Breaking the Stigma: Transform Your Mental Health Journey at the Duhok Wellness Festival!
Join us for the Duhok Wellness Festival, a collaborative experience brought to you by TRY Global, Youth Speak, and M-Therapy. As the very first event of its kind in Duhok, this transformative event offers a diverse range of wellness practices and information aimed at breaking the stigma around mental health and empowering youth in Duhok.
Throughout the day, participants can explore Trauma Recovery Yoga (TRY) classes, meditations, and mini workshops on a variety of wellness-related topics, all available on a donation basis. There will be opportunities throughout the day to engage with M-Therapy staff, as they answer questions to demystify therapy and mental health. Offered in Kurdish, Arabic and English, participants can check our full-day schedule and attend workshops and discover the wellness practices that resonate most with them.
Vendors will be selling wellness-related items throughout the day, and prizes will be raffled off at the very end. We’ll also provide lunch and enjoy each other’s company at the Youth Speak Community Center!
Don't miss this opportunity to calm your body and mind, have some fun, and learn how to create a sustainable wellness practice for yourself. Join us on Saturday, May 18th to meet like-minded people and learn tools to embrace your best self!
Practices
Workshops
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Trauma Recovery Yoga
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Chair yoga
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Yoga for kids
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Breathing techniques for stress management
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Meditation
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Self-regulation techniques
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Demystifying mental health and therapy
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Hear from YouthSpeak volunteers about their exciting community initiatives
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The basics trauma-informed care
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How stress and trauma can effect our brains and bodies
The Schedule
Class & Workshop Descriptions
Trauma Recovery Yoga
Trauma Recovery Yoga (TRY) is an all-levels class, great for beginners and experienced yogis alike. The TRY Method intentionally weaves together different mind-body tools like meditation, affirmations, breath work visualization and movement, to stimulate the vagus nerve, work with neuroplasticity and bring balance back into the brain and body.
Kids Yoga Class
Created for kids but fun for all ages, this quicker paced mat sequence offers an opportunity for emotional connection and regulation. It is also the loudest yoga you will ever “try”! Participants are assigned affirmations and encouraged to call them out verbally through the practice. Closing with a humming technique, this class is based in science and psychology that also fosters vagal toning.
Ages 6-12
Chair Yoga Class
For all levels of mobility, anyone can participate, and because of the accessibility of these postures, they can be practiced at the office, in the car, at home, etc. This class emphasizes more movement in the upper body, which helps relieve tension in the neck and shoulders. Some other benefits include vagal toning, stress relief, self-regulation, calming of the nervous system, better sleep, and elevated mood.
Self-Regulation for Resilience
This active meditation is the foundation of all TRY practices, and is for people of all levels of experience. Sitting down and laying, participants will be guided through a simple meditation that helps regulate the mind and body. It's a quick and effective way to feel calm, centered and grounded in your body.
Demystifying Mental Health & Therapy
3 Workshops will include:
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Three Main Bases for Better Mental Health
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Myths About Psychology vs. Reality
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Overview of Psychotherapy Sessions
Community Initiatives by Youth Speak Volunteers
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Stress Management
In this workshop, participants will learn about the basics of how stress and trauma may impact their brains and bodies. They'll then learn some practical tools to calm themselves, including trauma-informed breathing techniques and meditations. But that's not all! They'll also get access to these practices so they can practice on their own, after the festival.
Body Scan Meditation
In this brief meditation, participants will be guided on a journey throughout their body, strengthening their mind-body connection and feeling fully relaxed. Participants will have access to this meditation to practice after the festival as well!
Meet Your Yoga Teachers
Zainab
Sipal
Osama
Shamal
Tasneem
Nareen
Meet the Organizing Partners
TRY Global is a humanitarian organization dedicated to providing accessible, science-based mental health and trauma recovery practices through yoga, breath work, and meditation to build resilience and empower individuals and communities globally. Based in the Kurdistan Region of Iraq, their team focuses on capacity building through TRY teacher trainings, mentorship, workshops and TRY classes.
Youth Speak believes that young people know best what their communities need and understands that their voices are often marginalized, particularly in times of conflict. Youth Speak brings together youth activists from conflict-affected areas and international partners to support and mentor the ideas of young people into a sustainable reality.
M.therapy is a startup that aims to promote mental health awareness and provide mental health services to the community. M.therapy offers various programs and activities to reduce the stigma attached to mental health issues, increase awareness, and bridge the gap in mental health services in the community.
