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Becoming Veteran Ready

This summer I begin my formal training as a mental health counselor. I am starting early by signing up for professional development opportunities on my own. The first of these opportunities includes getting a Veteran Ready Organization Certification. This course is called, PsychArmor, created in collaboration with the Wounded Warrior project. As part of this professional development, I watched four videos and took notes to refer to later. The four videos include:
  1. 15 Things Veterans Want You to Know (video duration: 15m 56s)
  2. Helping Others Hold On (18m 44s)
  3. Communication Skills with Veterans (17m 39s)
  4. How to Talk to Someone with a Disability (10m 21s)
The first video stressed military cultural competence. Just like any major organization or institution, the five branches of the military and the reserves have their own culture. Working in higher education in a military town makes it very likely that I will encounter a veteran, active serviceperson, or someone from a military family. 

In the first and second video I learned a new term, called invisible wounds. This includes anything from PTSD, brain injury, depression, or suicidal ideation. Interestingly, the majority of even combat veterans do not develop PTSD. However, those that do are at a higher risk for suicide. This is especially serious given the help seeking is not part of military culture. Being that the highest rate of suicide among veterans is among men, ages 18-35 (college-aged), veteran college students may be at risk. 

The third video on communication skills supported the need for military cultural competence by describing the veteran/military lens or the way that they see the world. As in conversations with any student or client, we should never assume that the other person sees the world the same way as we do. Therefore, it is important to establish mutual understanding through compassion, acceptance, and partnership. Consistent with the technique of motivational interviewing, the use of open-ended questions, positive affirmations, and periodic summarizes are very important in conversations with veterans because they may not be as forthcoming with needs or problems that they may need help with. 

The fourth video was a review of best practices when communicating with students or clients with a disabilities. As an instructor, I am familiar with universal design principles which include People First language. For example, we say students with Autism as opposed to Autistic students. One that is not recognized as frequently is the preference for the term deaf or hard of hearing as opposed to hearing impaired. I learned this from a deaf student this semester. 

Overall, this information was a great reminder as I begin my training in mental health counseling and continue my research interviewing military dependents at college. I encourage you to learn more about military cultural competence and participating a PsychArmor training. Below is a picture of my former student and research assistant who is from a military family herself. Thank you for all your insights, Breanna!

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