Provide Counseling & Support to Sexually Abused

During these four months we provided 66 counseling sessions (21 online sessions and 45 onsite sessions) for 12 clients. Due to the COVIC-19 situation in Thailand and the area where we live, we were not able to conduct onsite session with our child as well as we found some challenges to continue the session through online channel. Therefore, we need to drop some sessions with our young child clients. 

However, we also have some good news to report while providing our service during these four months. We found that there were more and more people are keen to look for help when there found mental health challenges. For example, there was one of the clients who reached out to us and asked if she could come and see our counselor. As counseling service normally costs quite expensive to Thai people and mental health system in the government hospitals may not be able to fulfill the needs of all clients. We are pleased to be a part where people could open their heart and burden with. 

We also started our Twitter Spaces (or HUG Spaces) where we could expend the knowledge of mental health to people who are surfing on the application.  We got some positive feedbacks from the audience especially students gaining understanding on the mental health issue and find some techniques to look after themselves and better support people who are struggle with mental health issue.

Hopefully, HUG’s counseling work would keep continue supporting Thai people both children and adults during the difficult time. We are confronting loss and conflict which losing people’s hope to their day-to-day life, but we are not giving up to help them find their strengths and resilience. 

This year were able to get a professional photo of our counseling room in our child advocacy center. If you have lived in Thailand, you know that counseling is a new concept for Thai people. Many Thai people think that go to see a counselor means that you are mentally ill or crazy. There are very limited spaces and places that provide counseling services and going to see a counselor at private hospital can be very expensive. That’s why we wanted to create a friendly atmosphere where children can feel safe.  At our child advocacy center, sexually abused or trafficked children can have free access to counseling services.  Our counselor is available to see clients weekly. Your donation helps us to provide counseling services to many children.

In 2020 we provide total of 641counseling sessions for children and their families. In 2021 our counselors has already provided 49 counseling sessions through one on one mean and 13 sessions online during the Covid outbreak. 

Here is one of our highlight story from one of our session. Through a play therapy session with a 7 years old girl, she was able to address her stress from living among the older girls in the children home and cope with her nightmare. She mentioned that the only time she could play and be herself is being in the counseling room with HUG’s counselor. She was filled with joy to come and spent all the minutes in the room with the counselor.

Our team at the HUG Project is committed to make children feel safe and walk them through their hurts and pain and we are thankful for our donors who help make this possible. 

Thank you!

P.S. Because of couseling confidentiality we won't be able to share pictures of our client or disclose of their information. We are however would like to share the photos of our child friendly space. 

Links:

• Introduction to our child advocacy center.