Nearly 4,000 people affected by conflict in Pakistan have received psychosocial support, through an Islamic Relief project which ended last month.
The scheme – which extended psychosocial services offered under a separate project – was developed to assist vulnerable people who were forced from their homes by violence along the border with Afghanistan.
Working particularly with women and children in Nowshehra, we provided counselling sessions as well as referral support for people experiencing the symptoms of Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) and other conditions.
As well as dozens of counselling individual sessions, over 250 group counselling sessions were delivered. The sessions included messages around domestic violence and child protection.
We also equipped community health workers, local activists and teachers with the skills to encourage displaced families to engage with support services. Almost 100 psychosocial awareness training sessions were delivered.
Safaida is better able to deal with her experiences
Safaida Bibi was one of those to benefit from the scheme. Having fled their home, she and her family lived in Jalozai camp before moving to live with her husband’s family. She was struggling to adjust to the impact of displacement, and attempted suicide twice. Then, she heard about Islamic Relief.
She took part in a group counselling session and then had four individual sessions – and also began treatment for depression. Safaida now says that life is getting better, and she is better equipped to deal with her experiences.
The six-month project extended the services delivered through our ongoing project in the Federally Administered Tribal Areas (FATA), which is also providing displaced people with access to basic healthcare, shelter, water and sanitation as well as food and livelihood support.