‘we All Need Someone’: The Hairdressers Tackling Stigma Of Mental Heath Issues In West Africa

Yopougon, nan largest of Abidjan’s 13 communes, pinch a organization of 1.5 million, is known for its entrepreneurial grit, its bubbly nightlife and, successful popular culture, arsenic being nan birthplace of Francophone Africa’s astir celebrated comic character, Aya de Yopougon.

Beneath nan bustle, it is besides location to different taboo-busting pioneer: 49-year-old Adjoua Catherine Tano, a hairdresser who has spent 2 decades offering intelligence wellness advice, aliases conscionable listening softly arsenic she cuts her clients’ hair.

A schoolhouse dropout who tried retired arsenic a slope cashier earlier becoming a hairdresser, Tano’s resilience precocious came successful useful erstwhile speaking to a teen worried astir failing their exams. “I told her: ‘Don’t deliberation negatively,’” Tano said. “‘Even if you fail, really tin you deliberation that you person grounded successful life?’”

Adjoua Catherine Tano. Photograph: Fall Aicha/The Guardian

Mental wellness remains a taboo taxable successful astir parts of Africa, moreover though according to nan World Health Organization much than 116 cardinal group person intelligence wellness problems connected nan continent. Therapy is successful critically short supply, pinch 1.4 intelligence wellness workers for each 100,000 people.

Across Black communities, hairdressers person go a safe space, particularly successful communities pinch small aliases nary entree to intelligence wellness attraction – aliases value healthcare successful general.

Bluemind Foundation, a nonprofit organisation moving crossed Cameroon, Ivory Coast and Togo, has plugged into nan hairdresser-client narration done its Heal by Hair initiative. According to its founder, Marie-Alix de Putter, much than 400 hairdressers, including Tano, person been trained successful nan past 2 years to enactment arsenic therapeutic first responders aliases “mental wellness ambassadors”, reaching much than 100,000 women. By 2030, de Putter hopes to scope much than 1,000 hairdressers successful 20 countries.

‘The spot is already there’

It began pinch a emotion communicative that turned tragic. In 2012, while nan de Putters were connected a travel to her autochthonal Cameroon, her hubby was murdered. She became a widow while she was 4 months pregnant. The lawsuit remains unsolved.

“I spent my first nighttime arsenic a widow pinch my hairdresser,” she said. “She was nan 1 I trusted nan astir that nighttime because you’re conscionable surrounded by group and you don’t cognize who could person done this … truthful we had this narration wherever each week she would travel and do my hairsbreadth [initially] astatine location and listen.”

Inspired by her individual story, nan instauration conducted a 2021 study crossed 7 Francophone countries: 77 % of responders confessed to confiding successful their hairdressers, and much than 90% of hairdressers said their clients had sought their counsel.

“We conscionable connected nan spot that women are already giving to their hairdressers pinch nan tools,” she said. The first training took spot successful April 2022.

The programme is system astir a free, intensive three-day training pinch psychiatrists and intelligence wellness experts who thatch nan women astir progressive listening, gender-based unit and signs of slump – arsenic good arsenic psychology theories. Afterwards, they are evaluated earlier receiving a certificate.

“The training went very good … I sewage my certificate and this,” said different hairdresser, Thérèse Gueu, arsenic she reached for a psychology textbook connected a support successful her salon successful nan working-class neighbourhood of Abobo.

Thérèse Gueu. Photograph: Fall Aicha/The Guardian

Over six months, trainees are supported done adjacent groups and entree to a psychological referral system. When a customer shares deeper troubles, hairdressers mention their clients to master psychologists, aliases successful cases of home violence, to nan police. Many still bristle astatine nan thought of either, citing financial and societal costs of doing truthful successful a blimpish region wherever 1 successful 3 group unrecorded successful utmost poverty.

Initially, backing for nan programme came mostly from de Putter’s savings, but backstage donors and agencies for illustration France’s Development Innovation Fund now spot in. Nevertheless, nan resources stay mini for nan magnitude of activity facing nan foundation’s mini squad of 17 paid unit and astir 100 volunteers.

Their activity has yielded stories of joyousness and healing: successful Togo, 1 trainee hired personification who had been successful a psychiatric hospital, offering societal rehabilitation.

“Often erstwhile you’ve been sick and you’ve been hospitalised, group opportunity you’re crazy,” said de Putter. “So if you person a occupation and personification who accepts to train you, you get retired of nan taboo.”

One hairdresser near her location because she was a unfortunate of violence, but now helps people. In immoderate communities, hairdressers opportunity a fewer men person started reaching retired for counsel too.

Among nan hairdressers, location is simply a wide consciousness of fulfilment complete their emergence arsenic a shape of affectional support successful their communities. “[When] group travel to explicate their problems to me, it’s a pridefulness for maine excessively because I cognize that I americium an receptor for someone,” said Gueu. “I show myself that we each request someone.”

“For galore of these women, it’s their first nickname arsenic a leader successful their organization and a protector,” said de Putter. “These women are saying to us: ‘Before I was conscionable doing hair, now I do healing.’”