Mental Health Consciousness Points.
  2023 02 20

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  • It is crucial for people to get their feelings out.
    • If people don't, either these feelings grow into external anger and violence that can be directed at close people – spouse, children, parents, friends, etc. – and/or at the community and/or
    • The feelings work internally. When the feelings are directed internally, they can cause physical illness, frequently quite severe, and also can cause a large variety of psychological reactions including anxiety, guilt, depression, and even psychosis.
  • Psychological reactions to any sort of events, particularly events that threaten the physical and/or psychological wellbeing of a person or someone close are normal and not pathological. Thus, we should speak of post-traumatic reactions (PTSR) rather than disorders or illnesses (PTSD). This is very important in terms of stigmatization and the way that that people and their environments react to the reactions. It takes education and thinking and feeling to get through this.
  • Many people have guilt and shame about their psychological reactions.  As mentioned, there is no reason for such shame or guilt, as these reactions are normal human ways of dealing with traumatic events.
  • In this context, it’s very important to remember that each person is doing the best s/he can at any given moment, given background, what is happening to the person at that moment, and the reactions of people around the person. Thus, there is no reason to feel inadequate. These issues of poor self-image can lead to depression and even suicide.
  • As mentioned above, it’s very important to get the feelings out. This can be done in a number of ways.
    • Talking to someone else, either individually or in a group, formally or informally, is an excellent way.
      • Groups can be very useful, as people come together and see that they are not alone in their feelings. People in a group can encourage one another and assist one another to work things out.
      • People also can talk to themselves, either by looking in the mirror or by talking to a voice or video recorder on a phone or computer. This also helps considerably.
    • Writing also is an excellent way. Writing helps to make concrete that which a person is feeling and allows the person to see it on a page or in a computer. The person then can edit it and complete it. This becomes an interaction with the person him/herself, which leads to healing and more self-respect.
    • Still another way of getting your feelings out is through art, that is, drawing, painting, sculpture, etc. Very frequently, hidden feelings come out this way.
    • Music is still another way of getting feelings out. It is not only the actual notes but also the loudness, intensity, speed, etc. of the way that the music is played that assists in expressing the feelings. It is good to record the music when it is played.
  • It is important to find the original source of the trauma and the feelings and work on resolving those. Thus, people should go deep.
  • Trauma and feelings and reactions are very easily transmitted from one person to another and between generations. It is very difficult to stop this transmission but it is possible to identify it and realize where it’s coming from and deal with that.
  • Working with mental health issues and traumatization of various sorts is not a quick process. The client and the therapist both need to be patient and persistent.
  • Listening and facilitating are the most important skills and processes that the person working with people can use. It is for the client to work out his/her issues and the solutions to them. The “therapist” provides a regular safe unbiased space where this can happen.
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European Mental Health Week 2022

13.05.2022.

We did some gardening today as an activity due European mental health awareness week.. They say that working in the garden is healing: it relaxes, improves mood and relieves stress, and staying in the fresh air as a form of physical activity helps reduce the risk of many chronic diseases. We thank our volunteers for their heroic work with us.
In today's podcast episode we are talking about how to listen. 
Our project Mental health as human right-Psychosocial support for volunteers working with migrants is financially supported by Haella Foundation grants.
Proposed Invitation for a Group Wanting to Work with Refugees Themselves and with People Assisting Refugees

2022 03 20

The aim of this meeting is to organize education and supervision for people working with refugees and asylum seekers and for the refugees and asylum seekers themselves.

 The initial meeting will take place on Friday 25 March 2022 at 20 Central European Time/19 London/15 Eastern North American Daylight Saving Time using the Zoom of the Coalition for Work with Psychotrauma and Peace, with link

https://us02web.zoom.us/j/3098771347?pwd=eEdtNHR5Q2pDSFpSb0dLbzJwNjhUUT09

We expect the meeting to last about an hour or slightly longer.

 You may contact us for any reason on [email protected], on Skype at cwwppvuk, and on WhatsApp and Viber on +385 98 346 753.

 

As of the date of writing, more than 2 million refugees have passed the borders from the Ukraine to European Union countries. Furthermore, there are extremely large numbers of refugees from other regions, such as Afghanistan and many African countries, attempting to obtain asylum in Western Europe. Unfortunately, many of these other refugees are being severely discriminated against in their entry and asylum requests.

 
While this is the acute situation, there are continuing long-term issues with regard to asylum seekers and refugees, almost all of them highly traumatized, in many parts of the world.

 
While some material assistance has been organized, there is virtually no psychological assistance, particularly long-term assistance, being offered to such victims. Unfortunately, this has been the case for quite a number of years.

 
There is a large lack of capacity to give such support. The WHO and others estimate that more than 90% of people needing such support aren’t getting it.

