Themes by tag: psychological support
The “TOY THERAPY ROOM” stands as a nationwide charitable initiative established by a collective within the NGO The National Genofund amidst the full-scale invasion. Its primary aim is to mitigate the trauma endured by both children and adults impacted by russia’s invasion, achieved through the application of puppetry and play therapy techniques.
The TOY THERAPY ROOM offers a carefully designed environment where children and adults can navigate their emotions in a healthy and supportive manner. Within these spaces, carefully curated by dedicated hosts, individuals can explore their feelings, replenish their inner strength, and nurture a sense of confidence in their abilities and desires. Central to the experience are the hundreds of soft toys that inhabit each room. These toys serve not only as companions but also as conduits for understanding and healing. Participants are encouraged to select a toy at the outset of their session, which then becomes a steadfast ally throughout their journey. Beyond the confines of the therapy room, this toy becomes a transitional object through which psychologists gain insights into the person’s condition and provide assistance.
Today, the TOY THERAPY ROOM initiative operates in more than 70 locations across Ukraine, reaching nearly every region of the country, and organizing off-site therapy spaces at summer camps. Its team of psychologists also uses puppetry and play therapy techniques to support the mental health recovery of military personnel.
In 2024 alone, more than 20,000 people visited the therapy rooms, including 15,168 children and 1,400 servicemembers. The project held 5,449 therapy sessions, including mobile outreach events, and distributed over 14,000 therapeutic toys.
Spearheaded by Victoriia Nazarevich, a seasoned psychologist and the driving force behind the Nazarevich-Art psychology training portal, the project maintains a team of dedicated professionals comprising psychologists and art therapists.
For journalists seeking insight into this transformative endeavor, opportunities for interviews with project representatives and participants are available in Kyiv and other cities by prior arrangement. Additionally, online communication channels offer convenient access for those unable to attend in person.
A reminder: June 1 marks the observance of International Children’s Day worldwide.
On May 25, as Ukraine’s capital celebrates the Day of Kyiv, an open cultural and educational gathering for children and parents “Nytochka” (The Little Thread) will take place. The event will feature a conversation on culture in times of war, along with a music and dance workshop led by the folk band ShchukaRyba and the Voices of Children charity foundation.
Over the past six months, the Voices of Children Foundation and ShchukaRyba have met with teenagers in frontline cities, including Kryvyi Rih, Mykolaiv, Kharkiv, Zaporizhia, Chernihiv, and Dnipro. A planned session in Sumy was canceled due to a russian ballistic missile strike just hours before it was set to begin. The Kyiv event will mark the final stop in the series.
Singer and poet Maryna Krut, the Ivan Honchar Museum, the Patron Pets Center, and other partners will also take part in the “Nytochka” gathering.
During the event, the Voices of Children team will share information about psychological and psychosocial support available to families and children affected by the war, and help those in need access professional assistance.
For reference: The series of cultural and educational meetings with ShchukaRyba is part of the art laboratories launched by the Voices of Children Foundation. The project helps teenagers process the trauma of war through creativity, rebuilding their confidence and sense of trust in the world.
A reminder: International Children’s Day is observed globally on June 1.
Veterans are invited to participate in a 3-day mountain hike in the Lviv oblast, on May 16-18.
The “Mountain Therapy” program combines the most effective healing methods and creates peer-to-peer support groups. The hikes are led by professional guides and psychologists. The program’s specialists have been working with military personnel and their families since 2014.
Journalists are welcome to cover the mountain therapy upon prior arrangement.
Background. The mountain therapy is organized by NGO “Metta”.
The NGO “Psychability” focuses on the rehabilitation of Kyiv residents with mental disorders and advocates the restoration of comprehensive individual support services for them. Founded in 2019 on the basis of the community from the Center for Medical and Social Rehabilitation of the municipal non-profit enterprise “Clinical Hospital ‘Psychiatry'”, the organization now known as “Psychability” continues the work of medical and social rehabilitation of people with mental disorders. The center no longer exists due to budget cuts, but its former employees, clients and their relatives have united under the NGO “Psychability” to continue psychosocial rehabilitation efforts following a biopsychosocial approach.
Within the NGO “Psychability” there is an occupational therapy group and a psychotherapy group for clients. Clients also support each other and socialize through the community “Self-Support Group”, which operates under the guidance of specialists. The NGO organizes thematic workshops and psychotherapeutic group sessions for relatives and friends of the clients. They can also join a meeting club. At present, more than 30 people benefit from the programs of the NGO “Psychability”.
For more than a year, “Psychability” has been working to restore its “Personal Assistant for People with Mental Health Disorders” rehabilitation program. The role of such an assistant is to provide individualized support to help clients navigate daily life and reintegrate into society.
Currently, the NGO “Psychability” is looking for long-term donors to ensure the continuation of its medical and social rehabilitation services for Kyiv residents with mental disorders.
Interviews with “Psychability” members and clients (where possible) can be arranged online or in Kyiv upon prior notice.
FRIDA Ukraine is launching retreat programs for medical workers from Sumy and Kharkiv oblasts as part of a project aimed at restoring mental health. The project is implemented with the support of the “Capable and Strong” program (Eastern Europe Foundation and the Government of Switzerland).
On April 20-25, the retreat will take place in the Chernivtsi oblast. Participants will include 20 medical workers from Sumy and Kharkiv oblasts and 4 psychologists.
The retreat offers an opportunity to immerse in silence and engage in restorative practices after years of working under chronic stress, shelling, and overwhelming pressure. The program includes body-oriented practices, meditation, art therapy, and lectures on burnout prevention and recovery from secondary traumatization.
