Like many Ukrainians, Karyna's life has been divided into “before” and “after” more than once. The first time was when she woke up to the words, “Get up! The war has started.” The second time was when her father was captured. From that moment on, a long period of living in a state of uncertainty, daily emotional swings, and constant waiting began.
The main challenge was chronic stress - a mixture of hope, fear, despair, and responsibility. Karyna knew this condition well, not only from her personal experience, but also through her work with people united by the NGO “Civilians in Captivity.” Together, they experienced a lack of information about the fates of their relatives, worries about their physical and psychological condition after their return, and the inability to focus on themselves and their health to simply have the strength to wait.
Karyna was the first to seek help from the NGO Girls. There, she was able to cope with her own traumatic experience and find the inner resource to continue fighting not only for her father, but also for other people. When the opportunity arose to join a therapy group organized by the NGO Girls, Karyna did not hesitate to join, like many others looking for understanding, strength, and support.
These support groups with the project's psychologist became a safe space of acceptance and trust, where people waiting for civilians to return from captivity had the opportunity to be listened to for the first time. They talked about the biological and psychological consequences of trauma, the state in which they should seek help, and where to find it. Support, compassion, and self-help skills became important steps on the path to recovery.
During the meetings, participants also gained knowledge about how to prepare for possible changes in the behavior of their relatives after captivity. This gave them a sense of confidence and guidance on how to proceed. People began to better understand their condition, express their emotions, and make decisions about seeking counseling from psychologists or doctors.
“We hope that such support groups will expand, because people waiting for civilians to be released from captivity need support and the awareness that they are cared for and their loved ones are remembered,” says Karyna.
Karyna's story is about pain, strength, and change. A story that is being written every day by those who are learning to be close to themselves, and to those whom they still need to wait for.
The work of the therapy group is possible within the framework of the project "Enhancing the safety, security and mental health of women and girls, as well as advancing their human rights" produced by the NGO Girls, funded by The United Nations Women’s Peace and Humanitarian Fund (WPHF) with technical support of UN Women Ukraine. It is a flexible and rapid financing mechanism supporting quality interventions designed to enhance the capacity of women to prevent conflict, respond to crises and emergencies, and seize key peacebuilding opportunities.
