Promoting Mental Health … A Step Towards More Resilient Communities
World Mental Health Day is an occasion to highlight the importance of mental health as an essential part of human health and quality of life, and to promote awareness of the need to provide a supportive environment that allows individuals to express their feelings and cope with daily pressures and challenges.
Accordingly, and on the occasion of World Mental Health Day, GOPA-DERD team, implemented a set of awareness and interactive activities in a number of regions, with the aim of promoting awareness of mental health, developing coping skills, and providing safe spaces for dialogue and expression, with the aim of supporting individuals and enhancing their ability to face challenges.
In Rural Damascus, GOPA-DERD’s Community Center’s team in Al-Nashabiyah, conducted an interactive activity for a number of women.
The activity highlighted the importance of listening to experiences, feelings, and psychological needs, and providing a safe and supportive space for expressing emotions and sharing experiences, thus contributing to enhanced support, communication, and positive change.
The activity included various segments, such as interactive theater, handicrafts, and other various activities that combined awareness and interaction. In addition, a guide on self-care was also distributed during the activities, in cooperation with the UNHCR.
With the aim of developing skills in coping with daily stress and self-care, GOPA-DERD’s “LIGHTS” center’s team, implemented an awareness and interactive activity, in which 50 women from the Babila area participated.
The activity included a set of awareness and interactive segments that provided participants with a space to express their feelings and share their daily experiences. In addition, the “Self-Care Wheel” activity, was carried out and focused on exploring practical methods for self-care and emotional release.
The activity also provided an opportunity for communication and the exchange of experiences and ideas among the participants, fostering mutual support and encouraging the adoption of more conscious daily practices in dealing with stress and prioritizing mental health.
In Hama, and with the aim of enhancing awareness of the importance of mental health and its role in the lives of individuals and society, GOPA-DERD’s “Lights” Center’s team in Hama, implemented a series of awareness sessions and interactive activities,
The sessions addressed topics related to mental health, with a focus on the importance of expressing emotions, dealing with daily stress, and enhancing psychosocial support methods. The activities also included a drawing segment as a means for release and emotional expression, alongside a group of interactive activities that provided participants with a space for communication and expression within a supportive and safe environment, This took place in cooperation with Filantropia.
GOPA-DERD’s in Al-Mahmudli Camp and Tabqa in Raqqa, also implemented a series of awareness and recreational activities aimed at promoting awareness of the importance of mental health in the lives of individuals and communities.
In tur, GOPA-DERD’s “Baituna” Center’s team in Al-Haffah , Latakia, carried out an awareness session on the importance of mental health, the factors affecting it, and how to maintain it. Discussions also covered methods for relieving psychological stress through the “Self-Care Café” and the “Psychological Pharmacy”, which includes simple positive recipes that help in dealing with mixed emotions.
In addition, the “Support Aisle,” involves offering quick, positive words to the beneficiaries. This took place in cooperation with NCA.
In Latakia, GOPA-DERD’s Community Center’s team, implemented a series of recreational and awareness activities in Al-Muzayri’ah village. The activities aimed to provide a safe space, in addition competitions were conducted to address mental health concepts and highlighted certain facts and myths associated with them. A musical station with a competitive nature was also presented, adding an atmosphere of fun and vitality.
In conclusion, the women exchanged ideas on how to deal with various challenges and directed supportive messages to themselves in a space that allowed them to express their feelings.
In Daraa, GOPA-DERD’s Community centes’ teams in Daraa, Busra Al-Harir, and Ghabaghib implemented a series of awareness sessions and activities for more than 60 women. This took place in cooperation with UNHCR.
The sessions addressed the impact of mental health in shaping the quality of life throughout a person’s extended journey from childhood and adolescence to old age. In addition, ways of positive coping and managing daily stress, were discussed.
In turn, GOPA-DERD’s “Beituna” Center’s team in Daraa, organized awareness sessions and interactive physical activities for 125 women and young women. This contributed to enhancing positive energy and developing the psychosocial skills of the participants.
In a related context, GOPA-DERD’s “A Safe Maternity” program’s team in Homs, organized an awareness-raising activity for women under the slogan “Lived experiences heard: real voices, real change”, in cooperation with ACT Church of Sweden and Radio Aid.
The activity included a dialogue and awareness session that addressed the concept of mental health and ways to promote it, along with a set of interactive exercises that provided a safe and supportive space for the participating women, allowing them to express their feelings.
The activity concluded with a set of recreational games that fostered a positive atmosphere of interaction among the participants.