🔗 Share this article

Within the energetic commune of this area, famous for its entrepreneurial spirit and dynamic nightlife, a subtle change is taking place. Locally, stylists are taking on functions as psychological well-being advisors, providing a listening ear together with styling.

A Pioneer in Community Support

The stylist, in her late forties, has spent two decades not merely working on locks but additionally providing mental health advice to her clients. Without formal education, the hairdresser earlier was employed as a bank cashier before finding her calling in styling.

“Stay positive,” Tano counseled an anxious student stressed about failing exams. “If you don’t succeed, why assume that you have failed in life?”

Emotional Well-being in the Region: An Unspoken Subject

Based on data from the WHO, more than a huge number residents in Africa suffer from mental health problems. But, therapy is in short supply, with only a handful of professionals present per each many individuals.

In Black communities, hairdressing salons function as trusted environments, particularly in areas with minimal access to mental health care.

Hairdressers as Healers: An Initiative Creating Impact

The Bluemind Foundation, active in one country, Ivory Coast, and a third location, initiated the Healing Through Hair program. As stated by the organization's leader, the founder, over hundreds of stylists received instruction over the past two years to function as mental health ambassadors, assisting over a large number of female clients.

Within this decade, the target is to prepare in excess of 1,000 hairdressers across various regions.

‘The Trust Exists In Place’

The program began from a deeply personal loss. Years back, she became a widow during on a trip her home country Cameroon. The case is still open.

“I spent my first night as a widow alongside my stylist,” de Putter shared. “She was the one I trusted the most that night as one is merely encircled by others and you don’t know the perpetrator's identity.”

Motivated by her story, the organization conducted a 2021 study across several African states. The data showed that a large majority admitted to talking to their beauticians, and in excess of the vast majority of professionals stated that customers had asked for advice.

Training and Support

The project includes a free, intensive three-day program with psychiatrists and professionals who educate trainees about supportive dialogue, violence against women, signs of depression, and fundamental psychological concepts. Once finished, tests are taken before being awarded a diploma.

“The training was highly successful … I received my diploma and these tools,” said Thérèse Gueu, showing a educational material in her shop in a local neighborhood.

Throughout a period of months, trainees receive follow-up help through peer groups and connections with a professional support network. When a client reveals serious issues, beauticians can guide them to qualified therapists, or when there is family conflict, to the authorities.

Obstacles and Successes

In the beginning, resources for the project came mostly from de Putter’s savings, but now, individual contributors and institutions like France’s Development Innovation Fund are providing assistance. However, support is insufficient for the volume of demand facing the group's compact crew of employees and about unpaid helpers.

Despite these challenges, there are accounts of success and recovery. Locally, a hairdresser employed someone who had been in a psychiatric hospital, giving reintegration support.

“Frequently after an illness and you've received care, society labels you are unstable,” noted de Putter. “But if you are employed and an employer who welcomes to train you, you escape the stigma.”

A further professional departed her situation because she was a victim of violence, but currently aids individuals. Locally, beauticians mention that some male clients have begun to approach for guidance.

Pride and Purpose

Across the hairdressers, there is a widespread feeling of fulfillment over their new role as a source of emotional support in their local areas.

“As people come to discuss their challenges to me, it’s a pride for me too since I realize that I am a listener for another person,” said the hairdresser. “I believe that everyone requires support.”

“For a lot of hairdressers, this is the premier acknowledgment as a figurehead in their neighborhood and a supporter,” noted the founder. “The participants express to us: ‘Before I was just styling, now I provide care.’”