SAFA Counseling Centre: A ray of hope for those seeking psychological support

The team behind the success of SAFA Counseling Centre. Seated from left: Fahad Careem, Nimsath Yaseem, Asmiyas Shahid, Sikhamani Ameena Faisz Mustapha (President SAFA Counselling Centre), Farman Nizar, Zafrina Imran, Nazliya Mohideen Standing from left: Rozani Fernandopulle, Farhana Gafoor, Rasna Ramis, Mariyam Farman, Shanthini, Samaha, Azara Begum. (Absentee Husni Malik) 

• SAFA Counseling Centre also provides professional support to individuals battling psychological conditions
•  Over the past 10 years, the SAFA Counseling Center has been a ray of hope for those going through various challenges in life

Early intervention could be the best way to help you overcome any mentally challenging situation.  This is a piece of advice shared by the team of experienced counselors at SAFA Counseling Centre, located in Dehiwela marking the World Mental Health Day Today, October 10. Over the past 10 years, the SAFA Counseling Center has been a ray of hope for those going through various challenges in life. Under the visionary leadership of Sikhamani Ameena Mustapha, a professional counselor with over 45 years of experience, the Centre has opened doors to people irrespective of their background or social status with a vision of ‘building healthier relationships and healthier societies.’ 
An inspiring journey
Having had her initial training at the Family Studies and Services Institute headed by Father Mervin, a pioneer in family counseling in Sri Lanka, Mustapha was asked to lecture at the institute after completing her diploma. “All my students were pastors and nuns and in the Catholic faith this programme was mandatory before marriage. At the same time I too had a dream of starting my own counseling Centre. But 45 years ago it was a tough task to even ask people to seek counseling services. Eventually, I started this counseling Centre thanks to the Muslim Women’s Conference and in 2016 we put up this building,” she said in an interview with the Daily Mirror. 
The SAFA Counseling Centre is constructed in such a way that it ensures maximum confidentiality for clients. In Arabic, SAFA means peace and as mentioned earlier its doors are open to people from all communities. Over the years, one of its main areas of focus has been the preparation for marriage programme aimed at helping young couples build strong foundations for happy marriages and healthy families. According to Mustapha this programme was initiated in response to rising divorce rates among all communities. “We have conducted workshops on preparation for marriage in many areas of Colombo and the country including Kandy, Gampola, Malwana and Kahatowita. We also conduct workshops in schools, universities and community centres. We are now going to introduce preparation for marriage for boys as well. Marriage is for both boys and girls so we insist that couples should come,” she added. 
Why counseling shouldn’t be delayed 
From preparation of marriage programmes, the SAFA Counseling Centre has expanded services to provide professional support for individuals going through various psychological conditions. According to Mariyam Farman, a counselor at the Centre, one of the main reasons why people delay seeking help is because of the way counseling is viewed in society. “There’s still a lot of stigma and cultural taboo around it. Many people don’t even realise that what they are struggling with is something a professional could help them with. Others only consider counseling after things have gone on for a long time, which often makes recovery slower. Since the internet is readily available and with AI, clients sometimes try to self-diagnose their conditions and it makes things quite complex. So one of the challenges we face is to put them on the right track and explain their real situation,” she added. 
One instance you may want to opt for counseling is when you feel you could no more handle the stress on your own. “The key question we should ask ourselves is; ‘Am I able to manage this or is it overwhelming my life?’ Sometimes we may not recognize the answer ourselves. Generally what helps a person identify that they need counseling is when they are going through something for a period of time and it’s impacting their day-to-day functioning. This is the point where they would need to seek some sort of professional help. It eventually starts impacting a person’s behaviour, moods, temper issues and you maybe develop physical symptoms such as sleep or appetite issues,” Farman added.
In her remarks, Rasna Ramis Saajedh who is also a counselor at the Centre, said that there are hotlines such as CCC (1333), National Institute of Mental Health (1926) and Sri Lanka Sumithrayo for immediate relief during a crisis. “With the rise of AI and ChatGPT, the amount of instances of people using it as a source of help/aid and even a friend or a therapist has risen. The lack of context, subjectivity and the overall human element in these platforms is something to be vary of. Therefore they need to be used with caution and only by those who know to navigate such platforms,” she warned. 
In order to ensure the quality of services provided, the data obtained is being reviewed every year. According to Farman, a large number of clients walk into the Centre with anxiety, depression or relationship difficulties including marital issues. “In addition we see a variety of other concerns such as addictions, Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD), domestic abuse, intimate partner violence and issues related to children and adolescents. Depending on the case we have various kinds of therapy from Cognitive Behavioral Therapy to Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing Therapy (EMDR), exposure therapy for anxiety and so on,” she added. 
Counselors observe a progress in terms of the feedback received. In order to expand their outreach, a Training of Trainers is being conducted so that trainers could then go back to their communities and provide their services. Collaborations are also underway with the Central Bank and mosques to take the message out in places where families and communities gather. More than half of their clients come back for follow-up sessions and this is a positive indication of the quality of their services. 
Mustapha was recently awarded the Abhimanaya Upaharaya in honor of her service and experience in the field of family counseling. This award was presented by an Organisation called Abhimanaya that is taking great strides to make preparation for marriage compulsory across all communities. 
Speaking further she said that research studies are also being done to find new trends and patterns that contribute to relationship issues. “Last year we did a research on the mental health of married working women and we found some striking patterns. They were challenged with stress, work-life balance and social connection. They seemed to be stressed during events such as the birth of a child and factors like income levels also affect relationships. We are continuing our research so that we could have evidence-based results,” she added. 
She said that their vision is to expand on parental and relationship education programmes, conduct a lot of research work and collaborate with work places. “At the heart of everything we believe that strong families make strong societies. SAFA is a safe, professional and compassionate place helping individuals and communities to move towards resilience and wellbeing. We hope we could continue to build healthier relationships and healthier societies,” she said in her concluding remarks.