D-Day / Armed Forces Day

On June 6^th, 2024, we commemorated the 80^th anniversary of the Normandy landings on 6^th June 1944, more well known as D-Day.

On June 6^th, 1944, nearly 160,000 British, Commonwealth and allied troop set off from Portsmouth to begin the Normandy beach invasion via water at 6:30am. By day’s end, approximately 156,000 Allied troops had successfully stormed Normandy’s beaches. According to some estimates, more than 4,000 Allied troops lost their lives in the D-Day invasion, with thousands more wounded or missing.

Less than a week later, on June 11^th, the beaches were fully secure with over 326,000 troops having landed on the beaches of Normandy. This triggered the beginning of the end of the second world war.

In context, the Psychological Professions Benchmarking Survey indicates 6,241 WTE Clinical Psychologists in the NHS. That means that more service men were killed or wounded on D-Day than the total number of Clinical Psychologists in the NHS currently.

We spent the day remembering all the service men and woman, and supporting people involved in the war effort and we gave our thanks for all there sacrifice and courage. We thank them for their part in sparking the light of freedom.

We would like to revisit a statement given by King Charles on June 6^th:

 "The stories of courage, resilience and solidarity we have heard today and throughout our lives cannot fail to move us, to inspire us and to remind us of what we owe to that great wartime generation."

Following this we saw the commencement of Armed Forces Day (Saturday 29^th June 2024). This day give a chance to show support and appreciation for the Armed Forces community, be this current serving personnel, services families, veterans and cadets.

This day bring not only brings us the opportunity to thank these inspirational men, women and children for their service and sacrifice but to bring awareness to the impact that service can have on the physical and mental health of our armed forces, veterans and their families.  

In a 2022/2023 report for UK Armed Forces Mental Health, it was found that 1 in 8 (13.2%) UK Armed Forces personnel were seen in military healthcare for a mental health related reason. This is an increase from the previous year (2021/2022). These mental health challenges ranged from Depression, Stress, Phobia, Post Traumatic Stress Disorders (PTSD) and adjustment disorders.

Below are some services that can help with this:

• SSAFA (Soldiers, Sailors, and Airmen’s Families Association) - SSAFA, the Armed Forces charity
• Help for heroes - UK Armed Forces and military veterans charity | Help For Heroes
• NHS The Veterans Mental Health and Wellbeing Service - Home | NHS Veterans' Mental Health South East (opcouragesoutheast.nhs.uk)
• Veterans Welfare Services - Veterans Welfare Service - GOV.UK (www.gov.uk)