Europe and Central Asia

Life changes around pregnancy make women more vulnerable to mental illness including depression and anxiety. In Kazakhstan, nearly 60 per cent of mothers experience postpartum depression, among the highest rates recorded globally. Diana Madyraimova is a 35-year-old mother of three from Taraz, Kazakhstan who experienced postpartum anxiety and…

Since the escalation of war in February 2022 Ukraine’s children and their families have endured forced displacement, unthinkable loss and relentless violence. Over the past two years, according to UNICEF estimates of the latest available data, children in Ukraine’s frontline areas have been forced to spend between 3,000 and 5,000 hours sheltering…

“The 12-year-old boy arrived in Kapan with his grandfather and mother. They had a relative in the area where they could stay. We talked with the child while his mother was busy with the registration paperwork. He eagerly shared stories about his friends, but there was a moment of sadness when he mentioned not knowing their whereabouts. It became…

On the picturesque banks of the river in Horenka village near Kyiv, 14-year-old Nelya gazes into the distance while her 13-year-old sister Lilya braids her hair. Today, the girls have dressed in colourful vyshyvankas and come to the river to take photos and cheer themselves up. Over a year and a half into the full-scale war, days like these help…

Today, five-year-old sisters Eva and Milana have an appointment with their ‘therapist’ at a metro station in Kharkiv, a city in northeast Ukraine. The therapist is just nine years old and her name is Julie. She is a golden retriever who has been helping children in Kharkiv overcome stress since the beginning of the full-scale war. As soon as Eva…, Helping children heal, Eva and Milana arrived in Kharkiv with their parents after fleeing Kherson, where intense fighting is taking place. The girls have cats and a dog back home.  Eva misses her pets and loves to spend time with the animals at the Spilno Child Spot.  "The dog's name is Snizhok (‘ snowball’) because he is snow-white and fluffy,” she says, sadly. Eva…, Finding safety underground, Lately, the fighting in Kharkiv has become intense again. Air raid sirens sound several times a day, each time causing distress for children, who desperately need a safe place to shelter. Last night, Victoria and her seven-year-old daughter Adelina barely slept. "There was huge shelling at night,” says Victoria, who did not hesitate to come to the…, Overcoming stress and sadness, Trainer Natalia has lived in Kharkiv since the very first days of the full-scale war. While hiding in the metro with her family, she noticed how depressed the children around her were. She then came up with the idea to organise dog classes as therapy. "The first class was difficult both for me and my dogs,” she recalls. “Severe shelling occurred…

The war in Ukraine had recently broken out. Among the bombarded cities was the capital, Kyiv, where Sasha lived. When the bombs began falling in very close to her home she was forced to flee, taking car rides to leave the country. After arriving in Italy, Sasha started displaying a strong spiralling apathy that, as she recounted to the operators…

Migrant and refugee boys and girls are exposed to violence, abuse, exploitation, and human trafficking throughout their journeys.  Access to mental health and psychosocial support (MHPSS) is critical in helping them to overcome deeply distressing experiences. However, support of this kind often remains out of reach, resulting in a deterioration of…

"Every physical expression of pain, difficulty in eating, sleeping, and carrying out simple daily activities are all signals of a constant state of alertness, simple mechanisms that the body activates when one feels in danger and needs to defend themselves from something," said Diego Manduri, a clinical psychologist. These are generally the…

“For the first month I was not leaving home at all. I was not feeling good. It was difficult and I just wanted to come back home. I could not find the strength to even go out for a walk,” remembers 17-year-old Wiera from Kyiv “Now it is different.” Wiera and her 10-year-old brother Jura and cousin Sasha, 13, arrived in Poland soon after the war in…, Common language, common ground, When Sasha first arrived in Poland, she enrolled in a Polish school immediately. But she found it difficult because she could not speak Polish. “For the first time in my life I was abroad, in another country. We have never travelled anywhere outside Ukraine and now, all of a sudden, we had to start a life in a completely new place. That was not…, Ready to support, The specialists employed in the SUN centres include Ukrainian and Polish psychologists, as well as educators and therapists who have experience working with children in crisis situations. Yulia, a teacher in SUN center, drawing on a smartboard. “I know how to work with children. I used to do that in Ukraine and I am very happy I am able to help…

Parents are central to providing the support and sense of safety and security that children need during times of crisis. Many parents are concerned with how best to help their children. Some may be struggling to deal with their own responses and emotions.  , The following tips may guide parents to help their children cope after a distressing event., 1. Reassure children that they are safe and are being taken care of Reassurances may need to be repeated frequently, even after the immediate event has passed. Most important, spending extra time with your child can also help them to feel safe. Show your children that you care about them, for example, by being affectionate, smiling, telling them…, The following tips may help parents take care of themselves, 1. Allow yourself time to heal Allow yourself time and space to experience and express your feelings about what happened. Be patient with yourself, as it is normal after a terrifying or stressful event to experience mood fluctuations, difficulty concentrating or making decisions, and disrupted sleep or appetite, among other reactions. Remember,…

Experiencing the terrors of war can be difficult for many people to imagine. Crisis situations comprising armed conflict, separation from loved ones and forced displacement can leave people with physical and emotional burdens that, if not suitably addressed and supported, can continue to impact their wellbeing throughout their lives. For children…

Refugee and migrant children and adolescents – especially those moving alone – are frequently exposed to risks of violence and exploitation not only while in the country of origin, but also during transit and upon arrival in host countries. The intensity of the psychological suffering children on the move experience may have long-term negative…