The project “Implementation of the model of welfare consultants in the municipality of Ignalina district” has already come to an end.
We invite you to publicize the implementation of the model of welfare consultants in the municipality of Ignalina district.
Additional project opinion formation goods were produced.
Project goods are shared during project publicity events. The aim is that the residents of Ignalina, using the distributed goods in their daily life, form a positive opinion of the people around them about the services of welfare consultants – a t-shirt or jumper with project publicity signs and the catchy slogan of the project “Man to man” attracts attention and leads to interest in the services of a welfare consultant. We hope that the participant of the event, after receiving the gift project goods, will remember the message about the activities of the welfare consultant announced at publicity events for a longer time, will think about the possibility of helping others, and will invite them to use the services.
To participate in the project publicity event – stay tuned, soon we will publish information about the fourth project event.
Consulting success story
We invite you to familiarize yourself with another inspiring story of a client who successfully completed the consultation course:
The mission of the welfare consultant in the regional press
On 02-23, the fifth article of the project was published in the newspaper “Mūsų Ignalina”, presenting another success story of consultations, which we hope will inspire and motivate people experiencing similar problems to seek help from a welfare consultant.
What is social anxiety?
Social anxiety is an emotional disorder that causes feelings of fear, insecurity, or discomfort in social situations. A person suffering from social anxiety is afraid to speak in public, is afraid of being poorly evaluated, rejected, feels uncomfortable when meeting new people, may avoid meeting even well-known people. Mild social anxiety is common and normal, but when social anxiety gets out of control and interferes with our daily activities, it is necessary to seek help.
Have you heard of panic attacks? Maybe you had to experience them?
A panic attack is an intense, sudden and frightening psychological phenomenon that manifests itself as a strong feeling of anxiety and fear. This disorder can manifest itself in many ways, but the most common symptoms people who experience a panic attack describe are rapid heartbeat, difficulty breathing, shaking, sweating, dizziness, and fear of death.
These attacks are out of control and can last from a few minutes to about half an hour. After an attack, a person often feels tired and exhausted. Panic attacks are thought to be caused by a variety of reasons, including genetic predisposition, stress, trauma or other psychological factors, but often the specific cause is unknown and panic attacks can occur even while resting quietly at home.
A panic attack can be one-time or recurring.
If you have experienced panic attacks, we invite you to visit a well-being counselor to find out how you can help yourself during a panic attack, as well as how to reduce stress, anxiety and reduce the likelihood of panic attacks happening again.
Anxiety How to control it?
Anxiety is an emotional state that is not alien to any of us. It is a natural response to challenges, unknowns or threats, which can even be beneficial – to make you stop, reflect on your decisions, make changes. However, when anxiety becomes excessive and long-lasting, it can have negative effects on physical and emotional health.
Anxiety can cause constant fatigue, difficulty concentrating, concentrating and carrying out daily tasks, can lead to unfounded fears and a decrease in the joy of life. Anxiety can also cause physical symptoms – increased heart rate, sweating, tremors, headache, stomach discomfort or insomnia.
In order to manage our anxiety, we must first learn to understand our emotions, control our thoughts – not to worry about future or past events, try to positively assess ourselves and our abilities and achievements.
Physical methods of anxiety management are especially useful – deep breathing exercises, meditation, physical activity.
If the anxiety becomes too severe and interferes with normal life, it is important to seek professional help. Cognitive behavioral therapy can be particularly effective in overcoming chronic anxiety. Only you can take the first step towards your emotional well-being.
Consulting success story
Agnė (name changed) has been married to her husband for 10 years. A woman once dreamed of how she would celebrate her wedding anniversary and organize big celebrations for her family and friends. The spouses mentioned the occasion, but modestly, they went to a restaurant together, neither of them was in a festive mood, both were emotionally exhausted as if they were trying to save a crumbling marriage and were only hanging on to positive memories. It was a decisive day that led to a lot of reflection, when Agnes finally decided not to delay, to turn to a welfare consultant and seek advice on how to save the family.
During the consultations, the woman, with the help of a welfare consultant, found out the causes of the arising conflicts and tried to find ways to avoid them, as well as to change her reaction to them.
