FORT EUSTIS, Va. –
Army Community Services is offering a set of seminars from 9 a.m. to noon, Sept. 24 to 27, for military spouses looking to better communicate with their Service members, handle stress efficiently and gain a more positive outlook on otherwise negative situations.
The U.S. Army, with the help of Army Community Services, is working to help ease the burden of stresses experienced by military spouses through Spouse Resiliency Seminars.
"These seminars were originally designed for Soldiers to help them cope with the stresses of military life," said Roger Bullis, ACS community readiness consultant. "After seeing the impact on Soldiers, the Army saw it as a great way for spouses to communicate with their Soldiers to work out problems together."
The four-day-long program aims to help families communicate with one another on a new level, said Bullis. Participants will learn to acknowledge what stressors affect them, how to change their mindset, and, ultimately, resolve issues.
"The whole idea behind resiliency is bouncing back from our problems," said Bullis. "It teaches us to communicate, hold true to our values and beliefs, and find the silver lining of any situation."
The seminars are not just lectures on how to be a better person, however. Interactive booklets outline activities for participants to work on in groups or alone, depending on the exercise. The activities consist of avoiding "thinking traps, hunting the good, or detecting icebergs," and much more. All of the activities focus on turning a negative into a positive one way or another, said Bullis.
The lessons taught by Bullis and his colleagues are not just an Army-specific course.The four teachers are sent through the University of Pennsylvania "Master Resilience" training course constructed by their Positive Psychology Center.
For information, or to sign up, call the ACS at 878-3638.