Overview

This two day course trains you as an Armed Forces Mental Health First Aider (MHFAider®), giving you:

  • An in-depth understanding of mental health and the factors that affect wellbeing for the armed forces community

  • Practical skills to spot the triggers and signs of mental health issues 

  • Confidence to step in, reassure and support a person in distress

  • Enhanced interpersonal skills such as non-judgemental listening 

  •  Knowledge to help someone recover their health by guiding them to further support - whether that’s self-help resources, through the MOD, the NHS, support charities, or a mix

Places on the course are restricted to serving and ex-serving personnel, their family members, and support services who work with the armed forces community.
 

Cost

We value this course at £300 per person.

Costs may vary depending on location and instructor – contact the instructor for more information by clicking on a course below.
 

Format
  • Two day face-to-face course delivered across four manageable sessions

  • Learning takes place through a mix of presentations, group discussions and workshop activities

  • Each session is built around a Mental Health First Aid action plan

  • We limit numbers to 16 people per course so that the instructor can keep people safe and supported while they learn


Takeaways

Everyone who completes the course gets:

  • A certificate to say you are an Armed Forces MHFAider®

  • An Armed Forces MHFA manual to keep and refer to whenever you need it
     

Accessibility

We strive to create courses and resources that everyone can access. When you book onto a course through the MHFA England website, please fill in the ‘Accessibility requirements’ section of the booking form and tell us what you need to access the course venue and materials.

Visit our accessibility page for more information.

“This life saving training is essential if we are really serious about providing the mental health support that the armed forces community requires.”

Course structure

  • Why MHFA for the armed forces community?
  • Military culture
  • What is mental health?
  • Stigma and discrimination
  • Mental health issues - violence and the criminal justice system
  • The five steps of Mental Health First Aid
  • Suicide
  • Non-judgemental listening skills
  • Crisis first aid for suicidal behaviour
  • First aid for depression
  • Signs and symptoms of depression
  • Actions for suicidal behaviour and depression
  • Treatment and resources for depression
  • Self-care
  • Vicarious trauma and burnout
  • Self-harm
  • Eating disorders
  • Treatment and resources for self-harm and eating disorders
  • What is psychosis?
  • Schizophrenia, bipolar disorder
  • Symptoms and risk factors for psychosis
  • Crisis first aid for acute psychosis
  • Treatment and resources for psychosis
  • What is anxiety?
  • When is anxiety a problem?
  • Signs and symptoms of anxiety
  • Alcohol, drugs and anxiety disorders
  • The impact of trauma
  • Post traumatic stress disorder
  • Crisis first aid for panic attacks
  • Crisis first aid for acute stress reaction 
  • Recovery
  • Action planning for using MHFA

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