Agne realized that she and her husband started to drift apart 4 years ago when their daughter was born. The woman was overworked by the household, complained that she received little help from her husband, and usually only when she asked for it herself. It also helps little in raising a child. Lately, her husband has been emotionally cold, closed in on himself, isolated from his family.
The various tasks performed during the consultations opened Agne’s eyes and allowed her to see the other side. The woman realized that she herself, when her daughter was still very small, did not want to accept her husband’s help, she went through too much for her daughter, she criticized her husband for doing everything wrong. Therefore, husband stopped offering his help. Also understood the reason for his withdrawal is that he himself is tired, both physically and emotionally, because he has been working a lot lately. And most importantly, they realized that both of them do not devote enough time to themselves and each other, even for the simplest conversation. The consultations helped Agne to understand how important it is to have time for myself so that I can rest emotionally and react more calmly to stressful situations. She realized that her daughter is old enough to be able to leave her for a longer period of time with my grandfather, who gladly invites his granddaughter to stay overnight. Although it was difficult for Agne to relax and let go of her daughter, after the first time she realized how beneficial this experience was for her, her husband, and the child.
After completing the counseling course, the woman feels positive about the future, after talking with her husband, she felt that the tension in their relationship had subsided, and they also agreed to spend one weekend a month just for the two of them.
This story is an excellent example of how small misunderstandings, everyday life and fatigue are psychologically debilitating, provoke conflicts and can even become the reason for the breakup of a family. She teaches us how important it is to talk to the people around us, how important empathy and the ability to hear and understand is.
If you also feel stress, emotional fatigue, it becomes difficult to control your emotions, you often get angry over small things, we invite you to visit a well-being consultant and learn to manage your feelings.
The mission of the welfare consultant in the regional press
Consulting success story
Do you feel anxious, stressed, don’t know how to help yourself and who to talk to?
We invite you to try the services of welfare consultants.
The benefits brought by consultations are perfectly illustrated by the case of Tom (name changed):
Tom and his wife lived in a happy marriage, raising a 2-year-old daughter. Tom was doing his favorite job, financially everything was enough. Raising our daughter was also not difficult, both my wife and I learned to share both household chores and child care.
But unexpectedly, Tom’s wife became pregnant again. Although the spouses have talked about the possibility of having another child in the future, they did not plan it so soon, so this news shocked them both. Nevertheless, the spouses accepted the unexpected news and calmly waited for the future member of the family.
However, as the birth date approached, Tom began to feel more and more anxious, he began to worry about the future change in his financial situation, he looked for additional earning opportunities, he began to think that the current apartment will be too small, the current car with two children is uncomfortable. Tom was putting pressure on himself psychologically, he was afraid that he would not be an adequate husband, father, that he might not be able to provide the baby with the best things. Although Tom’s wife always supported him, assuring him that he would do well in black, he set extremely high standards for himself and worried and bit himself every day. , as the breadwinner.
Tom started working two jobs. Tom feel tired every day. The situation worsened even more when the baby was born and quality rest decreased even more. Tom started drinking to relax after a long day at work, which made his relationship with his wife difficult.
His wife suggested he turn to a welfare consultant, but Tom didn’t need to be persuaded for a long time, because he himself understood very well that he often lost control of his emotions, became irritable due to constant tension, sometimes reacts aggressively to minor disagreements, so he was determined to change and decided to try.
During the consultations, special attention was paid to identifying and correcting Tom’s thinking errors and beliefs. The various tasks, both in meetings with the welfare counselor and at home, aimed to teach Tom to let go of society’s ideal male role and to understand that he can be a great husband and father without always being perfect.
Counseling helped Tom realize that most of the problems were only in his head, and that what his family needed more than additional income was a happy, healthy husband and father by his side. Therefore, when Tom realized that there was no need for this, he refused extra work and started spending more time with his family, giving up drinking, which had already become a habit.
The new member of the family is a great joy, but at the same time a serious test for the whole family, which undoubtedly affects everyday life, unbalances the usual rhythm, and adjusts plans. Therefore, it is normal to feel anxious, frustrated, tired, but if you feel that negative emotions are becoming uncontrollable and affecting your daily life, do not wait until the situation gets worse and register with a well-being consultant.
