“Voice of a
War Veteran”
A systematic narrative introduction to the Experiences of
a War Veteran
A 2-day Workshop at
John Pounds Centre
Queens Street
Portsmouth
PO1 3HN
Presented
by
Dr
David Jackson and Mr Kevin Spruce
Two day Workshop: “Voice of a War Veteran”
Thursday
26th September 2013 and Friday 27th September 2013
From 0930 hours to 1630 hours
“The thought, sensitivity, care and passion upon which
the weekend/workshop was based, has been utterly unique to me” (Chartered
Psychologist).
“This was an emotional, thought provoking and challenging
few days. Inspirational leading edge research!” (Doctoral
student).
Workshop Details and Booking Form
Workshop aims
There is a growing body of excellent civilian led
research about War Veterans and their experiences. This research is usually based in and around
PTSD and the physical transition from a military culture to a civilian culture.
The workshop puts the “Voice of the War Veteran”
alongside this research and from a War Veterans perspective. This workshop has been developed from Dr
David Jackson’s and Kevin Spruce’s research and experiences of being War
Veterans (Northern Ireland and the Falklands).
The content draws on their private practices in counselling Veterans and
their families, and also on excellent third party research. We aim to offer an insight into War Veterans
way of thinking and way of being to assist those, who assist them.
This workshop is open to experienced practitioners and
medical professionals who better want to understand “War Veterans” and to take
this knowledge and assimilate it into their own best practice when supporting
War Veterans.
It is also aimed at
Veteran Organisations who will benefit through the development of closer
relationships with their client group, through increased knowledge of the War
Veterans’ experiences.
This workshop will also assist Veterans and their
families to better understand the actions and thought processes of the War
Veteran.
Many of our Armed Forces are making the transition into
civilian street, and many of those have experienced war. The transitional issues linked with combat
related PTSD will be with us for many decades, and the Veterans will need
support and understanding. All delegates
will go away with a better understanding of the ‘lot’ of a War Veteran.
Day 1
• Interview with a War Veteran
• Stereotypes and the impact on War Veterans
• Introduction to PTSD
• Psychological / Physiological PTSD
• PTSD. What is its
Purpose?
Day 2
• What is a War Veteran?
• War Veteran Culture
• Transition - Assimilation or Acculturation
• Film: Three days
of Loss: A War Story
• War Veterans: Feeling the Flatness
Venue: John
Pound’s Centre, Queen’s Street, Portsmouth, PO1 3HN
There is an on-site café which
supplies a large range of healthy & delicious food with vegetarian choices
always available, plus hot and cold drinks.
Transport to the Centre
Car: For guests traveling into Portsmouth we are easily
accessible by road. The M275 leads straight into the heart of the city and then
follow the brown signs for ‘Historic Waterfront’. Queen Street is the main road
that leads down to the Historic Dockyard.
Train: Our nearest train station is Portsmouth Harbour – a
simple 5 minute walk from the John Pounds Centre – with good connections to
London and the West.
We meet at the Royal Maritime
Club for informal networking on the Thursday evening
Feedback from
2013 Conference:
"On behalf of myself and others who were there, I
would like to thank you so very much not just for the time it has taken you for
organising such a successful, worthwhile and thought provoking PTSD
Conference... but sharing the journey that got you to this place and on the
road ... so to speak.
Those who have not served who attended were witness to the
most eloquent and ‘on the nose’ insight of a combat veteran but also
descriptions and analysis of the "psyche" of a veteran / ex
serviceperson.
The only division in the conference was in the
"moist eye department"!! Some
who had a tear in their eyes from being in the place we have been and a Brother
to Brother empathy, and those with those with the same tear wanting desperately
to assist and improve the Veteran’s lot.
Moving, touching anecdotes and some pearls of wisdom on
various aspects from yourselves and the varied speakers made it for me, and for
many others that I spoke to, one of the more meaningful and useful events that
I have attended in this sector.
If anyone can get across the plights and issues that have
faced, and do face ex-combatants and Veterans alike, in such a professional but
relaxed, and at times humorous way, it is yourself and David. (D,Brother
Veteran)
**********************************************
Just wanted to thank you for inviting us to your
conference yesterday and to say what a thought provoking and engaging event it
was (G and J, Mental
Health NHS Foundation Trust)
***********************************************
Many congratulations to you both! It was great to see you at the conference. It was my
pleasure to see you and I really enjoyed your presentations. I am so very happy to see you develop your
platform to project the Voice of Veterans.
(K, Department of Education, University of Bath)
***********************************************
Thank you for all your hard work making Mondays
conference fabulous! (S, R.B.L.)
***********************************************
We
would like to thank all the Conference Delegates
for
making the day a special day
Aims of
Veteran to Veteran (Turning It Around):
The aims of the
workshops/seminars are to give professionals who support Veterans an insight
into the world of the War Veteran and the Veteran; to give the War Veteran an
insight into the world of the professionals who support them. We believe that this will assist in
developing a deeper relationships based on ‘visceral verstehen’ that will
improve professional, and personal relationships, enhancing and improving the
relationships between the Professional and War Veterans and their families. This will be achieved through knowledge,
challenging stereotypes and felt understanding.
The unique
series of workshops are written and presented by War Veterans for everyone
involved in supporting our War Veterans and Veterans to find peace. By supporting Veteran To Veteran (Turning It
Around), you are supporting ALL Veterans.
