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Nairobi (Agenzia Fides) - The Archdiocese of Nyeri has launched a Christian based counseling and support center to provide support to individuals and families facing difficulties during the COVID-19 pandemic period. "The center will provide psychological counseling and encouragement, including marriage counseling to direct marital disagreements", said His Exc. Mgr. Anthony Muheria, Archbishop of Nyeri, who stressed that with the Government adopting strict measures to counter the spread of COVID-19 including restriction of movement, stress levels among the people have heightened, leading to conflict within families.
The Good Shepherd Call Centre is a toll-free number that everyone can call or SMS to get support, and is intended for any person of any religion or part of the country, who is in a serious situation of mental stress", says the Archbishop.
The call center is coordinated by Rev. Fr. Stephen Ndung’u, a certified counselor, and is supported by over 10 psychologists who have volunteered to follow up on cases that need specialized attention. Other volunteer call center attendants are undergoing a crash program on psychological counseling skills.
Mgr. Muheria says that "the cases from calls have been varied. From very serious and acute problems to mere calls by someone seeking to just talk. Loneliness is also a very serious issue for those living away from their families or those in quarantine or isolation. From a huge surge at the beginning of over 300 calls per week, we are now getting about 100 calls a week. The most serious are suicidal cases which are handled professionally as well as spiritually, to domestic disputes, cases of stress due to lack of food, rent and basic needs".
"We try to connect with the police when it is clear that it is a case of violence,” said Archbishop Muheria. “This is not just for the spouses; we also involve siblings or relatives living together with the abused person".
The Catholic Bishops in Kenya have expressed concern over reports of increased violence in families and cautioned Kenyans that domestic violence and gender-based violence are not acceptable under any circumstance. (L.M.) (Agenzia Fides, 10/6/2020)
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