A.T.E.K.e.V. Help for self-help for families/relatives

 A.T.E.K. is a non-profit and registered association that is committed to the well-being and support of families/relatives of traumatized service personnel (German Armed Forces, police, rescue service, fire department). 
Our work aims to actively support and accompany families of service personnel who have experienced severe stress during their service and have suffered from post-traumatic stress disorder as a result.400,000 men and women have been deployed abroad by the German Armed Forces since the 1990s. Approximately 20 percent of them - sometimes years later, after leaving active service - struggle with psychological consequences, that is around 80,000 men and women. There are around 322,600 police officers working in Germany. Approximately 30 percent (96,780) of police officers are victims of or witnesses to acts of violence, amok or terrorism or have to deal with them. Around 15 percent of those affected develop post-traumatic stress disorder. That is around 14,500 police officers.  Studies show that operations with child victims, injuries due to disasters, acts of violence, suicide and suicide attempts are among the most stressful events. In addition, operations in which the rescue workers themselves are exposed to a direct threat are also associated with an increased risk of PTSD. Not all emergency services personnel are exposed to such situations on a daily basis, but these situations are nevertheless part of their everyday working life. behind all these sick emergency services personnel are families, relatives, wives, husbands, children and parents who often have to watch helplessly as their loved ones suffer, who risk their lives and health every day to ensure the safety of our society and our citizens. We experience this helplessness of relatives every day in our online self-help groups, on the helplines or in personal exchanges on site. Even though emergency services personnel are often supported by their employer's psychosocial networks, relatives are left alone with their daily worries and questions: How do I deal with PTSD, flashbacks, triggers and dissociations? What can I do to avoid suffering co-traumatization myself? How do I teach the children that mom/dad no longer wants to play, needs rest or no longer laughs? 
Here we offer a contact point that is unbureaucratic, fast, effective and supra-regional; we want to strengthen relatives and families and provide them with tools in the form of training courses with specialists/psychologists, social workers, self-help groups and emergency telephones, as well as in discussions with those affected. Like many social, non-profit associations and projects, we are dependent on support. As a relatively young and small association, we finance our current projects from our own resources.We would be very grateful if you could consider supporting A.T.E.K. as a supporter/sponsor. Your contribution could make a difference.