The eighth meeting of veterans of the Russian-Ukrainian war within the framework of the Speak Up, Veteran project was dedicated to the problem of sleep disorders and post-traumatic disorders. Sleep therapist and psychologist Oksana Voloshyna explained the nature of the disorders and taught veterans to restore healthy sleep. As a reminder, the project is supported by Metinvest and the Kryvyi Rih Defence Council. The organizer of the events is the NGO "Kryvyi Rih Foundation of the Future".
For our defenders, even after returning from the frontline, the war often does not end. It continues at night - in an anxious, intermittent sleep. This is called "combat sleep" - when the body lies down, and the brain is on patrol, constantly listening to every rustle. For many veterans, sleep is the biggest challenge of a peaceful life. In order to help soldiers regain healthy sleep, the non-governmental organizations "Kryvyi Rih Foundation of the Future" and "Zaporizhzhia. Platform for Joint Actions" within the framework of the project "Speak Up, Veteran" had organized the psychological training simultaneously in Kryvyi Rih, Zaporizhzhia, and Kamianske.
"We continue our discussion panels with heroes who return to civilian life. The Speak Up, Veteran project is more than a year old and this is the eighth meeting. Every time we feel that the problems that we bring up for discussion resonate with veterans. This time we talked about sleep and its importance for normal human life. We found out what a "combat sleep" is and what to do when you are awake. The mixed online-offline format allowed us to engage a larger number of heroes from our city, Zaporizhzhia residents and Kamianske residents at the same time. We hope that each participant has found something useful for themselves: advice, practice or knowledge," said Olena LESHCHENKO, Director of NGO "Kryvyi Rih Foundation of the Future".
The psychologist and sleep therapist Oksana Voloshyna taught veterans how to reboot the nervous system, reduce night anxiety and restore the natural rhythm of rest. For many participants, it was the first step towards a life in which the night can bring peace again.
"I will practice breathing, which was shown to us and in the process of training. I have already tried. By the way, it really soothes. As for sleep, I still have sleep anxiety, I often wake up. It occurs sometimes. After all, in the war, you live at such a pace that in order to survive, you need not to sleep," says Oleksandr LUGOVSKYI, a war veteran and employee of the Ingulets Iron Ore.
"As for sleep, this is a rather painful and relevant topic, especially for the military. It is more related to concentration, because at different stages you must always be on your guard. That is, of course, you can be replaced, but not for long. After injuries and contusions, poor sleep is one of the main problems. We need to work with this. We had trainings with psychologists, where we underwent certain tests, did exercises to improve sleep. It needs to be developed, it must be disseminated and introduced on an ongoing basis," says war veteran, employee of Northern Iron Ore Volodymyr ZOLOTAREV.
Sleep is not just rest, experts emphasize. This is the right to live on. And when this right returns, it is another quiet victory over the war. Veterans who have already returned to work at the enterprise strive to create their own community – a place where you can speak frankly, receive support and look for solutions together. Sergiy Ilyin from Metinvest Northern Iron Ore dreams of such a local community at his plant and has already voiced this idea in the team.
"Many people return from the frontline and many do not know how to influence certain things. We want to be heard both where we work and in the society in which we live. Therefore, we are thinking about how to create something similar to a hub at our plant. There we could communicate and convey problems that are relevant now for veterans, employees and colleagues. Because there are many problems with the adaptation of people and many nuances with communication with civilians," said war veteran, employee of Northern Iron Ore Serhiy ILYIN.
Today, Metinvest's enterprises have an inclusive system of reintegration of veterans into civilian life and work. After all, about a thousand employees of the company have already returned to their teams after serving in the Armed Forces of Ukraine. To improve communication between people with and without combat experience, enterprises have introduced a unique training course "Heroes Nearby".