New cooperation agreements were signed
We would like to inform you that two more institutions are joining the project: Ignalina Česlovos Kudaba Gymnasium and Mielagėnų Pal. J. Matulaičio parish care home.
, they willingly participate in project events, publicize the project, refer people with signs of anxiety or depression to the Ignalina welfare consultant.
The Ignalina youth association “Pauže”, with which the project’s inter-institutional cooperation agreement was signed, partially limited its activities, but taking into account the fact that the majority of the association’s participants are representatives of the Ignalina Česlovos Kudaba high school, who continue their activities in the project, the Applicant, the Ignalina district municipality administration, signed a new project inter-institutional cooperation agreement with Česlovos Kudaba Gymnasium.
An inter-institutional cooperation agreement was also signed with VšĮ Mielagėnų Pal. J. Matulaitis parish care home. Many specialists work in this institution, for whom the project’s activities are relevant and useful
We invite you to the publicity event!
We invite you to an event to publicize the services of welfare consultants on October 17, at 9 a.m. in the village of Didžiasali, 23 Salas St.
During the event, the services of well-being consultants will be presented, and there will be a lecture on emotional health and stress management.
The event is free.
What does depression look like?
It is important to remember that untreated prolonged emotional difficulties can eventually develop into depression. We invite you to contact a Wellness Consultant as soon as you feel the first signs of depression and not wait until the situation gets really bad.
The importance of treating depression is perfectly demonstrated by an interview with Artur, who overcame this disease:
What was the cause of your depression?
I think it’s fatigue, at that time I was working two jobs, I didn’t rest at home either – I came back very late, but at home there were still various housework and help for family members waiting. I didn’t feel when constant fatigue turned into apathy and depression.
How has depression affected your daily life?
It became very difficult to be interested in anything, free time did not make me happy anymore, it became difficult to concentrate, reading books was endlessly tiring, I became very forgetful of small things.
Were your loved ones aware of your emotional state?
Not really, if he thought about something, he always said that I was working too much.
How did you realize that you needed help and what was the first step towards self-help?
I started avoiding all contact with everyone, suicidal thoughts flooded in, eventually it became a constant state. When I stood on the street for a long time after a normal day at work and kept thinking about whether or not to jump in front of the car – I refrained and called the emergency number the next day.
What advice would you give to people who suffer from depression?
Talk to someone, seek help over the phone or see specialists, before apathy, bad emotions completely overwhelm you. Because then it becomes very difficult not to give in to your own well-being and simply distance yourself from everyone, thus worsening your psychological state.
The mission of the welfare consultant in the regional press
How to recognize psychological violence?
- Humiliation – making fun of a person’s manner, appearance or feelings, insulting, shouting, humiliating because of gender, nationality or race. In the work environment, it can be discussing the poorer work results of a particular person in front of colleagues in public, or gossiping behind their backs.
- Threats – threats to injure, kill, or even commit suicide, threats of divorce, deprivation of children. In the work environment – the threat of not paying a salary, the unjustified threat of dismissal (for example, when a person experiencing violence refuses to do work that does not belong to him or to work overtime).
- Restrictions on freedom – harassment, constant checking (location, computer, phone, etc.), ban on meeting friends or family, ban on favorite activities, control of money or even appearance, control of clothing, etc.
- Ignoring is also considered psychological violence – avoiding, not giving attention, ignoring emotions, lack of support, not speaking “punishment”, etc.
If you think that you are experiencing psychological violence and do not know what to do, if you need help in making the right decisions towards positive changes in your life, contact a welfare consultant
How does the consultation work?
How to help yourself when stress takes over?
- Prioritize. Sometimes the situation in our mind seems much worse than it really is. Try to write it down. Write down all the problems that have arisen, all possible ways of solving them, write down all the steps in a paragraph. Start with small, easy things to do.
- Go out for a walk. A walk in the fresh air, in nature, will allow you to relax and relieve the symptoms of stress.
- Take time for yourself. A break from everyday problems is simply a necessary condition for stress management. Do something you like – read a book, do crafts, exercise, meet friends.
- Get adequate rest. Although dinner with friends or an evening with a movie sounds like a great way to relax, it’s still important not to forget the most important thing – quality sleep.