 
The CWWPP (www.cwwpp.org) has been working on issues of asylum seekers and war victims since 1995 and its volunteer CEO, Charles David Tauber, M.D., has been working on these concerns since 1988. The work of the CWWPP is mostly online. This has the advantage that, even if people are on the move, they can take part in groups over the Internet. It also means that travel time and costs are cut considerably.

 
The aim of this meeting is to organize a structure for giving such support. We suggest the measures briefly outlined below. We are very much open to further discussion, which is one of the purposes of this meeting.

·      Setting up an educational group for trainers of trainers.

o   These people would not need to have had previous education or experience with working with psychology and trauma, but must be enthusiastic and willing to put in time and effort to reach out to and train and supervise other groups.

o   There could be several groups of such people.

§  Ideally, at least one such group would be made up of refugees themselves, perhaps with refugees from several regions.

§  Other group(s) would be made up of helpers.

§  The membership of these groups could be combined, which has large advantages in a number of directions.

·      Supervision group(s) for helpers.

o   These groups would provide education and supervision for people working in the field with refugees. This also would include work on secondary traumatization and burnout and the interaction between work life and personal life. We have found such groups and such supervision to be essential for everyone working in the field.

o   The helpers could be refugees and people from host communities, ngos, etc.

·      Drop-in/discussion groups for refugees.

o   We are deliberately not calling these groups “therapy” groups, as that word has a large amount of stigma in many communities.

o   These groups would allow people to express their feelings in a free, open, and confidential atmosphere. This is essential for the mental wellbeing of the refugees.

o   The groups would be open, but we would hope that people would come on a regular basis to establish a basis of trust between participants.

 
Our experience is that people psychologically assisting refugees must work for longer periods of time. We feel that six months to a year is a minimum. We say that for a number of reasons. Refugees are traumatized and have had to leave people they feel to be close. People working with them in the field on psychological issues tend to get close to them and form relationships with them. Separation causes additional trauma, particularly for the refugees but also for the people working with them.

 
We also feel that it is essential that those people working with refugees get supervision. Rates and levels of secondary traumatization are high, and most people cannot handle these alone.

 
We are delighted to be hosting this meeting and hope that we can form a structure to give this vital aid to refugees in this time of crisis and long beyond that. We have made a strong commitment to that long-term effort, as is evidenced by our work in the field since 1995.

 

Please feel free to spread the news of this meeting.

 
We look forward to seeing you and to hearing from you.

 

Yours in Peace,

Gwyneth Jones (Hamann)

Charles David Tauber, M.D.

 

P.S. There is an interview with Charles Tauber conducted by Gwyneth Jones at https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Dh7e-GF5oPg
Listen to the latest interview Dr. Charles David Tauber gave about the current situation with refugees.
In today's podcast episode we are talking about how to deal with psychological pressure. 
Our project Mental health as human right-Psychosocial support for volunteers working with migrants is financially supported by Haella Foundation grants.

This January 2022. a weeklong course on the psychology of migration and trauma was led  by Charles David Tauber M D , as alumni of Reed community.
The interview with Dr. Charles D. Tauber -  Why Strong Loving Fathers, Mothers, & Emotional Openness Matters
​In October 2021, we started the implementation of the project "Mental Health and Human Rights", which was supported in the amount of € 14,086.80 financial support from Iceland, Liechtenstein and Norway under EEA grants.

The project offers a new approach aimed at recovery, development and application of innovative methods of citizen involvement, oriented towards the approach of empowering vulnerable groups through mental health care. To achieve this goal, local community awareness campaigns and awareness of human rights issues for people with psychosocial disabilities will be conducted through psycho-walking activities, the presentation of documentaries on mental health, and through “living library” / audio recordings of personal experiences related to promotion and raising awareness of international standards of the rights of persons with psychosocial difficulties. In addition to the work of peer support groups, establishing and continuing cooperation with representatives of institutions and the civil sector, and involving young people in advocacy actions related to human rights promotion, project results contribute to the initiative to improve the quality of care and promote human rights of people with psychosocial disabilities.
 
Follow the information on all project activities on the website

https://www.cwwpp.org/koalicija-za-rad-sa-psihotraumom-i-za-mir.html

https://www.facebook.com/CWWPPORG/
PSYCHOWALKS

Regardless of your age or fitness level, it’s never too late to start walking and enjoy the benefits of physical and mental health. Walking for at least 30 minutes a day is a great way to improve or maintain overall health. Maintaining physical activity is the key to a healthy lifestyle.
 
Join us on Friday at 4pm at the entrance to Adica Forest Park
 
The Mental Health and Human Rights project offers a new approach aimed at recovery, development, and application of innovative methods of citizen involvement, oriented towards an approach to empowering vulnerable groups through mental health care. The project is financially supported through the Fund for Active Citizenship in Croatia.
 
