My Psychology Projects

Where does time disappear to? With only five weeks left with SLV I thought it was about time I lock myself in an internet cafe booth and write!

I will just give a brief update on my projects for now, I'm sorry for the lack of photos!

I have surprised myself that I am enjoying youth teaching the most and really look forward to each session. I teach a class of 17-22 year old boys studying a Refrigeration and Air Conditioning vocational course in the Youth Centre. We have been doing topics like careers and hobbies as well as grammar e.g. distinguishing abstract nouns, adjectives and adverbs. They are all a bit giggly and shy but it's such good fun, they just need practice to improve their confidence in English! My morning at the Primary School is probably the most challenging, with a very cheeky Grade 2 class! They are only 6 years old, so their English and attention span is very limited. We've tried our best using songs and games to teach numbers, animals and shapes; but for a two hour class of children running about it can get very tiring!

Some of the psychology projects aren't quite what I had expected, I thought we would be learning more about how they deal with mental health, services available, therapies they use etc. But the fact is they don't actually have anything; for instance there is only one drama therapist in Sri Lanka and one mental health institution in the entire country. Therefore at the moment we are part of a progressive movement to gain contacts and trust and to understand the current facilities, so that they can be worked with to continuously develop and improve. The SLV founders have noticed a huge change since they first arrived, even from the nurses interaction with the patients and the participation in activities. Yesterday was the first time I experienced a facility that was already developed and successful - in the Occupational Therapy Unit at the Mental Health Hospital. As we arrived there they were doing morning exercises and stretching for physical stimulation, participation and focus. Next they did a social interaction activity where they sat in a circle and had to work out what was inside a box through movement and sound, which encouraged them to communicate and problem solve together. Then they were individually assessed on their mood and progress and each allocated an activity - there was cooking, an anger management session, sewing, card making, drawing/painting and jewellery making. I sat in on the last two to learn about what they did there and how it is beneficial. These sorts of activities help with their concentration, following instructions and gaining skills for outside the institution. They sell the things they make at a market in Colombo and all the profits go back into the institution which was really positive to hear.

My favourite project so far is one of the Special Needs Centres, which I spoke a little about in my previous post. We spend time on each of the wards, which requires a varied range of activities. On one visit to the acute wards I spent time with a lady who was severely handicapped and couldn't speak. She was fascinated by my bracelets and I simply spent about twenty minutes showing her, guiding her hand to feel them and then taking hers on and off her wrists as she seemed to like the sensation. The lady opposite loved balloons so we just volleyed them to each other on her bed, practicing my Sinhala numbers! Some of the ladies just love it if you bring them music or give them a hand massage, as it is giving them stimulation rather than just lying in a bed unable to move or sense anything. At first I found it really sad to see the conditions they were in; I suppose I haven't got anything to compare it to though as I've never been anywhere like that in England either. I often speak to a lady who doesn't like to do most of the other activities, so I just go to have a conversation with her. I have shown them my photo albums from home and they have taught me some Sinhala so I have to practice for each time that I go! Most of the other ladies don't speak much English, but always invite you to go sit on their beds for company. A lot of the more-abled patients sew pillow case designs, knit clothes or make greeting cards, which are also sold at the market. One of the ladies in a wheelchair even competes in disabled racing which is amazing! I always really look forward to this project and interacting with the people living there as I know they fully appreciate our time with them.

At the Mental Health Hospital I have worked on a variety of wards - Women's Forensic, Occupational Therapy, Men's Intermediate, Learning Disabilities and Men's Forensic Rehabilitation. In the latter ward I was excited to be part of the first ever drama therapy workshop in the institute. There were about 100 men, either awaiting a court trial or diagnosis following a crime. The atmosphere was surprisingly calm though and they all seemed to really enjoy the session! It encouraged them to engage, interact with the staff and other patients, be creative and be more open in  private sessions and discussions. They are now planning on running it weekly, so it would be great to hear how it has benefited the patients in a few months time. In all the wards the main aim is social interaction, stimulation and improving their well-being. This supports the Holistic approach to psychology and treatment of the whole person rather than solely focusing on their mental health needs. Therefore through therapeutic engagement our activities aim to build social skills, emotional awareness and creativity in a variety of ways. Of course with this type of approach the results are often not immediately obvious, which can be quite demotivating, but it is important to keep in mind the long term goal and development of the projects here in Sri Lanka.

So that's it for now, I will be writing about my adventures exploring Sri Lanka next time!

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