How important is it to be aware of our own capacities, skills and abilities when it comes to the challenges caused by the pandemic? Why should we never suppress emotions and why do we need to talk about emotions? These were some of the questions we tried to answer during the first two sessions of the planned twenty sessions dedicated to the teachers of the program “Psychosocial support in facing the challenges caused by the pandemic”. TPO Foundation has launched a program of psychosocial empowerment of teachers with the aim of providing adequate support in overcoming the challenges of the COVID-19 pandemic. Through simple exercises on thinking about their own capacities, the participants of the sessions had the opportunity to strengthen their emotions and observe the challenges of the pandemic in a different way. Participants in this program are teachers of primary and secondary schools from Herzegovina-Neretva canton, Tuzla canton, Zenica- Doboj canton and Central Bosnia canton.
The first thematic unit for two groups of teachers was realized on Monday, 19.04 and Friday 23.04.2021. via online platform. Almost 100 primary and secondary school teachers from five cantons had the opportunity to study and talk with psychologist and psychotherapist Nermina Vehabović-Rudež. Through her experience and many years of work dedicated to women, educators and young people, Nermina offered some of the solutions to control the emotions of fear and uncertainty that are often the result of a pandemic, but also ways to raise awareness of their own capacities and strengths to deal with personal fears. The one-hour program allowed all participants to share their experiences and discuss their expectations and program goals. The plan is to implement 10 thematic units for two groups of teachers, which will consist of a total of 20 sessions intended to strengthen the capacity of primary and secondary school teachers.
