News

International Day of Friendship

As we celebrate International Day of Friendship on 30 July, Open Arms acknowledges the important role friends play in supporting our health and wellbeing.

Take Your Dog To Work Day

We asked some of our peer workers to let us know which pet they would choose to bring to work with them and why.

Applied Suicide Intervention Skills Training (ASIST)

Applied Suicide Intervention Skills Training (ASIST) is an international educational workshop to help people respond to suicide signals.

Celebrating National Volunteer Week

National Volunteer Week runs from 17-23 May in celebration of Australia’s nearly six million volunteers. Open Arms recognises the significant contribution made to volunteering by current and ex-serving ADF members and their families.

Reconnecting after deployment or absence

Life in the military can include time apart from family and friends due to deployment, training or commitments such as Reserve duties. Serving members might experience living in different locations and having new experiences, some of which can be exciting but may also be difficult, or even traumatic.

Observing Anzac Day 2021

Anzac Day can be a time of heightened emotions for the defence and veteran communities, and this past year has presented more challenges than most. The floods, bushfires, COVID-19 pandemic and release of the IGADF Afghanistan report have all impacted our lives in some way.

Getting a good night’s sleep

Friday 19 March was World Sleep Day, an annual event highlighting the importance of sleep to our overall health and wellbeing.

Resilience and recovery from natural disaster

Natural disasters such as floods and bushfires can sometimes undermine our capacity to cope but they are also an opportunity for us to show our resilience. In the short term, it is quite normal to experience feelings of helplessness and at times find the situation overwhelming.