Mental health care for all: let’s make it a reality (Mental Health in an Unequal World)

The 10th of October is International Mental Health Day.

That is quite a broad topic, but what does it entail exactly?
Of course, there is the prominent part: Mental include all the disorders and illnesses of the mind: Paranoia, Bipolarity, Schizophrenia, Split personality, Anger issues, Obsessive Compulsive Disorder, Phobia… From the most famous to the less known ones, those often belong to psychiatric disorders. Some are really bad, others lighter to bear; they’re often feared or unknown by a general public full of misconceptions toward them. The way fiction portrays them is generally wrong, scary, full of error and really negative. They at least are recognised as illnesses for the most part, and as such, medical professionals try their best to help.

However, the less-known part is what interest us here: the mental health that has nothing to do with psychiatry: anxiety, sleep disorder, depression, stress, apathy, panic-induced attack, burnout… Those are on the rise in this modern world, brought out by the economic and social models that we are following and the rules and atmosphere of our work and life environment.
Though they tend to be more and more recognised, some people keep minimising the reality of it. They refuse to give them the denomination they deserve, often chalking it up on the person’s character and personality, or passing circumstances.

And still, everyone has some risk of developing a mental health disorder, no matter their age, gender, ethnicity, or social standing. The covid crisis showed us that many people could be developing troubles during hardships and periods of isolation and that mental health care was critical.

It is also alarming that a significant and increasing number of young people across Europe are concerned by the rise of high stress, anxiety, depression and other mental illnesses amongst them. Statistics from the previous years showed a rise in mental health problems among the youth in Romania, especially with those who are part of a minority or whose parents are working abroad. During that time, Romania has set a series of specific programs addressing children at specific risk of social exclusion.

Working on this, different organisations that work with youth, as well as association such as « Mental Health for Romania » (founded in 2020), are doing their best to fight stigmatisation and ignorance by developing informational programs, mental help workshops in school, and promoting the existing services for mental health proposed here in Romania.


Working with youth, they hope to develop a healthier mindset in society, with less competition and more appreciation for individual skills and strengths.

Mental health isn’t always taken seriously or treated equally in the world. Still, by raising awareness of it, we hope to take a step in the right direction. With access to information, mental and medical care, and recognition of the problem, everyone can help or receive help if need be, which is the goal this day is pursuing.

link to the website: https://mentalhealthforromania.org
For those who need it, they developed an interactive map showing all the available services concerning mental health in Romania today.

Sources: Medical News Today, World Health Organisation, Mental health for Romania, mental health briefing sheets from member states in Europa archives.

The right side of the Dream.

About my travel and first week in Romania.

If people asked me for how long I have wanted this, I would say that I don’t know. Forever, probably.

I think I have always wanted to travel abroad. Even if the plan wasn’t clear for a long time, even if as a child I didn’t know anything about volunteering or long-term services in foreign countries, there was always the notion, the knowledge that one day I would leave for an adventure somewhere around the world. Now that the moment has come, I don’t realise quite well what is going on. But that is for later.

Like every one of us on this planet, Covid and 2020 have thrown all our plans away. Luckily for me, I didn’t really have one, except going somewhere. I had to volunteer in France for a year instead, which was really nice too, but as soon as things calmed down a bit, I saw the opportunity and took it.
Prior to covid, I was able to travel to Moldova for 3 months, and that allowed me to realise 2 things :

  • One: I would totally be able to do this on a larger scale. Like a full-year stay.
  • Two: This part of the world seemed interesting; why not explore it more?

And so, I found this opportunity for volunteering abroad in Romania for a whole year. Without really believing in anything, I applied. Three weeks later, I was departing to Timișoara without realising what was happening.

Since I never seem to do things the usual way, I took the bus instead of the plane. It was great because it really seemed that I was travelling. I felt the distance, I saw the gradual change of my reality until I lost all my marks and was really in a foreign environment. It was also very stressful and complicated, but that was part of the adventure. In retrospect, I’m glad I did it this way.

But the only real emotion I felt when I finally arrived and met everyone was relief. I was exhausted after all this stress and two days of non-stop travel. My following first week was healing. I arrived at a time where lots of people were on vacation. It allowed me to ease gradually into the environment, get used to things at my pace, learn about this new place, take care of all the administrative paperwork…

I came at the perfect time, both in this project and in my life.
Time to see what the future hold for me. Now, I will just let myself be carried by this project, this place, these people, like I always do.

But this time, I know for sure: I’m in the right place.

All the fun things to do as a volunteer

Hello, are you perhaps interested in volunteering ? As a volunteer myself, I can answer questions, tell you about my experiences and give you all the good reasons to go. But you’re maybe wondering what to do for fun outside of the project during a whole month once you’re here ?…

So here is a list of all the fun things to do once in Timișoara !

1. Try to play hide-and-seek in the Youth House without getting lost ! (Seriously, it’s huge and kind of a maze…)

2. Have a big friendly international dinner with the other Volunteers, and get to eat all kind of food ! (And if your cooking skills suck, it’s okay, it’s the though that count.)

3. Go on a stroll and eat an ice cream in the surrounding streets around Piața Unirii. (For real, those are really good.)

4. Get lost together while visiting the town ! It’s the best way to visit a place in all the nook and corners. Also, nothing like getting lost together to become fast friend.

5. Get to visit the art museum for free ! Did you know that as a volunteer you get free entries ? And lot of discount in general ? (I didn’t know myself when I came, it’s great!)

6. Go to have a drink along the rivers. Lot of cool places there to party !

7. Take relaxing walk and naps in the many park of the city.

8. Try all the different markets and supermarkets to compare the price and the taste ! There are so many different one, you can make a list. (And your usual one is probably around here to.)

9. Organize trips over the weekends to visits others site and cities nearby. It’s cheaper to go as a group, and the more, the merrier !

And of course, once you’re there, you can come up with as many idea yourself as you like ! So don’t hesitate to join our rank anymore if you feared being bored !