Wellness & Mind Care Initiative
The experience of being stateless is traumatizing, with multiple and complex layers of stress taking a toll on a person’s mental health. Stress, anxiety, and depression are all too common among stateless persons. The denial of citizenship and identity documents leads to a life of crushed dreams and hopes, limited employment opportunities, lack of access to education, the inability to travel, and roadblocks at every turn because of not having recognized ID or citizenship — an existence which is detrimental to one’s mental wellbeing.
In an impoverished community like Machar Colony, with large Bengali and Burmese stateless populations, mental health issues often go unnoticed due to a lack of awareness and understanding of mental health and the stigma surrounding seeking help for such issues. Income insecurity and the lack of opportunities to grow inadvertently has an effect on the mental health of the population. As part of its commitment to support the community, Imkaan Welfare Organization has established a Mental Health Clinic with qualified therapists and psychosocial counselors. The clinic aims to:
- Create awareness regarding mental health issues within the community
- Reduce stigma associated with mental health and seeking help;
- Assist people living with mental illness in leading more productive and autonomous lifestyles;
- Host activity-based sessions with community members to assess mental health needs;
- Provide support and mental health counselling to women and children living in abusive and violent households;
- Provide support and mental health counselling to those impacted by or fearful of COVID-19;
- Provide support to young mothers experiencing postpartum depression;
- Create support groups within the community to foster community wellness and resilience;
- Identify and work with cases of drug abuse in the youth through counseling and referrals to psychiatrists where needed;
- Work with individuals in the community and provide preventive services;
- Provide support to the stateless population whose mental health is affected by the lack of growth opportunities due to their precarious legal status.
Current programs through the Mental Health Clinic include:
- door-to-door community outreach and awareness.
- 1-1 counselling.
- Men’s group counselling.
- and an out-of-school children’s drop-in play room with structured play supervised by a therapist.
Medical Examination of Children and Commitment by Imkaan
- Educational problems
- Anger
- Occupational problems
- Economic problems
- Problems Related to Other Psychosocial, Personal, and Environmental circumstances
- Sleep problems
- Substance Use and Addiction
- Problems Related to Access to Medical and Other Health Care
- Depression
- Housing problems
- Somatic symptoms
- Mania
- Suicidal / self-harm ideation
- Relational problems
- Anxiety
Support Imkaan Welfare Organization
We look forward to support from interested individuals and groups to continue serving stateless communities in Karachi. For more information on how you can help us, please click here.
Community awareness and participation is a core component of each of Imkaan Welfare Organization’s projects. Learn more about this initiative here.