Dec 16, 2023

Need Therapy? In West Africa, Hairdressers Can Help.

Joseline de Lima, a single mother of two who was grieving her brother’s death and had lost her job at a bakery, got help from an unexpected counselor: her hairdresser, one of about 150 women who are helping to provide mental health care in one of the world’s poorest regions. Togo has only five psychiatrists for more than eight million people, and families seeking to treat a relative suffering from severe mental health issues often resort to traditional remedies or forced isolation. Bluemind Foundation organizes the three days of training. Hairdressers are taught how to ask open-ended questions, spot nonverbal signs of distress like headaches or disheveled clothes and how not to gossip or give detrimental advice. Some 150 hairdressers have so far received the honorary title of “mental health ambassador” after undergoing the training.

[...] The hairdresser, Tele da Silveira, is one of about 150 women who have received mental health training in West and Central African cities from a nonprofit trying to fill a critical gap: provide mental health care in one of the world’s poorest regions, where counseling remains barely accessible, let alone accepted.

Ms. da Silveira began with gentle questions and encouraging words as she braided or blow-dried Ms. de Lima’s salt-and-pepper hair. More careful listening followed, then the suggestions for new braiding styles and walks to a nearby lagoon, which Ms. de Lima described as “lifesaving therapy.”

“People need attention in this world,” said Ms. da Silveira. “They need to talk.”

Read the full story of these "mental health ambassadors" here.