Expressive Writing Self-Care toolkit for Frontline Workers and Human Rights Defenders working in crisis

This self-care toolkit sets out a short course in Expressive Life Writing as a psychosocial support for mental-wellbeing, especially when working in crisis. It provides a method of self-care for social workers and human rights defenders. Co-developed with Akkar Network NGO, Lebanon, the exercises and prompts were tested and refined by frontline workers during the multiple crises in Lebanon: COVID-19, socio-political pressures, the refugee situation, and economic collapse. As Expressive Life Writing draws on imagination as well as memory, those affected by traumatic events find that these story-telling approaches can help process and gain agency over the narrative of those events. This may support frontline workers as they support others.

Available in Arabic and in English.