Mental Health work in Sri Lanka

Isabel O'Leary Start Date: Nov 28, 2017 - End Date: Aug 27, 2018
  • Sri Lanka

My Travel Story

by: Isabel O'Leary Start Date: Nov 28, 2017 - End Date: Aug 27, 2018
SLV runs projects to help the local community while simultaneously helping students and graduates to gain valuable experience in a totally different culture. I will be volunteering with this organisation and am really looking forward to getting stuck in to a new culture. I’m fundraising, as I’ll be joining SLV in Sri Lanka for 12 weeks from September to December on the Psychology placement. I hope to gain £1500 in order to help pay for the costs of my trip. 

I will be working with individuals who suffer with mental issues in Sri Lanka. I’ll be running activities for patients and using sensory, music and creative therapies to engage with patients on a variety of wards in multiple institutions. I’ll be attending workshops run by Samutthana, the King’s College London resource centre for trauma, displacement and mental health. The main aim of Samutthana is to train and support organisations and individuals to respond to the psychosocial needs of trauma sufferers i.e. tsunami survivors and those who have experienced civil-conflict in Sri Lanka.

In addition to these projects I’ll also be working with individuals with special needs and teaching English to children and to young people on vocational courses. I’ll be using my skills to work with those who may be marginalized in Sri Lankan society. I’ll be living with other volunteers and with a Sri Lanka family as well.

I will be creating a blog that I will post updates and photos on to keep in touch with everyone that dontates. 

Thank you in advance for your support.
  • Sri Lanka