- Avoid things that cause negative emotions. Of course, knowing what is happening in the world is important, but constant monitoring – set limits for yourself, for example no more than half an hour a day for reading the news.
- Don’t be afraid to ask for help. Talk to loved ones. Perhaps they will be able to help you solve the situations that have arisen or give you useful advice. Contact a Wellbeing Consultant for help.
The cycle of seminars for the inclusion of the applicant, partners and employees of cooperating institutions in the model has ended.
In order for the well-being consultant model to work smoothly, and for people from very different backgrounds to learn about the service, it was extremely important to include cooperating institutions in the project and introduce their representatives to the principles of the model’s operation, to teach them to recognize situations and problems that can be solved by using well-being consultants. During the seminars, the representatives of the collaborating institutions were trained in different techniques, how to work with people, how to motivate them to use the services provided by welfare consultants and are ready to provide all the necessary information.
A success story
We all feel lonely sometimes, we feel misunderstood, unloved, not needed by anyone. Loneliness often comes after experiencing significant changes in life, after experiencing the loss of a loved one, divorce, job loss, and especially in old age, when some social ties disappear, participation in society’s activities decreases. Prolonged feelings of loneliness can be detrimental to your emotional and physical health – well-being counselors can help you find ways to combat it.
We invite you to familiarize yourself with the success story of Rima (name changed), who survived the feeling of loneliness:
Rima lived with her son and mother. He held a high position at work, was able to realize himself and feel an important part of the team. He spent his free time actively, met his girlfriends, traveled. However, in the last few years, Rima’s life has undergone huge changes. Rima, having reached the age of retirement, decided to spend more time on various hobbies, for which time was still taking up, and left her job. Rima’s single son bought his own home, moved out, and started a family. About a year later, Rima’s mother, who lived with her, died. Rima was left alone. The woman experienced the great grief of loss, nothing made her happy anymore, she had no strength to get out of bed, she no longer had any motivation to do anything. It seemed to her that everyone moved away from her, she became unnecessary to anyone.
After reading about Gerovės consultants on the Internet, she signed up without thinking much. The cognitive behavioral therapy techniques applied during the consultations allowed her to recognize the errors in her thinking and behavior, she realized that only she herself is responsible for her well-being. Cognitive behavioral therapy is based on the assumption that our thoughts, emotions and behavior are very closely related and affect each other, a person’s well-being is determined by his thinking, so how we feel does not depend on specific life events in general, but on how we accept them. Rima remembered more than one situation when, due to a bad mood, she refused to meet her friends, as a result of which their offers became less and less frequent. He realized that he was wrong to be angry with his son, complaining that he no longer cared, after all, his attention was now devoted to his little daughter. The hardest part was finally coming to terms with the loss of her mother, even though a couple of years have passed, Rima realized that she hadn’t let her go yet. However, after consultations, she finally decided to change her life, asked her son and daughter-in-law for help in cleaning up the house and saying goodbye to her mother’s belongings, keeping only a few of her most precious ones. Such a joint cleaning of the house in memory of the beloved mother and grandmother brought Rima and her son closer again, both could talk to each other and vent their grievances. Rima started meeting her friends again, and even started planning a trip with one of them. She found the joy of life by spending more and more time with her granddaughter.
The second Wealth Consultant newspaper is now out.
The newspaper contains all the important information about the services of a well-being consultant – what they are for and how the consultations are conducted, what are the most common emotional health disorders and why you don’t need to help them. Also, another inspiring story of a successful consultation cycle. The printed form of the newspaper will be distributed through various district institutions and organizations. We invite you to read and share with your loved ones.
A digital version of the newspaper is available here
On May 19, the second article publicizing the services of welfare consultants was published in the newspaper “Mūsų Ignalina”.
The aim of the articles is to inform Ignalina municipality. residents about the provided service of welfare consultants, contacts are made public. Success stories of people who have already used counseling are also presented, how people who felt mild symptoms of emotional disorders did not hesitate to seek help, and with the help of a well-being consultant, learned to reduce the symptoms of disorders and improve their emotional well-being.
The cycle of seminars involving the applicant, partners and employees of cooperating institutions in the model is already half way through.
Are mental health problems a sign of weakness?
