The Impact of the Volunteer Resilience Programme: Irina’s Story
From suicidal thoughts to beauty pageant finals—how psychological support for Ukraine’s frontline humanitarian workers changes lives.
At the end of last year, NP provided 53 partner organizations with 25 anonymous tokens each for free psychological sessions. Since December 2023, 800+ volunteers have enrolled in free and confidential counselling.
Not everyone is ready to speak about the traumatic and post-traumatic experiences, but one of the participants in the programme decided to tell her story to prove the importance of such programs as VRP.
Irina’s Battle with Grief
“My biggest fear was that my volunteer centre, something I had been working on for many years, would fall apart. And that means that the people who rely on my help won't be able to receive it” says Irina (name changed for privacy), the head of one of Nonviolent Peaceforce's partner organisations. In October 2022, in the midst of a devastating combination of personal tragedies, she sought psychological help through the Volunteer Resilience Programme. Irina first engaged with the program out of a desire to try something new in what seemed to be a hopeless situation, but today she considers such support critical for frontline humanitarian workers in Ukraine, who are often volunteers, who take daily risks and face immense psychological stress to meet the needs of their communities.
Like hundreds of other Ukrainians, Irina was actively involved in volunteer activities from the beginning of the full-scale invasion—she organised the operation of the humanitarian headquarters, distributed aid to the local population, and tried to address the needs of those affected by the war in her community. Unfortunately, soon after the Russian invasion, personal problems made it difficult for her to carry on.
"My brother enlisted about a month after the invasion. He said he couldn't be 'just the volunteer’. My sister helped me, but in August 2022 she was diagnosed with cancer and died soon after. Around the same time, I divorced my husband. And then, in October, my mother was diagnosed with cancer and despite treatment, she died in just a few days,” the volunteer shared.
On the night of her mother's death Irina received a phone call from an unknown number. “I thought the driver of the funeral parlour was calling. But it was the military enlistment office—they asked me to come to them immediately. I explained that my mum had died, and I couldn't come, but they insisted, saying it was important. How may it be more important than the death of my mom?” She asked, and then the enlistment office told her—“Your brother was killed in action”.
Resilience in the Face of Despair
Irina was left to live alone in a house where everything reminded her of her lost family. She now admits that suicidal thoughts visited her, that she stopped seeing meaning in her work. When Irina heard about the Volunteer Resilience Programme, she decided to give it a try—why not? And now almost two years after the tragic events, Irina says that if she had not met her psychologist, it would unclear how her life would have turned out. And she might not have lived at all.
“The psychologist has become a person to whom I can tell everything, and at the same time it would not get worse. Usually, I never talked about my pain. Everyone said I was fine, but no one knew that I was going crazy at home, that inside my heart was breaking” Irina shared. After sessions with her therapist, Irina found the strength to live and work on—little by little the problems receded. A year later, she applied to take part in a charity beauty contest, and in the end found herself in the final.
“There is still a stigma in our society about psychological support, but people should try to seek help,” Irina says.
Irina’s story is a testament to the life-saving impact of NP’s Volunteer Resilience Programme. By prioritizing the mental and physical well-being of volunteers like Irina, NP strengthens not just individuals but the entire humanitarian ecosystem in Ukraine.
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The humanitarian response in Ukraine depends on strong collaboration between international and local actors. Due to restrictive security frameworks, local partners often lead aid efforts in volatile frontline areas, taking on a disproportionate share of safety and security risks in the effort to support the most at-risk communities.
To address the gaps in support for local actors, particularly in safety and sustainability, NP launched the Volunteer Insurance Programme (VIP) and Volunteer Resilience Programme (VRP). These initiatives prioritize the physical and mental well-being of volunteers. The Volunteer Resilience Programme offers confidential support for workplace and personal challenges, such as stress and burnout.