Life Guard: Bringing New Life to the Guard

1
Life Guard Bringing New Life to the Guard

• J. Vincent Roca, PhD, CAVHS
• Mary Sue Farmer, PhD candidate, SCMIRECC

2
The Team

• Life Guard is a partnership among CAVHS, Arkansas
  National Guard, and SCMIRECC.

CAVHS Guards Family Readiness Group SC MIRECC
Dane Clement Pam Hall Mary Sue Farmer
Lisa McGill Linson Mary Myers Debra Hollis
Penny Pollock Phyllis Naracon Rebecca Spooner
Vince Roca Kristin Ward

• psychology pre-doctoral interns James Mazzone,
  Tim Streitwieser, Bridget Tribout

3
A Brief History

• November 2005 - Returning Veterans Outreach,
  Education, and Care (RVOEC) RFP is submitted
• March 2006 - RVOEC RFP funding approved
• March 29, 2006 - Relationship between CAVHS
  Arkansas National Guards
• Family Readiness Group established.
• June 2006 - RVOEC staff is hired
• June 5, 2006 - Life Guard workshop is presented
  to Adjunct General
• Morrow.
• June 24, 2006 - 1st Life Guard workshop
  Community is presented at Malvern
• community center.
• Sept. 12, 2006 - Life Guard workshop is presented
  to Adjunct General
• Chastain. He requests that Life Guard
  workshops be
• conducted at armories.
• Nov. 4, 2006 - 1st Life Guard workshop Armory
  is presented at Sheridan
• armory.
• Dec. 12, 2006 - SCMIRECC hosts meeting to discuss
  outreach to
• community clergy.
• April 2, 2007 - 1st Life Guard workshop
  1st-Line Responders is presented at
• church in Searcy.
• May 8, 2007 - Life Guard workshop is presented
  to Adjunct General

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Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT)

• Acceptance and Commitment Therapy An
  Experiential Approach to Behavior Change
• Hayes, Strosahl, Wilson, 1999
• Get Out of Your Mind Into Your Life The New
  Acceptance Commitment Therapy
• Hayes Smith, 2005
• http//www.contextualpsychology.org/

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ACT Question
(6) at this time, in this situation?
(2) are you willing to have that stuff, fully and
without defense
(5) of your chosen values
If the answer is yes, that is what builds...
(4) AND do what takes you in the direction
(3) as it is, and not as what it says it is,
(1) Given a distinction between you and the stuff
you are struggling with and trying to change
diagram borrowed from http//www.contextualpsychol
ogy.org
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Target Audiences

• Families
• Arkansas National Guards Family Readiness Group
• Soldiers
• Entire Team
• 1st-Line Responders
• SCMIRECC

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Presentation

• What it is
• Interactive
• Role Playing Skits
• Stories
• Metaphors/analogies
• Group Exercises
• Volunteers
• What it isnt
• Passive
• Lecture
• PowerPoint

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Workshop Objectives

1. Participants know how to apply self-help skills,
   Awareness, Willingness, and Valued Living, in
   their own lives.
2. Participants can use metaphors, exercises, and
   demonstrations as memory aids.
3. Participants can use metaphors, exercises, and
   demonstrations as useful ways to introduce skills
   to others.
4. Participants recognize when to introduce skills,
   Awareness, Willingness, and Valued Living, to
   peers about whom they are concerned.
5. Participants can teach skills, Awareness,
   Willingness, and Valued Living, to peers about
   whom they are concerned.

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Awareness

• Notice that thoughts, feelings, and memories
  (TFM) are
• experiences we have, not actions we do.
• We are NOT responsible for the TFM we have.
• Notice that TFM are not the same as observations.
• Sticks stones can break my bones, but words
  can never hurt me!
• Notice that the person having TFM is not the same
  as what the TFM say about the person.
• TFM cannot tell you who you are

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Willingness

• People have a basic choice in how they respond to
  their TFM
• Push/Pull
• Must be avoided
• Have to keep
• Acceptance
• Nonjudgmental
• No preference

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Valued Living

• Here again, people have a basic choice.
• We can make our lives be about
• The outcome
• What is felt, thought, remembered
• What we get or what we lose
• Destination
• The process
• Quality of action
• Direction

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Centering

• Bringing all 6 ACT steps together.
• Skills all people can use across a wide range of
  life circumstances.

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Workshop Objectives

1. Participants know how to apply self-help skills,
   Awareness, Willingness, and Valued Living, in
   their own lives.
2. Participants can use metaphors, exercises, and
   demonstrations as memory aids.
3. Participants can use metaphors, exercises, and
   demonstrations as useful ways to introduce skills
   to others.
4. Participants recognize when to introduce skills,
   Awareness, Willingness, and Valued Living, to
   peers about whom they are concerned.
5. Participants can teach skills, Awareness,
   Willingness, and Valued Living, to peers about
   whom they are concerned.

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Objectives

• PLEASE INDICATE THE EXTENT TO WHICH YOU
  ACCOMPLISHED EACH WORKSHOP OBJECTIVE LISTED
  BELOW

Objectives Completely Mostly Moderately Somewhat Not At All
1 145 (60) 70 (30) 22 (9) 3 (1) 0 (0)
2 163 (68) 57 (24) 18 (7) 2 (1) 0 (0)
3 157 (65) 59 (25) 21 (9) 3 (1) 0 (0)
4 144 (60) 66 (27) 24 (10) 6 (3) 0 (0)
5 138 (58) 70 (29) 25 (10) 6 (3) 1 (0)
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Selected Questions

• Workshop objectives were relevant to my personal
  life.
• I fully accomplished the workshops
  purpose/objectives.
• The teaching strategies used in the workshop were
  appropriate.
• Overall, the workshop was worthwhile.
• I would recommend this workshop to a fellow
  veteran or to a veterans family members.

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Selected Questions

• Please rate each of the following

Questions Strongly Agree Agree Disagree Strongly Disagree
1 112 (48) 114 (49) 7 (3) 1 (0)
2 76 (33) 147 (64) 6 (3) 1 (0)
3 132 (57) 97 (42) 4 (2) 0 (0)
4 138 (59) 90 (39) 3 (1) 1 (0)
5 144 (62) 84 (36) 4 (2) 0 (0)
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I would like to express my gratitude to you and
your team for conducting the Life Guard
Training workshop on 03 MAR 2007 at the
Clarksville armory. The presentation was
professional, timely, and informative. One
soldier in particular approached me after the
event and stated the material was exactly what he
needed. The soldier had recently, and
unexpectedly, lost his wife leaving him to care
for their three young children. The soldiers and
families present all benefited from the
interactive program. In my experience with other
post-deployment lectures and briefings, none
compare to the Life Guard Trainings ability to
capture the attention of the soldier and relate
on a level that is clear, concise, and
understandable. I have endorsed this program to
LTC Williams as well as other commanders. I truly
believe this type of program is exactly what the
soldiers of my company, and other, need. Thank
you again for giving up a Saturday to present the
workshop to my soldiers.