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Dear Friend of Jiyan Foundation,  

Today is Giving Tuesday – a global day of giving to support organizations like ours that are working to change our world for the better. Today I’d like to share with you my personal experience addressing Yezidi womens’ health in Kurdistan-Iraq.

Yezidi women living in Shingal (Sinjar) don’t have access to proper medical and mental health services. As a Psychiatrist at Jiyan Foundation, it is my duty to not only provide essential psychiatric services, but also identify special medical cases which require intervention. The Yezidi women we treat through our mobile teams and Duhok branch are impoverished, and often lack the formal reproductive education many people take for granted.

This past summer I was confronted with two similar cases of young Yezidi women who were depressed after going through the process of divorce. I had met with each woman separately in a therapy session; Arya* (24 years) and Sara* (20 years). During our conversations, both women expressed sadness, disinterest of daily activities and weight loss among other signs of clinical depression. In addition, both women shared that they did not experience a menstrual cycle, and that this was a reason for their divorce.

Donate to Jiyan Foundation and help us provide mental health and medical treatment to Yezidi survivors of violence in Shingal.

Arya* was previously diagnosed with Primary Amenorrhea, the absence of menses, due to a congenital anomaly on her uterus, ovary and reproductive organs which required major surgery. Despite being diagnosed more than a year and a half ago, Arya has been unable to afford the cost of surgery, and therefore continued her life without it. Indeed, living with such a condition could have negative affects on her mental health. I immediately referred Arya to a specialist gynecologist and obstetrician who confirmed the diagnosis.

Sara*, whom I met with later and was not previously diagnosed, shared similar symptoms. I also referred her to a gynecologist and obstetrician for similar tests including an ultrasound of her pelvis, CT scans, blood tests etc. The results pointed toward a congenital anomaly of uterus, ovary and vagina. Like Arya, Sara was also diagnosed with primary amenorrhea.

In cases like these, the mental health issues are difficult or impossible to address without resolving the patients’ medical issues. Fortunately for both women, through Jiyan Foundation I was able to negotiate their operations free-of-charge with Soma Private Hospital in Sulaimani.

In addition to their operations, Arya and Sara were provided with information about their conditions and education on issues concerning women’s health that they had never had access to before. Since their operations this past summer, Arya and Sara have both recovered successfully and participate in Jiyan Foundation’s mental health support programs.

Arya has expressed a generally good mood and looks forward to her group therapy sessions with other women from Shingal.

Sara continues her monthly therapy sessions with another Jiyan Foundation psychotherapist and has expressed much thanks and optimism to her own well-being.

Without Jiyan Foundation’s mental health programs for Yezidi women in Shingal, Arya and Sara would have not received the medical interventions, nor education about their conditions. I am thankful to work with Jiyan Foundation whose network and influence can provide women with access to mental health and healthcare services they would otherwise go without.
 
Please, this season consider donating to Jiyan Foundation and help us provide free of charge medical and mental health treatment to people who need it most.

Sincerely,

Dr. Jamal Omar Tawfeeq
Psychiatrist
Jiyan Foundation for Human Rights