Seven years of depression. Four months of counselling. A family transformed.
“Now, our life is ten times better than before”
Sabera* would beat her children and pull out chunks of her own hair. She lost interest in money, in her house, and even in her family. She didn’t care if she lived or died.
For seven years, Sabera suffered with severe depression. It started after two of her children died, and her husband had a serious accident. Despite trips to many doctors in the West of Afghanistan, nothing helped.
Sabera, one of IAM’s Mental Health Program beneficiary.
“We didn’t know why she was sick or what was wrong with her,” says Sabera’s husband, Isaaq*. “We didn’t know what mental health was. We didn’t know that it was treatable.”
Because of all of her bad experiences, Sabera had lost faith in doctors. So, when she first heard about IAM’s mental health clinic in her community, she refused to go. But now, after just a few short months, Sabera is enthusiastically bringing other people with mental health problems to the IAM team for help.
It started with a neighbour.
When an IAM volunteer invited Sabera to come and see our counsellor, she wouldn’t go. But once word spread about the mental health services IAM was running in her district, and other people started seeing changes, Sabera reconsidered. “A lady in my neighbourhood told me, ‘I went to that clinic and it was very useful. You should go!’” says Sabera. “So I thought, let’s try it!”
Listening helps.
Once our mental health team had talked with Sabera, they were able to properly diagnose her and give her the right medication. She is receiving ongoing counselling from an IAM counsellor, too.
Isaaq had been struggling to support his family financially while also looking after his wife and their nine remaining children. But four months into Sabera’s treatment with IAM, the whole family is seeing huge changes. “Now, our life is ten times better than before,” says Isaaq, who is finally able to share the weight of caring for his family again – both practically and financially. “Now I can work, and every aspect of our lives is changing in a very good way.”
Sabera’s husband, Isaaq and their son.
Family matters.
Sabera isn’t the only person in her family struggling with a mental health disorder. Her five-year-old son has epilepsy (which is categorised as a mental health disorder in Afghanistan), and wasn’t receiving the right treatment. “When he was having a fit, we would cover him with a black scarf and pour water on him,” says Sabera.
The IAM mental health team has given Sabera’s son the right medication, and helped his parents understand how to care for him. Now, he is also doing much better!
“Previously, he was having epilepsy attacks two or three times a week,” says his dad, Isaaq. But in the three of four months since receiving treatment, he has had just one seizure.
Helping the whole person – and involving the whole community!
As well as encouraging Sabera to stop isolating herself and to re-engage with her community through counselling, we’ve been advocating for her and for other people with mental health disorders. We’ve trained community volunteers and worked with elders and mullahs from Sabera’s community – helping them to understand what mental health is and how to help, and encouraging them to advocate for people with mental health disorders.
Through this, Sabera was given silkworms to start a small business by her local council. With the money made, she has now bought a sheep and a goat, and hopes that these will help her support her family.
“I am very happy because the counsellor and the doctors changed my life,” says Sabera. “Now, I value my life and my family. That is the transformation I have made.”
“I want to thank you for working with us and helping us as human beings,” Isaaq adds. “Thank you to all of you.”
For finding more information about our Mental Health projects click here!
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*names changed