MANY UKRAINIANS WHO have moved to Ireland since the war broke out there in February 2022 are seeking help for post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) and other mental health issues.
“A lot of people have PTSD,” psychotherapist Violeta Bialkovska told The Journal.
A number of her clients have lost loved ones in the war or have relatives currently fighting in the conflict. In some cases, people’s homes have been destroyed.
Violeta said people’s emotional state is often worsened by the “uncertainty” surrounding their own, and Ukraine’s, future.
It it is not known when the war will end and whether there will be a place to return to.
Moving to a new country where they don’t speak the language and often cannot work in their usual profession has compounded their stress, she explained.
Violeta is one of four Ukrainian therapists recruited last year by the Irish Red Cross to deliver 10 free online therapy sessions for Ukrainians in Ireland who have been displaced by conflict.
The four therapists themselves moved to Ireland because of the war.
Around 220 Ukrainians have accessed therapy sessions since the programme began in October 2023.
Violeta said the fact people can speak to a Ukrainian therapist in their mother tongue – rather than have to use an interpreter or struggle to find the right words in English – is hugely beneficial.
The therapists use Narrative Exposure Therapy (NET), she explained, which is designed to support people experiencing PTSD.
The basic theory behind NET is that by talking through traumatic events in chronological order, a person can slowly repair negative associations and responses.
“Usually, after undergoing this therapy, PTSD symptoms are significantly reduced,” Violeta told us.
Violeta previously lived near Bucha, the site of a massacre in which hundreds of Ukrainians were killed in March 2022.
“I saw a lot, and my children saw a lot,” she recalled.
Violeta moved to Ireland with her husband and three children, who range in age from 12 to 21, shortly after the war broke out.
Her parents are still in Kyiv. She speaks to them every day, but remains very worried about their safety.
Anastasia Pavlova (31) moved to Ireland with her mother, Iryna, a few months after the war broke out in 2022.
“I was afraid of moving to another county, it was a very difficult decision,” she told us.
When she moved to Ireland, she was in a “deep depression”. She missed her friends back home and struggled to adjust.
As difficult as it was to be in an unfamiliar place, Anastasia said it was “better than being under the missles”.
Over time, she made friends here and heard about the therapy sessions.
“It was very stressful. You need to share your problems, it’s very important to get mental health help.
“I trusted the therapist, they are a trained professional.
I was in a deep depression but I’m better now, I don’t feel these feelings anymore.
Anastasia is currently living in Lisdoonvarna in county Clare, where she works part-time in a local hotel. Her goal is to go back to college at some point – she would love to become a veterinary assistant.
She said people in Lisdoonvarna are “so friendly and welcoming”. Members of the town’s Ukrainian community meet regularly, and locals help them improve their English.
Anastasia misses her family and friends who are still in Ukraine, telling us: “I’m very worried for them, I see things on the news.”
She likes her life here now but, ultimately, wants to move home.
“I couldn’t cope if I went back now, but I want to return to Ukraine eventually – when the war is over… It’s still my home.”
Katya* also wants to return to Ukraine “when the time is right” so she can help “rebuild” the country.
The 38-year-old moved to Ireland last year and now lives in Sligo. She remained in Ukraine for over a year of war.
The longer the conflict continued, the more her mental health deteriorated, she said.
The air raid alarm was going off “all day, all night”, indicating people needed to go to a bomb shelter.
I couldn’t sleep. Every day was too hard and my mental health was not good. My doctor told me it was depression.
Katya’s mother wanted to stay in Ukraine, but encouraged her daughter to leave.
She came to Ireland with “zero English” but has learned a lot in the last year thanks to classes and volunteering. She recently started to attend business classes.
Katya began her therapy sessions shortly after she moved to Ireland, describing them as a “great support”.
“I feel better. I like my life. I like Sligo, it’s like paradise. I can go to the ocean every day.
“I can sleep now, I don’t cry.”
Sharon Commins, head of national services at the Irish Red Cross, said the impact of the therapy programme, one year in, is “already evident”.
There is on average a 30% drop in the symptoms of trauma from the start to the end of the programme.
Demand is high and the Red Cross plans to expand the service in the coming months.
The charity is seeking to hire seven more therapists, in particular people fluent in Arabic or French so they can support international protection applicants coming from countries where these languages are spoken.
“The programme will increase the number of therapists from four to 11,” Commins explained.
“It will also extend its services to other refugee groups and offer support in multiple languages to address the growing trauma experienced by refugees arriving in Ireland from crisis situations around the world.”
Commins said some of the support services the Red Cross provides for Ukrainians “have been made possible by the generosity of the Irish public”.
The seven additional therapists are being hired with EU funding, secured through the Department of Integration.
*Name changed at interviewee’s request
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