Trauma-Free Gaza First Meeting

Meet Hind Wihaidi; a 16-year-old Palestinian high school student on her way to self-discovery. Hind is passionate about various things in this life, including music, psychology, basketball, programming, and writing, but she is most passionate about influencing people of her age to make good use of their time and make the most out of themselves. “Most people find me too young to be doing all of this at the same time but for me, age is nothing but a number,” Hind says.

After the last aggression on Gaza, she came to the realization that young people here in Gaza know almost nothing about maintaining good mental health; it’s nearly impossible while living under such conditions. Further, mental health issues are neither discussed publicly nor taught in schools, and they are usually just neglected. This is ultimately what drove Hind to create her own initiative entitled “Trauma-Free Gaza.”

Trauma-Free Gaza is an initiative created to help Gazans heal, overcome their traumas and benefit from each others’ experiences. Additionally, the members are sharing their stories with psychologists and psychiatrists who can help them deal with the traumas they have experienced in their lives.

A picture of one of this week’s sessions where members were discussing global issues and the best way to create a better world

Trauma-Free Gaza aims to raise awareness about the importance of mental health. The sessions are very friendly and informal so everyone feels comfortable talking with each other. Participants play games, discuss global issues and try to come up with innovative solutions to the challenges they face daily. Alongside the initiative’s main goal, they encourage people to volunteer in community service projects, stressing on the fact that volunteers gain valuable experience, which can help them stand out on their college applications, CVs, etc.

Trauma-Free Gaza conducts 2 meetings per week, each week the sessions’ attendees discuss a new topic such as psychosocial support, interests and experiences, leadership, teamwork and many more topics to be discussed.

Trauma-Free Gaza has so far conducted 18 fruitful sessions with people from different backgrounds who are keen to express their interests, share experiences, and connect with other people. People who attend Trauma-Free Gaza sessions are characterized with ambition, learning agility, courage, and the will to make an impact in their societies.

As Hind’s brother, I’ve always expressed how talented she is in determining the needs of our community in Palestine, especially in Gaza. The initiative has proved to be beneficial and advantageous to everyone since it was launched at a time when almost no one was putting the effort with people who suffer from trauma. People have been given the ultimate space and platform to express and share their thoughts. In addition, people have been able to share their experiences and make connections.