Self care routine – Women Human Rights Defenders Network Uganda

The Women Human Rights Defenders Network Uganda (WHRDNU) conducted a three days protection and rapid response self care and wellness workshop for eight women human rights defenders from Amudat district, Karamoja region. This was organized for them to relax and have time to enjoy and forget their risky human rights work like Female Genital Mutilation (FGM), supporting victims of torture and child protection.

Amudat WHRDS dancing and enjoying during the self care workshop

Dr. Birungi Lynda’s medical counselling session

Dr Birungi Lynda, a medical councilor encouraged the WHRDs to always love themselves fast before loving others citing that “If you don’t love yourself you cannot love others, we must be selfish to ourselves, if you do feel like you want to look smart go ahead and put on your nice dress”. She also emphasized to the WHRDS to create social groups where they can save their money. She further encouraged the WHRDS to always do things that make them happy “Some of us have intimate partners who are difficult in our marriages, friends that don’t treat us well and neighbors who are difficult, but let us look at those things that make us happy and start taking care of our selves’’.

She advised the WHRDS to care of their bodies by going for medical check-ups and also have a balanced diet ,”For example when you wake up in the morning ,do your millet and take millet porridge because it has a lot of nutrients like iron .Go for medical check-up if a group of health workers have come in your community please go for breast examination or cervical cancer screening because sometimes if you don’t go for medical check-ups and you wait for the pain to come then that indicates that it is too late to save yourself’’. Furthermore, Dr Birungi emphasized that as women human rights defenders they have a right to decide the number of children they want and also to choose to have children or not because some women are not giving birth to children.

Counsellor Ruth Matoya Kemunto session

Counsellor Ruth stated that women human rights defenders should learn to appreciate themselves for the human rights work they do in their communities because if they don’t know one will appreciate the work that you as women human rights defenders. And encouraged the words to always surround themselves with positive people with positive ideas.

The counsellor encouraged the WHRDS to take care of bodies, mind heart and soul by doing activities that bring joy and happiness, “When you feel good it is the medicine of the heart because no one will give you happiness’’ because as WHRDS they do a lot of work that always brings them stress, anxiety and sadness.

She advised the WHRDS to;

Buy for yourself sweets
Have fun go for parties and dance
Align yourself with positive people in your communities and eliminate negative people in your life.
Go for a walk and do exercise to keep your bodies strong and health.
Drink at least two glasses of water in the morning and before sleeping often because it is helps on ulcers and pressure.
Eat well balanced deity like vegetables, fruits and water.

Counsellor Ruth Matoya speaks to the WHRDS from Amudat district

Women Human Rights Defenders speak out after the self care and wellness workshop.

Women human rights defenders implement self care and wellness in Amudat.

As result of the self-care activity the women human rights defenders from Amudat implemented their own a self-care and wellness activity in Amudat.

Women human rights defenders carry out wellness and self care in Amudat

Women human rights defenders dancing and relaxing as a form of self care

On 26 and 27th May 2022, The Women Human Rights Defenders Network Uganda held a “ Creating Space and Time to Heal, Rest, Rejuvenate, Reflect and Connect” workshop at Essela Hotel, Kampala . Over 25 participants from different parts of the country and various social movements benefited from the workshop.

The workshop provided a space for Women Human Rights Defenders to understand their lives of activism. Different members had things to say about how their activism work affected their well-being.

They are dedicated, passionate about their human rights work, and caring for others while forgetting about themselves. The WHRDS said all this is making them burn out, the job of defending never stops, Not for Profit Organizations and Community Based Organizations understaffed, yet the lives of the people they served depend on their actions, the WHRDs noted working in the evenings, on weekends, skip annual leave and when on annual leave, they check emails-because they think if they ignore them, they will pile. To some, they have pondered about living their activism work to joining the business sector.

In the photo above, participants had a moment to talk about how they tend to prioritize the importance of their work before thinking of themselves

The workshop also enabled participants to practice self-care, thus empowering them to manage their health to take care of their own emotional, physical, and mental health. The many ways in which members practiced rest, rejuvenation, and healing included the following:

Group counseling session :

In this session, participants understood how stress and burnout could result from human rights work in Uganda. This session helped WHRDs prevent burnout and ensure their psychological security. The WHRDs noted that they suffer violence, harassment, discrimination, and criminalization, leading to burnout. This session used group discussions, and they learned tips to help them recognize moments of stress, feelings of anxiety, and time management

Simon Ndawula , a clinical psychologists and consultant leading the counseling session

2. Fitness session ;

This session motivated and inspired participants to sustain a healthy lifestyle, and it was to help participants get their hearts and lungs to work faster; it was a fun atmosphere. The session involved stretching, dancing exercises to help with the body’s flexibility, and muscle strengthening for the legs, hips, the back, chest, stomach, shoulders, and arms. Breathing work, the facilitator informed participants that breathing helps control the nervous system and that having deep breathing, even for a moment, can help soothe people’s anxiety and calm our panic.

Mildred Apenyo of Fitcliqea Africa, leading a fitness session

3. Nutrition, Diet and food.

Ms. Elizabeth Masaba, a nutritionist, helped participants understand food as our primary source of medicine. She informed participants that what we eat and drink affects our energy levels, our moods, and how and what we think.

Nutritionist facilitates a session on diet

She urged WHRDs to create time for food breaks. By cutting a cake decorated as a healthy eating pyramid, as an illustrate, she encouraged members to maintain a balanced diet and that foods make up a healthy diet.

WHRDs cut cake during self care workshop

4. Health benefits of massage Therapy for WHRDs.

Massage consultants enabled participants to understand that massage can combat stress and anxiety, increase blood flows to areas of the brain that associate with mood and stress regulation, boost immune systems, improve sleep, relieve pain and fatigue, etc. Trained massage therapists eased pain and tension by massaging the muscles and joints of body participants. Thus the, using different massage techniques during session this promoted relaxation among participants.

5. Conversations, Networking, Music and Dancing sessions.

During this session, it was a question n from the Urgent Action Fund for women “what is the point of a revolution if we can’t dance?’. This platform allowed WHRDs to dance, and women danced. The participants recognized the health benefits of dancing as a tool to stay fit for all ages, is a great way to meet new friends, improve muscle tone, better social skills, and help the heart and lungs.

WHRDs dance during the self care workshop

6. Gynecology and women’s health session.

This session was essential for WHRD’s reproductive health. Ms. Birungi of Reproductive Health Uganda covered cancer screening, menstruation management, post-menopause management, and family planning. The objective of this session was to promote the health and well-being WHRDs by offering them information and improving their knowledge on reproductive health-related matters.

Dr. Birungi leading a session on Reproductive Health

Here are some of the ways in which WHRDs committed to practice self-care and collecting healing:

Take an hour for lunch break, limit taking office work home, and create me time
Minimize interactions with social media platforms, and go for regular medical check –ups
Go for a walk, and have a good diet,

Reflections from participants

Tag: Self care routine

WHRDS from Amudat undergo a 3 day self-care and wellness workshop

Dr. Birungi Lynda’s medical counselling session

Women Human Rights Defenders speak out after the self care and wellness workshop.

Women human rights defenders implement self care and wellness in Amudat.

Dr. Birungi Lynda’s medical counselling session

Women Human Rights Defenders speak out after the self care and wellness workshop.

Women human rights defenders implement self care and wellness in Amudat.

Ataro Juliet of Women Rural Development Network speaking at the Self Care workshop