Over the year of its operation, Oplich HUB has supported more than 7.3 thousand visitors, and the demand for psychological counseling among Ukrainians in frontline Zaporizhzhia is growing.
Even though working in a war zone is accompanied by many challenges, such as the safety of visitors and employees or the instability of power supply, the Oplich HUB team continues to work and help people. Over the year of its existence, the hub has significantly expanded its range of services.
Initially, the centre's specialists offered individual counselling, group therapy and yoga. Today, the list of programmes includes master classes for children, wellness fitness, neurogymnastics, painting, tea ceremonies, career guidance and various trainings.
"This development was made possible thanks to the well-coordinated work of our team, which has been replenished with new specialists. Currently, about 15% of the hub's visitors are internally displaced persons. Here, they receive comprehensive support, including psychological, social and physical," says Margarita BOGDANOVA, manager of the Oplich HUB community centre.
The IDPs attend yoga and fitness classes to help them relieve stress and improve their overall health. The centre's psychologists say that most often people come to them with problems with stress, anxiety, depression caused by the events of the war, losses, and uncertainty about the future. Sleep problems are also very common: insomnia, nightmares, which leads to fatigue, irritability, and poor concentration. Those who have communication difficulties, trauma, such as PTSD, and family problems also come to the hub.
Oplich HUB also provides psychological support to military personnel, veterans and their families. The condition of military wives who are worried about their husbands is a particularly acute problem in this category. In the hub, women are told how to support their children in such a situation.
"We are proud that even in such difficult times, Oplich HUB remains a safe haven for many people. Our team makes every effort to provide quality psychological assistance and create a favourable atmosphere for recovery. We are grateful to all our partners and donors who help us to continue our work," adds Margarita.
The community centre plans to further develop its activities to become an even more accessible and effective centre of psychological assistance for residents of the city and remote communities in the region.
"We are striving to expand the range of services, in particular, to introduce new psychotherapeutic methods, expand support groups, introduce additional online consultations and trainings, and improve programmes for children and adolescents," said the manager.
The Oplich HUB community centre was established by the UN Global Compact in Ukraine as part of the Mental Help project and with the support of Metinvest Group's Saving Lives humanitarian initiative in response to an internal demand from society to take care of mental health.
The community centre regularly holds free trainings and master classes for Zaporizhzhia residents and IDPs, both adults and children.
