Troilo community, León, Nicaragua
In Nicaragua and particularly in rural communities, women live within a culture of domestic violence, suffering from a lack of self-esteem, anxiety and depression. This situation persists in part due to the distances to health services and lack of economic resources to get there, that are an obstacle to obtaining emotional support that would help them change their way of thinking, how to cope with their situation, and the abuse they suffer.
The online portal efemenista.com is a feminist organization focusing on women’s rights and vulnerabilities. They promote issues that affect women’s mental health, through articles, news and interviews on important topics such as gender equality, depression, anxiety, violence, machismo and a host of topics on mental well-being and empowerment of women.
In a recent piece about gender roles and stereotypes impacting the mental health of rural women in Nicaragua and Central America, it identifies the prevalence of depression in women as twice that of men. One of the important topics they address is the denial of machista violence where women are mistreated, and continue to live this way out of fear and lack of knowledge.
Recognizing this situation of poverty and lack of psychological support for women in rural communities, ViviendasLeon has worked with rural women, contributing to their empowerment and to eliminating their emotional and economic vulnerabilities through social-emotional and capacity training.
The implementation of this empowerment and capacity training program has allowed women to change their way of life, creating a life free of violence, and addressing their practical needs through the agriculture program providing technical assistance, social education, nutrition and economic growth, all of which contribute to improving mental health.
Reyna Torres:
‘’My name is Reyna Torres, originally from the community of Troilo. I used to dedicate myself to housework. Last year I became involved in the personal training [program] of ViviendasLeon. My life changed through the seminars and talks. I was able to shift my way of seeing my life. At each meeting we shared experiences and things that had happened to us, things I had not shared with anyone. For me, the experience in that training group was very liberating. We all helped each other. It gave us the courage to express so many problems and traits of violence that we carried. Now we do not see ourselves as simple neighbors, but as a group of women who take care of each other. While participating in the program, I was going through a difficult emotional time, but at the end I felt different and I gave myself time to benefit from working on my farm.
ViviendasLeon had provided all the necessary materials to start my garden. I am already harvesting my tomatoes, onions, cucumbers, squash, and beans, and thanks to my hard work , I feel like an empowered woman, and feel useful in my home. My emotional problems have improved. I am eating what I produce and no longer buy vegetables in the city. Today, I can say that I don’t rely on my children’s support, and that I am grateful to the program for helping me to change my life.”
