A seven-year old Syrian girl, Reham Abdel Karim Matar, recently experienced a great deal of trauma. She and her family were uprooted from home in the Homs countryside and left to seek shelter in one of the Arsal refugee camps in Lebanon. The severe dread and despair Reham experienced after her uncle recounted ghost and kidnapping stories caused her to become isolated and refuse to leave her tent.
As reported by Arab News, Salam Abdel Nasser Al-Kanj, the mother of Reham, attended one of the regular psychological support sessions at the Arsal health center financed by King Salman Humanitarian Aid and Relief Center, also known as KSRelief, where she finally found the courage to discuss her daughter’s bed wetting issue and the overwhelming fears. Reham’s mother explained to mental health professionals at the facility that more than a year prior, after hearing disturbing stories from one of her husband’s relatives, Reham felt anxiety and started to cope with trauma. She stopped attending school and wouldn’t leave her tent. Representatives of KSRelief observed the child and intervened to provide help, whereby her condition considerably improved after she began therapy.
The specialists handled the case with great care and compassion and gave her parents guidance on how to address the situation at home, emphasizing that Reham’s experiences were out of her control. At the center, she attended a lot of one-to-one counseling sessions where she was encouraged to draw, write, and play with geometric shapes. Reham developed a close bond with the healthcare professional, and in less than a year, her demeanor significantly improved. According to her mother, Reham now looks forward to going to school and has made friends there as well as in the camp.
#KSrelief launches Noor Saudi Volunteer Program to Combat Blindness and The Diseases That Cause It in Chichaoua, Morocco pic.twitter.com/Stkuy3oHLM
— KSrelief (@KSRelief_EN) August 14, 2022
Workers at the Arsal Health Center in the Bekaa province of Lebanon can offer comprehensive medical care to Syrian refugees thanks to the assistance of KSRelief. This humanitarian aid is part of KSRelief’s efforts to support people from war-torn countries. The organization has given more than $94.6 billion in humanitarian and relief aid since 1996, helping people in 164 different countries.