Follow the notifications on the website:

www.cwwpp.org/koalicija-za-rad-sa-psihotraumom-i-za-mir.html
 
https://www.facebook.com/CWWPPORG/

Introduction from Dr Charles David Tauber:

This is a video of a recent meeting of a talk that Charles Tauber gave for the Friends (Quaker) World Committee for Consultation European and Mideast Section Peace and Social Concerns Group

This video is from 2015 but still may be of interest. The external link is Charles Tauber - Vukovar, grad u traumi (integralni intervju) on Vimeo.
This is a longer interview with Shrink Rap Radio.
​ www.youtube.com/watch?v=c5lwz9u1ywc&feature=youtu.be 
We also recommend that you have a look at Shrink Rap Radio's website, where you can find more than 600 interviews with psychologists. shrinkrapradio.com
In November 2018, we participated in this conference - click here to watch/download the talks.
One of our groups in Congo, the CSC!
​We are very proud of you.
LATEST​​​​​​

  • Mental Health Day, 10 October 2023
     
    Tuesday 10 October is International Mental Health Day.
     
    The amount of suffering around the world is enormous. Taking into account “only” migrants and displaced people, there are more than 100 million affected. This does not take into account the number of people affected by war and by natural disasters.
     
    Yet, governments and most international organizations, with the exception of some UN agencies and a few non-governmental organizations, do not take the necessity of mental health into account. They ignore the point that people who are suffering psychologically are not wholly functional and contribute far less to society than they could.
     
    They continue to fight against migration, and promote the ideas that migrants are bad for society instead of seeing that, when treated and integrated properly, migrants can make enormous contributions to the places to which they come to live.
     
    Thus, funds continue to be spent on so-called “defense” and nationalism instead of being spent on humanitarian work, education, medicine and medical research, mental health, and other activities that would better human societies.
     
    There is a lack of people who are capable of assisting others with mental health issues.
     
    Further, there are stigmas associated with obtaining assistance with mental health.
     
    The Coalition for Work with Psychotrauma and Peace (CWWPP) trains people who have not had previous education or training in these fields. We do this online without charge to assist others to give such assistance within their own beneficiary groups and within their own communities.
     
    We welcome your enquiries and would like to set up groups with you.
     
    We also need your financial assistance.
     
    Please see our website, www.cwwpp.org. You can contact us at [email protected].

  • Our Annual Report for 2022 has just been published. It includes much more than a recounting of the events of the year. Please click here.
​   ​         ​   ​ ​​       ​          
  • In the time of corona, we are prepared to offer counseling to people affected by corona itself or by the consequences of the restrictions. Most likely, depending on the demand, we will organize one or more online groups. You can contact us on [email protected].
 
  • On Sunday 22 March 2020, Charles Tauber gave an interview to Rabbi Zevi Wineberg about positive responses to the corona virus issue and about psychological assistance in general. The interview is available here.
     
  • To read our report for January 2020 and our previous monthly reports, click here.
 
  • To read our Semi-Annual Report for the first half of 2019, click here.
 
  • We have just published a brochure for short-term volunteers with migrants. This is the link.
 
  • The November-December 2019 issue of the Dutch Quaker Monthly "De Vriendenkring" contains an article by Charles David Tauber, M.D. on the migrant situation here. We have placed the article, with an English translation, here.​
 
​
You can donate now.
Each and every contribution is valuable.

Your donation to CWWPP is needed, beautiful and one of the bravest acts of kindness.

​
26 November 2019 marked the 22nd anniversary of the registration of the CWWPP in The Netherlands. We are proud of this and hope to continue our work for a long time to come.


Notes for the seminar given for students of the Department of Psychology of the University of Osijek given 7 May 2019. click here


​We have had a virtual presentation accepted for the InPACT conference in Zagreb 2-4 May 2019. It is available here (in the Library on this site) and at http://inpact-psychologyconference.org/virtual-presentations/.
​The first course in the Pragmatic Empowerment Training Series is now available on this website and social media. This course is on the Caregiver-Client Relationship. It requires no previous education. The manual for it is available in various languages, including those used by asylum seekers and refugees and those assisting them. Take the course now!
Special thanks to our donors


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​
​ANNE FRANK FONDS


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We thank our long-term anonymous US donor for his great generosity and humanity over many years.
​We also wish to thank the Hulpfonds of Dutch Yearly Meeting of Friends (Quakers) for their financial and moral support over many years.
Stiftung Kriegstrauma-Therapie
Norwegian International
International Center for Conflict Resolution
Evangelische Kirche A.B.
American Jewish Joint Distribution Committee
Croatia Without Mines Foundation
International Police Association, Norway
VPRO Hilversum
Austrian Study Centre for Peace and Conflict Resolution