Dear AUSA Members

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Emotional Support for You and Your Children

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As you know Adur Ukraine Support Association has been trying to support Ukrainians in our area through provision of cultural and social activities that promote Ukrainian and British culture, bring people together and create smiles. Sometimes, despite smiling on the outside there are many other emotions going on behind the smile.

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The impact of war on children is tremendous, if they don’t have an outlet for their feelings and emotions this can lead to longer term depression, anxiety and post-traumatic stress. We recognise that as parents you may put on a brave face in front of your children and not talk about your own concerns and worries, you may also find it difficult to discuss how your children are feeling with them. Children pick up on emotions from their parents, if a parent is withdrawn and isolated then children may be worried about sharing their own feelings as they don’t want to add to the pressure their parents are feeling, this in turn can leave children feeling lonely and isolated.

 

Please be assured that you aren’t alone, we believe that for parents to be able to provide the emotional support their children need to thrive, it is essential that parents are also supported and given tools that help them to maintain their emotional and mental wellbeing.  

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We want to ensure that you are aware of resources to help you talk about these emotions, in our area we are fortunate to have resources to support you, it isn’t the same across the UK so we would and encourage you to make use of the support.

 

Parents

Mind - West Sussex have dedicated outreach support for Ukrainians, full information can be found on their website West Sussex Mind | Mental health support for the Ukrainian community. The Ukrainian mental health community outreach and development support worker is Vlada Bondar who can be contacted on 07494 055440 or email vlada.bondar@westsussexmind.org.

 

For Children and Young People

Adur Ukraine Support Association are delighted to be able to fund some

Bear Us In Mind psychological toolkits for children and young people.

These fantastic toolkits were created by Bear Us In Mind as a resource to

support the emotional wellbeing of displaced children affected by the war

in Ukraine. The toolkit can be used by hosts, schools, family, friends as well

as professionals. The toolkit has eight activities focussed on children’s

emotional wellbeing that help them to:

• Re-establish their personal identity in a strange country

• Discuss and remember friends past and present

• Express feelings about someone they are missing

• Create a safe time and place to share their feelings and emotions

• Describe difficult memories and balance them with precious memories

• Look at how they can rebuild their lives, develop and grow

• To create strong symbols for family unity and create a sense of togetherness

• To find strength, stay hopeful and manage grief

 

We have 30 of these toolkits for families, sponsors, schools or anyone who is looking to provide support to a Ukrainian child or young person. Further information about the toolkit and the activities it contains can be found on the Bear Us In Mind website www.bearusinmind.org.uk . If you would like to use one of the toolkits to help support a child please email info@adurukrainesupport.org.uk and we will discuss the best way to help you make the most of the toolkit.