A familiar sound, on a winter’s day in kyiv. Aircraft sirens sound.
On a quiet street in the Ukrainian capital, children try to forget the sounds of war. Every Saturday, the NGO Voices of Children organizes psychological group sessions.
“It’s a kind of fairy tale world that is created here for an hour where the children don’t feel the stress. It’s all about evacuating the psychological pressure”says Iryna Zhadik, a psychologist.
The little ones can also talk to a psychologist in private.
13-year-old Anna worries about her future: _”_Everything is a bit of a blur and I have no idea how to plan my future. I can’t plan anything because I understand that something could fall near my house at any time because I live between two military bases.”
The ‘anniversary syndrome’
The psychological center was internally displaced from the war-torn eastern regions of the country. Being displaced only adds to the stress, as is the case for Lyudmila, who came to Kiev with her 10-year-old son after running away from her home in Lugansk.
“More people come to see us since the autumn. More people suffer from depression. This is now called the ‘anniversary syndrome’. We realize that it is the anniversary (of the invasion) but we see that there is no light at the end of the tunnel” , explains Liudmyla Romanenko.
Valérie Gauriat: What would be your biggest dream, Nazar?
“The greatest is to return home, for Ukraine to be free, and for Russia… to die. My greatest dream is to return home. I miss it so much. It’s painful for my soul. My mind.”says the little one, 10 years old.
Source: Euronews Español
