One of the most significant consequences of armed conflict and other situations of violence is their impact on the mental health and psychosocial well-being of the people affected. To address the psychosocial, psychological and psychiatric problems caused or exacerbated by conflict, the Trust Fund provides a range of mental health and psychosocial support measures to individuals, whole families and communities. 

Every year, between 2000 and 4000 victims are enrolled into counselling programmes funded by TFV. 

Through focused individual healing, victims benefit from a combination of cognitive behavioural therapy (CBT) support sessions and clinical mental services for individuals with mental health disorders. Each case is monitored and improvement is registered showing progress and completion of the treatments.  

Many victims report that the improvement in mental health has increased their self-confidence, restored sense of hope, improved family relations and strengthened community connections. 

 

“My husband and I were both filled with anger, leading to domestic violence quite often. I lost my father and other relatives during the LRA insurgency. I felt as if I was grieving every day of my life. One day, some people came to the village to talk about mental health. As they talked, I felt as if they were talking about me and my problems, so I decided to join the weekly counselling group. The sessions made me realise that I was not alone and not everything was bad. I learnt how to control my anger, and reduce my stress levels, through for example breathing exercises. Moreover, I improved my communication skills, which helped in the interaction with my husband. Most interestingly, my husband also joined another counselling group and changed his way of treating me.

Now, I have a support network because my relationships with the group members are stronger.” – 29-year-old woman from Ogur sub-county, Lira District (Uganda).

 

 

A post assessment study in 2020 assessed 1441 (445 males and 996 females) individuals for response to the CBT showed that 96.8% (1388) had low or no symptoms of depression and only 3.7% (53 beneficiaries) had symptoms of mild depression. 

Between July 2016 and Dec 2017, cases of 6,195 out of 10,494 (59%) victims who received psychological rehabilitation were officially closed, meaning that they had recovered and resumed their normal lives.
 

Read Helen’s story