead: we have thousands of people waiting for us who have found temporary shelter in Drohobych region. Therefore, we invite everyone to our team!
‘- Can I take a picture of you?
– Oh, no-no-no …
– You look good! Let’s take a photo together with the whole group?
– I don’t know, somehow it’s not convenient. I don’t like to be photographed, I always look bad … (starts to run away).
– Well, then tell me about your classes in the group. Is this the “Children and War” program?
– I am very pleased! After leaving the scene of the fighting, I was shaken, and everything was like in a fog. I came to the group meeting, I was asked to fill out a questionnaire, but I was confused, I don’t know what to write. The butterfly technique helped me, we studied this. And the horrible sounds in my head, especially at night, I could not sleep. Explosions, screams. I also overcame it. You see, I’m telling you and I’m not crying, and I couldn’t do that before … I’m not crying for life. Our group coaches are our teachers. They taught me how to calm down and put my thoughts in order. And those horrible sounds also ceased to be in my head.
This is a piece of a short conversation between the leader and psychologist of our “Helping Hand for Ukraine” project, Iryna Sukhova with Olena, a member of the group on the program “Children and War. Teaching Recovering Techniques”, who was evacuated from Mariupol, Donetsk region, to Drohobych, Lviv region. And this is a common situation – adults (unlike children) do not want to be photographed, but they kindly provide feedback. Moreover, they recommend classes to their friends because it helped. Therefore, we present some feedback from participants of group classes held in Drohobych, from Eugenia from Kiev, Lilia from Melitopol and Nikita from Kharkov.
Classes with children and their parents on the program “Children and War. Teaching Recovering Techniques” continue to be actively held in different parts of Ukraine and abroad. Ukrainians do not leave Ukrainians.
Thank you, our dear coaches, for your passionate love and care for the “wounded” of the war! Thank you for the provided photos of Victoria Overchuk, Olena Malyar and Olena Kuznetsova (Vinnytsia), Mariana Kozosh, Marina Sokil, Mariana Davydyuk and Oksana Fesenko (Gorokhiv, Volyn region), Svetlana Radchenko and Lesya Pavlus Novoyavorivsk (Lviv region), Olga Dziuba (Krakow, Poland).