Journalists will have the opportunity to interact with the participants, facilitators and psychologists, take photos/videos onsite, or obtain comments remotely. Accreditation is required for the event.
Background: According to the Ministry of Health, over 75% of medical professionals in Ukraine experience symptoms of professional burnout. The full-scale war has only added to the challenges: during the invasion, 1,982 health facilities were damaged and 301 were destroyed. Specialists from the Kharkiv and Sumy oblasts are particularly vulnerable as they work at the limits of their capacity: under shelling, with a lack of resources and a heavy patient load.
FRIDA Ukraine is a medical volunteer mission that unites over 1,500 doctors from Ukraine and around the world. Volunteers work in frontline regions, setting up mobile clinics, conducting free screenings, and providing medical assistance to civilians.
The social project “Come Out and Play!” was launched in Bucha and Irpin in June 2022 in response to the challenges these towns faced after liberation. Its main goal was to help children recover emotionally after living under occupation. Free soccer training was organized for school children, and in November 2022, the NGO “Come Out and Play!” was officially registered.
The training sessions are designed for boys and girls between the ages of 5 and 12, including internally displaced children. Since its inception, over 600 children from Dnipro, Kryvyi Rih, Bucha, Irpin and Odesa have participated in the football program.
Today, the NGO “Come Out and Play!” also provides comprehensive psychosocial support to IDPs, children and people affected by the war. Services include individual and family counseling, group therapy, and art therapy. In addition, free legal counseling is provided, including assistance in recovering lost documents and applying for social benefits.
By prior arrangement, the project’s activities can be covered in Dnipro, Kryvyi Rih, Odesa, and Mykolaiv. Psychosocial football training takes place in these cities, and in Dnipro and Kryvyi Rih, art therapy and legal training sessions are also conducted.
Before the full-scale invasion, Maryna Sadykova, the founder of the “Repower” charitable foundation, worked in event management. After 24 February, she and her team shifted their focus to supporting Ukrainian soldiers. However, the intense volunteer work took a toll on her mental health, leading to burnout and anxiety. In search of recovery, she traveled to the Carpathian Mountains, an experience that inspired her to create a psychological support program. Initially, the project aimed to help fellow military volunteers, but due to limited funding, the team decided to focus on combat medics — those on the front lines saving soldiers’ lives.
This led to the creation of the “Repower” project in Kyiv, which provides mental health recovery programs for Ukrainian combat medics. The organization has developed a sustainable psychological rehabilitation program — a 10-day retreat in Sweden, Denmark and Spain. Ukrainian psychologists accompany the medics on each trip. The program includes therapeutic exercises, individual counseling, group sessions, art therapy and music therapy. To date, “Repower” has organized 12 trips for 847 participants.
Following the retreat, journalists will have the opportunity to interview Maryna Sadykova and program participants, either online or in person, by prior arrangement.
Ivona Kostyna has been working with military personnel and veterans since 2015. Initially, she and the Pobratymy Foundation organized trips for psychologists to the front lines to provide mental health support to Ukrainian defenders. Over time, Ivona realized that soldiers would need continued care long after leaving the service.
Determined to address this, she collaborated with specialists to develop psychosocial adaptation programs. Soon after, she and her partners launched the first Veteran Hub in Kyiv—a space where service members and their families can access legal assistance, psychological counseling, and guidance on employment, education, and grant opportunities.
Within two years, the team expanded, opening another Veteran Hub location in Vinnytsia. To ensure equal access to services regardless of a veteran’s location or mobility, the organization also launched mobile offices in Kyiv, Vinnytsia, and Dnipro in 2020, bringing support directly to those in need.
Since 2018, Ukraine’s Veteran Hub has operated without public fundraising. However, in January 2025, after the U.S. Department of State suspended funding for international assistance programs, the organization was forced to close its Vinnytsia branch and its Support Helpline. For the first time, the team publicly appealed for donations from the community and businesses.
Thanks to the support of Ukrainian businesses and the community in Vinnytsia, the team has raised over UAH 9 million, ensuring the continued operation of the organization’s services for at least three months.
The Veteran Hub team is now seeking regular donors to sustain their support for soldiers and their families.
Ivona Kostyna is available for meetings in Kyiv, both online and offline, by prior arrangement.
Your Support family center for mental health was established last year in Ukraine’s Kyiv region with a mission to help children and their families cope with the psychological effects of war. The center focuses on strengthening emotional resilience and ensuring the healthy development of each child.
A team of psychologists, special education experts, neuropsychologists, lawyers, and employment specialists provides all services free of charge. In just over a year, the center’s experts have offered more than 6,000 consultations. Among those they have helped is a 6-year-old boy who stopped speaking after experiencing shell shock, and a mother raising her 7-year-old son alone, whose child, under immense stress, lost control of his body.
Support is available both online and in person by appointment, allowing families to connect with specialists and others who have benefited from the center’s assistance.
Ihor Shyshko, a resident of Kharkiv, joined the Defense Forces at the beginning of the full-scale invasion, although he had the opportunity to refuse to serve because he is a father of many children.
In March 2022, he was captured by russian forces. During 801 days of captivity, he endured torture, beatings, and starvation. He lost over 50 kilograms. In May 2024, Ihor was finally released in a prisoner exchange and returned home.
After his release, he founded a support center for soldiers returning from captivity or suffering from injuries.
The main goal of the “Shoulder to Shoulder” center is to help veterans reintegrate into civilian life. The center provides psychological and legal assistance, as well as various engagement programs to help veterans find new career paths in civilian life.
You can contact Ihor Shyshko either online or in person by prior arrangement.
