Trauma Centre providing free services to journalists in Peshawar

PESHAWAR: Life turned miserable for Zeeshan Anwar, a journalist based in Peshawar, after death of his elder brother.
“I used to be engrossed in deep thoughts and not able to concentrate on a single matter. At times I would get angry and I have even broken household items due to my frequent fits of anger,” Zeeshan Anwar told an event at the Department of Journalism and Mass Communication.
The event was organised to raise awareness about the Competence and Trauma Centre for Journalists, launched by the Departments of Journalism and Psychology at the University of Peshawar with the assistance of a German organisation, DW Akademie. Zeeshan Anwar said that when he came to know about the Trauma Centre, he approached it.
“After attending psychotherapy sessions, I am feeling quite normal now. I used to be upset over what happened to my family in the past, but now I think that is a thing of the past. Now I should think about my future,” he told the audience.
Another journalist, Rahat Shinwari, also narrated his story and said the Trauma Centre provided him relief.
“I used to spend sleepless nights due to my mental stress and some domestic issues, but now I am feeling better,” he said. The chairman of Journalism Department, Dr Altafullah Khan, said that many journalists were faced with trauma since the region is suffering from conflict.
He said most of the journalists were not getting health insurance from their employers while some were facing mental agony due to their small wages.
The chairperson Department of Psychology, Irum Irshad, said most of the journalists were traumatised but few were visiting the centre.
“We just provide psychotherapy to the visitors, not any medicine. Visiting the centre does not mean that someone is mentally ill. In fact, most of journalists are facing mental stress and psychotherapy is a minor treatment and many of us need it,” she added.
She asked journalists to visit the centre in case they face any mental stress or trauma.
The president Khyber Union of Journalists, Nisar Mehmood, lauded the departments of journalism and psychology of the University of Peshawar for launching the welfare project for journalists. “The good thing which the employers of journalists could not do is being done by the departments of journalism and psychology,” he added. Students, journalists and faculty of the university attended the event.