Grandma therapy in Zimbabwe - 6 Minute English

Hello. This is 6 Minute English

from BBC Learning English. I'm Neil.

And I'm Sam.

Sam, have you ever heard the expression

'a problem shared is a problem halved'?

Yes, Neil, I have. Doesn't it mean that

people often feel better

after talking about their

problems with someone?

Right - in this programme we'll be hearing

the extraordinary story of how these ideas

were taken up by a team of community

grandmothers in Zimbabwe.

Zimbabwe has over 14 million people

but fewer than 20 psychiatrists.

After years of economic

turmoil, unemployment and HIV, mental

health is a huge challenge,

and doctors estimate

that one in four Zimbabweans

suffers from depression or anxiety.

When it proved impossible to find free

space to use in hospitals,

psychiatrist Dr Dixon

Chibanda, came up with the idea of

turning public park benches

into spaces for therapy.

He recruited grandmothers, who have

both free time and plenty

of life experience, to talk

with individuals struggling with mental

health issues like depression,

anxiety, and trauma.

The grandmothers are drawn from

the local community and

trained over several weeks in

a talking therapy called CBT - but

what does that abbreviation, CBT,

stand for? That's

my quiz question. Is it:

a) Chatting Based Therapy?,

b) Conversation

Brain Therapy? or,

c) Cognitive Behavioural Therapy?

Well, I think I'll say c) Cognitive

Behavioural Therapy.

OK, Sam, we'll find out later. Now,

although the recent history of

Zimbabwe has left millions

struggling with mental health issues,

at the start of his project, Dr Dixon

Chibanda was

the only psychiatrist working in

public health in the whole country.

And as well as a lack of provision, many

villagers were suspicious

of talking therapy, preferring

to rely on traditional faith healers instead.

Which is why when Kim Chakanetsa,

of BBC World Service's

The Documentary Podcast, spoke to

Dr Dixon Chibanda, she started by asking

him whether people were

supportive of his idea:

Initially there was a lot of scepticism,

a lot of resistance, particularly

from colleagues

who thought this was not evidence-based,

and it wasn't going to work.

The whole idea of

training grandmothers - I mean, this has

not been done anywhere else

in the world so naturally

there was resistance.

Were you at all apprehensive?

I was, to be quite honest.

At first, Dr Dixon Chibanda's ideas were

met with scepticism - an attitude

of doubting

whether something is useful or true.

'Grandma benches' were a totally new

idea, never seen before anywhere

in the world and

so his colleagues naturally felt some

resistance - refusal to accept a change

or new idea.

Which left Dr Dixon Chibanda feeling

a little apprehensive - worried

that something bad

was going to happen to his project.

Fortunately, as it turned out, Dr Dixon

Chibanda's apprehensions were

wrong. Grandmothers are

highly respected in Zimbabwean society

and as they started listening,

people began opening

up and telling their stories.

The 'grandma benches' have empowered

over 50,000 people to deal with

their life problems

and Dr Dixon Chibanda even has plans to

move his idea online, giving

the world access to

a virtual Friendship Bench.

Here he is again, explaining on the

BBC World Service's The Documentary

Podcast why he believes

his ideas have been so successful:

It works because it's simple, it's cheap

and it's run by communities,

particularly grandmothers

who are in essence a resource

in African communities - you know,

they are the custodians of local

culture and wisdom - that's why is works,

and I guess, it does away

with western concepts

which remove the stigma that is normally

associated with mental illness.

Clients are willing to share their problems

with the grandmother-therapists

because they

are respected as cultural custodians -

people with responsibility for taking

care of something

or trying to protect ideas or principles,

in this case local customs and wisdom.

This helps do away with - or remove - the

stigma attached to mental health - strong

feelings of shame or disapproval which

most members of a community

have towards something,

such as psychological illness.

For Zimbabweans suffering domestic

violence, unemployment and

dealing with HIV, having

a grandmother to talk to really can

change their perceptions about

how problems can be

managed.

So it seems true that 'a problem shared

is a problem halved', which

reminds me of our

quiz question, Sam.

Yes. You asked me what the talking

therapy abbreviated to CBT

stands for. And I said

c) Cognitive Behavioural Therapy.

Which is absolutely right! CBT - a way of

managing problems by changing

ways of thinking

and behaving.

So this week we've been hearing the

inspiring story of Zimbabwean

Dr Dixon Chibanda's 'grandma

bench' therapy - an idea which was

initially met with scepticism - a

doubtful attitude,

and resistance - refusal to change

and accept new ideas.

Dr Dixon Chibanda's feelings of

apprehension - worries that

the project would fail, proved

false when his team of grandmother

therapists were treated as

custodians - or protectors,

of wisdom and life experience who really

could help people suffering

depression, poverty

and trauma.

The success of the project helped do

away with - or remove - strong

feelings of shame

or disapproval felt by many people

regarding mental health, known

as stigma. To hear more

inspiring, topical stories, join us again

soon here at 6 Minute English.

Bye for now!

Goodbye!