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Immediately following national elections, Bolivia entered into a crisis that mobilized almost the entire country. Part of the population rejected the results which gave the ruling party the majority needed to avoid a runoff. The followers of the ruling party supported the results. This led to blockades in major cities and roadblocks in the rural areas.
During the initial three weeks of protests there was limited violence. However, when police forces mutinied and the Organization of American States (OAS) determined the elections to be fraudulent, Evo Morales resigned as president. This unleashed violence particularly in La Paz and Cochabamba, but there were incidents in many places throughout the country. Many people were directly affected by this violence. Others, especially children, were affected by the constant news of the violence, the firecrackers of warnings of groups threatening violence in residential neighborhoods.
Therapists trained by EMDR Bolivia have been treating people who are showing signs of extreme stress caused by these incidents. EMDR Bolivia started in 2015 with "Project Martina" which enabled the training of more than 80 psychologists and psychiatrists in EMDR (Eye Movement, Desensitization and Reprocessing), an evidence based therapy which is used for victims of trauma and has demonstrated to be effective for victims of violence, natural disasters, addictions and many other mental health issues.
And there are EMDR protocols which have been developed for situations like Bolivia that can reach large numbers of people suffering from the impact of the recent events. EMDR Bolivia with the cooperation of Dr. Ignacio Jarero will train 50 therapists in protocols that Dr. Jarero developed for the Mexican earthquake of 2017, the Walmart massacre in Texas and most recently in treating the victims in Chile who lost an eye. The protocols help detain the process of trauma.
EMDR therapists are already volunteering their time and efforts. This project will enable even greater impact by providing therapy to groups identified by churches, community organizations and NGOs. The funds will provide materials needed to implementing the therapy and additional support to the cities where there are few or no EMDR therapists available.
I am the National Coordinator for EMDR Bolivia. My role is to support the training of psychologists and psychiatrists in Bolivia, to organize Advanced Courses to equip the therapists to increase their knowledge of EMDR specialized protocols and to coordinate humanitarian efforts like this with the EMDR trained therapists.
Many of you provided support for Project Martina which enabled us to train 85 psychologists and psychiatrists. You really made a difference. Today there are 80 and most are volunteering their services for this project. The project begins now!
During the initial three weeks of protests there was limited violence. However, when police forces mutinied and the Organization of American States (OAS) determined the elections to be fraudulent, Evo Morales resigned as president. This unleashed violence particularly in La Paz and Cochabamba, but there were incidents in many places throughout the country. Many people were directly affected by this violence. Others, especially children, were affected by the constant news of the violence, the firecrackers of warnings of groups threatening violence in residential neighborhoods.
Therapists trained by EMDR Bolivia have been treating people who are showing signs of extreme stress caused by these incidents. EMDR Bolivia started in 2015 with "Project Martina" which enabled the training of more than 80 psychologists and psychiatrists in EMDR (Eye Movement, Desensitization and Reprocessing), an evidence based therapy which is used for victims of trauma and has demonstrated to be effective for victims of violence, natural disasters, addictions and many other mental health issues.
And there are EMDR protocols which have been developed for situations like Bolivia that can reach large numbers of people suffering from the impact of the recent events. EMDR Bolivia with the cooperation of Dr. Ignacio Jarero will train 50 therapists in protocols that Dr. Jarero developed for the Mexican earthquake of 2017, the Walmart massacre in Texas and most recently in treating the victims in Chile who lost an eye. The protocols help detain the process of trauma.
EMDR therapists are already volunteering their time and efforts. This project will enable even greater impact by providing therapy to groups identified by churches, community organizations and NGOs. The funds will provide materials needed to implementing the therapy and additional support to the cities where there are few or no EMDR therapists available.
I am the National Coordinator for EMDR Bolivia. My role is to support the training of psychologists and psychiatrists in Bolivia, to organize Advanced Courses to equip the therapists to increase their knowledge of EMDR specialized protocols and to coordinate humanitarian efforts like this with the EMDR trained therapists.
Many of you provided support for Project Martina which enabled us to train 85 psychologists and psychiatrists. You really made a difference. Today there are 80 and most are volunteering their services for this project. The project begins now!