Abstract

For the past six years, children in Syria have been bombed and starved. They have seen their friends and families die before their eyes or buried under the rubble of their homes. They have watched their schools and hospitals destroyed, been denied food, medicine and vital aid, and been torn apart from their families and friends as they flee the fighting. Every year that the war goes on plumbs new,  previously unimaginable depths of violence against children, and violations of international law by all sides.

Post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) widely occurs among victims or witness of disasters. With flashbacks, hyperarousal, and avoidance being the typical symptoms, PTSD became a focus of psychological research. The earthquake in Wenchuan, China, on May 12, 2008, was without precedent in magnitude and aftermath and caused huge damage, which drew scientists’ attention to mental health of the survivors.

A multi-layered approach to mental health and psychosocial support in emergencies includes the integration of psychosocial approaches into sectors with primary aims other than the enhancement of mental health and psychosocial support. This paper shares the experiences of Church of Sweden's psychosocial team in supporting its partner organisations (within the ACT Alliance) to integrate a community based psychosocial approach into programmes in sectors including: education, child protection, livelihoods, water and sanitation, and food security.