The Veteran’s Affairs Fort Worth Out Patient Clinic (FWOPC) is now offering Moving Forward, a program designed to help struggling veterans adjust to civilian life. The program is particularly tailored for those struggling with issues brought on from overseas tours including Operation Enduring Freedom, Operation Iraqi Freedom, and Operation New Dawn.
Taught using the problem solving theory, TCC students enrolled in the VA spend four weeks learning how to achieve their goals. This includes learning to overcome obstacles such as pursuing higher education after a significant break from school and deciding on a new career. Additionally, students can learn how to re-establish relationships with friends and family members, cope with feelings regarding deployment experiences, and deal with financial stress.
Mara Lynn Fox, a licensed clinical social worker for the Returning Combat Veterans Program at FWOPC, said in her six years treating post deployment behavioral health issues for the Army, the problem solving theory has had years of measurable success.
“The goal of this is to teach them how to cope better with their own stressors and decisions. Eighty percent showed improvement and completed all for sessions in the two years it has been offered through the VA,” Fox said. “It just seemed logical to target the college-attending population for this program.”
Classes run every Tuesday July 31-August 21, from 3-4 p.m. in the Executive Conference room at 2201 Southeast Loop 820 Fort Worth, 76119. Each week, students will build on the previous one-hour session, advancing to the next topic and discussing what they’ve learned. Please allow 20 extra minutes on July 31.
To RSVP, contact at Fox 817-730-0147, or mara.fox@va.gov
Submitted by Anna Frankie Farrar-Helm,
a summer intern in Public Relations and Marketing,
where she enjoys learning about TCC happenings
and sharing them with others