Co-directors
Dr David Jackson is a former Royal Marine and during his
service he served in Northern Ireland and went south with the Falklands War
Task-Force. After leaving the service he
trained as a counsellor and life coach and has successfully worked to build up
his private practice of 14 years counselling Veterans and their families.
He studied
psychology with the Open University and graduated in 1995 with a BSc (Hons). In
2002 he completed his Masters degree in Counselling Studies at the University
of East Anglia. His dissertation was an
auto-ethnographical narrative exploring his own experiences of living with his
experiences of war and PTSD.
In 2010 Dr
David graduated from the University of Bristol after completing a Doctor of
Education (D.ED.). During this time he
researched the cultural, historic and social narratives of War Veterans who
suffer with PTSD from war related experiences.
His dissertation was called “Seven
Days Down South: A War Story”, and used the medium of film and a multi
modal approach, to represent the Narratives of War Veterans. Dr
David Jackson is an expert in the social and cultural aspects of War
Veterans living in society.
Kevin Spruce joined the Royal Electrical Mechanical
Engineers and during his service he served in Northern Ireland and went south
with the Falklands War Task-Force. Kevin
was medically discharged form the Army in 1988.
He set up a
Fine Arts Retail Company and bought properties to rent out to low income
families. He went on to study Business
Studies at Plymouth Polytechnic (1988) and Durham University (1989).
Kevin attended
Keele University (1991-1995) graduating with BA with Honours in Psychology and
African and Native American History and Literature.
Kevin then
qualified in P.A.C.E. and prison law (2001), and having developed a successful
career as a Prison Law Supervisor, Kevin went back to Keele University to study
Counselling Psychology for his MSc (2010), to counsel and assist Veterans and
their families during the transition from a military culture to a civilian
culture, due to his own experiences.
Kevin’s Masters
dissertation, “Once a Soldier, Always a
Soldier”, was a heuristic enquiry, with an interpretative phenomenological
analysis, into his own transitional difficulties and that of other British and
Foreign Armed Forces personnel. Kevin’s
ambition is to make Veterans aware of and believe in their true value and
worth, he knows, through his own personal experience, that this is a difficult
job.
Kevin is an
expert in the social and cultural difficulties that Veterans, and their
families face pre-, during and post the transition in to civilian life.
Workshop
Booking Form
Veteran To Veteran (Turning It Around)
Hardingswood House
Hardingswood Road
Hardingswood
Kidsgrove
ST7 1EF
Date:
Delegates Name: Email
Address:
Two Day Workshop:
“Voice of A War Veteran” - 26th - 27th September 2013 at John Pound’s Centre
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Description
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Quantity
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Unit Price
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Cost
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Full Fee (for the 2 days)
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£ 160.00
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Veteran Fee
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£ 75.00
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Veteran Organisation Fee
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£ 75.00
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Student Fee
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£ 75.00
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Total
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Methods of Payment
Cheque: Made payable to “Veterans Counselling Service”
and send to above address.
Bank Transfer:
To: Lloyds Bank
Sort Code: 30-95-91
Acc Number: 29667268
Kind regards,
Dr David Jackson and Kevin Spruce
Co-directors Veteran To Veteran (Turning It
Around)
Cancellation Fee Policy:
Cancellation
3 weeks before the event: Full
Refund
Cancellation
after 3 weeks and up to 1 week before the event Refund
of fee - less 20% cancellation fee
Cancellation
up to 7 days before event No
Refund will be available
Delegates
will receive a certificate of attendance.
However this is not a credit bearing course. Confirmation of place at the workshop is by
payment of fees only, and due to limited numbers will be on a first come first
served basis. Limited bursary places are
available for unemployed Veterans and students in full time courses. For a bursary consideration please email
details of your situation along with contact details of a tutor who can verify
your situation, or a copy of unemployment paperwork for consideration. For more information: Email: veteranscounsellingservices@gmail.com
Veteran
To Veteran (Turning It Around) is covered by “Veterans Counselling Services’
public liability insurance and complies with current health and safety
legislation. Complaints policy are
available on request.
For further
information please email Kevin at veteranscounsellingservice@gmail.com
“Voice
of a War Veteran”
2-day
Workshop Programme
Day 1 - 26th September 2013
0900 - 0930 Register
and Welcome David
S.
0930 – 0940 Introduction
Kevin
0940 – 1020 Interview
with a War Veteran/discussion Kevin
1020 – 1120 Stereotypes David
1120 – 1140 Refreshment Break
1140 – 1240 Introduction
to PTSD Kevin
1240 – 1300 Discussion
1300 – 1400
Lunch (Provided)
1400 – 1500 Psychological/ Physical PTSD Kevin
1500 – 1520 Refreshment Break
1520 – 1620 PTSD.
What purpose? David
1620 – 1630 Q
and A session
End of Day One
Day 2 - 27th
September 2013
0930 – 0940 Introduction Kevin
0940 – 1000 What is a war veteran? Kevin
1000 – 1100 War Veteran Culture David
1100 - 1120 Refreshment
break
1120 – 1220 Assimilation/Acculturation Kevin
1220 – 1300 Family – Vicarious Trauma Kevin
1300 – 1445 Lunch
1345 – 1500 Three Days of Loss: a war story David
1500 – 1505 Refreshment break
1505 – 1600 Feeling the flatness David
1600 – 1630 Round table discussion Kevin
End of Workshop
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