On February 2nd, the first seminar for the involvement of ward staff and community representatives in the model took place.
The entire cycle of seminars includes 3 seminars of 4 hours each for each of the four target groups consisting of 10 people each. During the seminars, attention is paid to identifying persons with psychological difficulties and problems, maintaining contact, motivating and encouraging them to seek help. Seminars are organized in municipal wards, ward representatives, community representatives and other interested persons are invited.
On 12/13/2022, the Ignalina district newspaper “Mūsų Ignalina” published an article presenting the services of a Welfare consultant and a success story illustrating the benefits of consultations.
You can read the text of the article below:
Emotional health is an integral part of our overall well-being. Everyone has faced smaller or bigger challenges at least once in their life: some people can talk about their problems with their loved ones, others find it very difficult to talk and keep everything to themselves. People tend to compare their problems with others, but you should understand that this is inappropriate and no matter what problems others are facing, it does not make your problems any less important. Remember that asking for help is completely normal, so you shouldn’t feel bad about it. Sometimes it can be difficult to start talking about it, but the constant discomfort of an unresolved issue can only make it worse later.
The goal of the project – “Implementation of the model of welfare consultants in the Ignalina district municipality” is to improve the health and social well-being of the residents of the Ignalina district municipality. It is expected that thanks to the project, the health indicators of the residents of the Ignalina district municipality will improve, mental illnesses and emotional disorders will decrease, residents will be more productive and social exclusion will decrease.
Wellfare consultant is a specialist with a qualified education and completed special training in low-intensity emotional counseling of persons experiencing psychological and emotional difficulties, based on cognitive and behavioral therapy. Helping a wellfare consultant at an early stage of the problem is aimed at preventing the onset of depression and thereby contributing to reducing the number of suicides.
The benefits brought by consultations are perfectly illustrated by the case of Lina (name changed):
Lina, a young, married woman, mother of a two-year-old boy, felt unhappy, but she could not even tell herself exactly why. After all, she has a wonderful family and she can’t complain about her financial situation or your physical health. However, she realized that she was no longer satisfied with her life. She felt constant fatigue, cried after a somewhat more stressful day, finally realized that even small arguments with her husband or son flare up and she reacts aggressively. The relationship with her husband became strained, apart from constant arguments, she also received comments for her hot reactions to her son’s pranks. These situations put a lot of pressure on Lina psychologically, she felt constant pangs of conscience. And she herself admitted that she does not control her emotions. The fact that Lina and her husband had been planning a second child for some time also contributed to her poor state of health. Although she hadn’t been planning for long enough to be worried, Lina felt disappointed in herself every month after her failed pregnancy attempt. The desire to get pregnant was often replaced by the fear of possible complications of the future pregnancy, about which Lina did not miss the opportunity to search for information every day and even more grew groundless fear in herself. Lina found out about the services of a Welfare consultant quite by chance – after seeing information about Welfare consultants on Facebook. When she found out that this service is also offered in her city – Ignalina, she decided to try it without delay. Already after the first consultation, Lina said that she got food for thought and realized what mistakes she made with her thoughts and actions, harming herself and her emotional health. One of the most important steps towards realizing the mistakes was sharing my experiences with the Welfare consultant, the opportunity to hear myself as if from the side. After applying the methods of cognitive and behavioral therapy, actively working with herself not only during consultations but also doing “homework”, Lina learned to control her emotions, learned the correct breathing technique to relax when overcome by anger or fear outbreaks, and also began to think more responsibly about her actions and limited yourself from unnecessary information that causes negative emotions. She included time for herself in her schedule, which she spent doing sports or meeting with friends.
This counseling success story perfectly shows why it is worth applying, even when you think you don’t have serious problems, but you just feel lost, preventing the deterioration of your psycho-emotional condition, depression. The services of a welfare consultant are intended for all adult residents of the Ignalina district who have mild symptoms of depression, anxiety, stress, experience various fears, insomnia, have encountered problems and do not know how to help themselves control their emotions.
Registration for consultation: www.geroveignalinoje.lt, or phone: 8 622 28895, 8 619 28887
The project is implemented under the program “Health” with the funds of the European Economic Area Financial Mechanism.
Duration of repair works 2 months.
