So far, 2019 has been a challenging year for Zimbabwe.
The stay-away and subsequent violence in urban areas in January, and the devastating cyclone in the Eastern Highlands in March, have caused considerable distress and trauma. The huge numbers of people affected and the sheer scale of the trauma is such that Tree of Life needed to adapt our healing activities to meet immediate needs for coping skills before deeper healing processes can be delivered.
In response, Tree of Life, with support from CVT, developed a psychological First Aid (PFA) intervention. This aimed to give community members “tools” to cope with the immediate effects of the trauma (panic attacks, flash backs, palpitations, nightmares, depression, suicidal feelings etc).
Using START funds, channelled through Trocaire, we firstly trained over 110 community Facilitators in PFA techniques. These Facilitators then rolled out the PFA in their communities reaching over 850 people in less than two weeks.
The response from the communities was overwhelmingly positive …
“The PFA training was short but empowering. It enlightened us on how to identify and approach survivors”
“The process helped us to be cool and calm when approaching survivors. The process removed fear from us.”
Tree of Life has received numerous requests for additional PFA activities and see this approach being particularly important in the cyclone affected areas to support communities regain hope for the future.
