Reducing the burden on school teachers

She couldn’t sleep well at night and couldn’t concentrate on pursuing a bright teaching career.

In addition to having negative thoughts, she also developed anxiety and was very stressed.

The stressful situation in her life stems from her classroom experiences as a high school teacher.

She went to a sub-district hospital, where doctors referred her to Empower Pacific for counselling help.

The referral was made by a physician through Empower Pacific’s long-standing partnership with the Department of Health and Medical Services.

The partnership looks at providing holistic care for people’s mental health and psychosocial well-being through a collaborative approach.

The teacher, whom we will refer to as the client, met with Marica Siliwaqa, a counsellor at the NGO, on the recommendation of her doctor.

During the consultation process, we discovered that the client taught a subject related to a specific field.

But after a teaching assistant was transferred to another school earlier this year, the responsibility of teaching both classes fell on her shoulders.

This increased her workload, and sometimes, she felt so stressed that she couldn’t even go to work the next day.

She often suffers from headaches, which lead to insomnia and prevents her from sleeping well at night.

The client also stated that despite having teachers assigned to assist her, she still found the job stressful.

Ms. Siliwaqa works with clients to isolate negative thoughts and transform them into positive ones.

She coaches clients on relaxation techniques to help her cope with anxiety.

The client is advised to use positive coping mechanisms to help relax her mindset.

Ms Siliwaqa motivated this client and helped her tap into her strengths which helped her become a school teacher.

We helped the client identify some of the things that needed to change in her life so that she could handle her current workload and tap into her support network at school.

The counselor suggested that the client raise issues regarding her workload with the principal, which she did.

A few weeks later, Ms Siliwaqa followed up with the client to see if her life had changed as a result of the course.

“After the consultation, I called to check in on her and I noticed a change in her tone compared to when she first walked into my office,” she said.

“When we first met, she spoke in a soft, emotional voice. But when I called her, she sounded happy. It was a different, happy voice.

“That to me shows that she has practiced what we discussed in the first class and is happy with the end result.

“It is rewarding to see the difference counselling can make in the lives of clients who have been through difficult issues that impact their mental health,” Ms Silivakka said.

This is a client’s account of the impact counseling has had on her life.

“Now I can sleep soundly at night and focus on a positive, bright teaching career,” she said.

“Thanks for your support and for helping me recognize my strengths. I have a better mindset now and enjoy my work every day.”

Like the school teacher, others from different backgrounds were referred to Empower Pacific for counselling assistance by doctors at government-run hospitals.

Regarding mental health at work, the World Health Organization stated the following key facts on its website on 28 September 2022;

• Decent work is good for mental health;
• Poor work environments, including discrimination and inequality, excessive workload, low job control and job instability, pose a threat to mental health;
• It is estimated that in 2019, 15% of working-age adults suffered from a mental disorder;
• It is estimated that 12 billion work days are lost worldwide each year due to depression and anxiety, resulting in $1 trillion in lost productivity each year;
• Take effective actions to prevent mental health risks in the workplace, protect and promote mental health at work, and support workers with mental health illnesses.

Empower Pacific is a non-governmental organization that provides counseling to people who are facing mental health issues due to various things that happen in their lives.

In addition to counselling, the NGO also provides social support.

People can access the services of our counsellors by calling the 24/7 free advice line 5626, which is supported by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Trade, or by visiting our offices directly or through referral.

• AVINESH GOPAL is Empower Pacific’s media and communications officer in Lautoka The views expressed in this article belong to the author and do not necessarily reflect the views of this newspaper.