BETHESDA, Md. — A Ukrainian filmmaker traveled from her Maryland home to Poland to help train psychologists in trauma therapy. Now, she's back and already preparing to help again.
Olha Onyshko was born and raised in Ukraine but has lived in Bethesda, Maryland for the last 20 years.
A few weeks ago, she accompanied some clinicians to the Poland-Ukraine border to train therapists there in specific PTSD techniques. They're with EMDR Humanitarian Assistance Programs.
"What is in me after I came back from the trip, again, it's endurance and kindness," Onyshko said.
She's a filmmaker, so she shared footage she took in Poland with WUSA 9.
It depicts a beautiful hotel near the border filled with more than 150 Ukrainian refugees and many children; many with disabilities.
The polish hotel owner, Robert, opened his business to them as a temporary home.
“That hotel owner, Robert…took it all on himself to give room for these people. And then the local community came together," Onyshko said. "It really, really moved me to the core to see what is possible; what people can actually do when they put their heart into their action."
In one video, you can see Ted, the psychologist trainer teaching EMDR techniques to another therapist at the hotel.
EMDR stands for Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing and is a type of therapy for people experiencing PTSD.
After a couple of sessions with one woman, "She said, 'I can sleep.' And to me that was huge. Even if one person can sleep, I think we were successful,” Onyshko said.
They were successful on a larger scale, too.
“As neighbors, Ukrainians and Poles had a rough history," she said. "And again, just to take in the strangers, maybe even former enemies, just because you see, and you have a compassionate heart. And you see they're in struggle, I think this is huge…. And it is rewriting history”
Rewriting history with human kindness.
And on that trip, Onyshko also brought supplies like shoes, bulletproof vests and communication supplies, which were promptly transported to the front lines.
Now, she's continuing her aid.
Tuesday night, she and some friends packed up 40 pairs of hiking boots to send overseas this week. And, Onyshko is planning to go back to Poland to help.