Community Care Kit

Community Health

Today we are facing unprecedented challenges. The mental health burden from stress, unsafety, fatigue, fear, anxiety and emotional breakdown are taking a toll on us, our families and, our communities. People are suffering and seeking help in greater numbers, including, seeking supports and counselling to cope with grief and anguish for loved ones in Palestine. Frontline staff offering social and mental health services, including Imams, are also overwhelmed. The National Council of Canadian Muslims (NCCM), along with police units across the country are reporting a sharp rise in hate. Community members need support with the hate directed at them from colleagues, teachers, employers, customers, peers or even strangers. Incidents of hate should be referred to organizations that provide support and systems navigation.

What You Can Do

There are some who will continue to suffer silently - alone. They also need our attention and support. It is important to check - in on congregants at Jummah (Friday prayers) who may avoid the mosque. This is the Sunnah of our beloved Prophet (saw).
Mobilize a team of volunteers in your respective community to check in with community members, especially seniors, newcomers, and refugees who are at greater risk of re-traumatization.
Post, share or refer them to resources and organizations in your area, that provide social services and mental health support.
Extra attention should be paid to community members with family in Gaza/Palestine. They will be experiencing anxiety, fear, guilt, helplessness, and vicarious trauma as a result of seeing horrific images from their homeland. Many have lost family members and need tangible support, along with prayers.

Helping Children Cope

Our children are looking for guidance during these traumatic times. We need to offer them alternatives to protests and rallies. Things you can do to help a child dealing with emotional distress:

Active listening, holding back judgement.
Validate their feelings.
Once you have listened,ِ repeatِ what you have heard.
Ask. If they have questions, try to answer their questions patiently and with calm. It’s okay to say, “Let’s find out together.”
Explain the situation simply using language according to age, maturity, and comprehension.
Consider the words you use. Do not express yourself using negative words that may convey fear or make them fearful.
As difficult as it may be, do not engage or expose them to political discussion, venting and demonizing other people or different sides of the conflict.
Keep them engaged by maintaining stability with regular routines, after-school programs, and healthy social activities. (See resource list).
Give them hope. Offer reminders to put their trust in Allah, be hopeful of Allah’s justice.
Offer prayer and make Duas (supplication) together.
Build resiliency by taking breaks to recharge individually and as a family.
Model self-confidence by keeping calm and expressing your trust in Allah that things will improve, Insha Allah.

Supporting Youth

The youth are vulnerable. We do not want ourselves or our youth to internalize the hate we are being exposed to from different mediums. This increases feelings of despair and helplessness. Things you can do to help youth dealing with emotional distress:

Active listening, holding back judgement.
Model healthy responses to grief and hate.
Offer constant reminders from the Quran that will provide confidence and solace.
Review CASSA’s Digital literacy toolkit for youth to talk about boundaries and
navigating online content.
Offer opportunities for social connection. For example, sports, art, youth group etc.
Validate their feelings.

Service Providers, Leaders, and Imams

Difficulty concentrating in Salah or forgetting which unit we are performing, is the first warning sign of burnout for Muslim providers. Feelings of despair and frustration take hold with deep physical and emotional fatigue. Things you can do as a service provider to protect yourself from burnout:

If you notice burnout during salah, take a break. Spend time with family or do some fun activities. Go for a walk in a park, put your cell phone away, bake, cook, play sports, or read a book.
Set limits for social media use, as well as daily news.
Mosques all over Canada are organizing additional prayer sessions. Take
advantage and attend with family when you can. Organize communal gatherings
for additional prayers such as Dikhr, Qiyamul Lail, Nafl prayers after Fajr or
Maghrib, or Qunut.
Hold healing circles where people can share their experiences, and ask questions from clinicians, elders, and Imams. (See resources).

Spiritual Stress Relievers

Recitation: Recite Alhamdulillah (Praise be to Allah) often. Counting our blessings in silence or aloud, propels us towards a positive, proactive, and patient perspective to life challenges, and enhances our spiritual courage and resiliency. Showing gratitude has psychological benefits. You could also journal or form a list for your family.
Fasting: Fasting is beneficial spiritually, such as in times of trials, grief, and vicarious trauma. Fasting brings us closer to Allah and disciplines our tendency to anger.
Charity: Give charity to those impacted by natural or man-made disasters. Charity can also be given on behalf of the deceased, benefitting both the giver and the recipient.
Sujood (prostration): is a therapeutic posture that promotes and empowers us with spiritual and mental strength. The humbling of oneself and surrendering to Allah in humility and love and crying for help and forgiveness provides sakeena (peace). Frequent Sujood will refresh our spirit and provides solace to our soul.
Wadu (ablution) is cleansing/purifying: The ritual of wadu before daily prayer, when done while remembering Allah, taking time with slow running water, refreshes us physically, spiritually, and emotionally. Mindfulness during each action in Wadu will calm our nerves and improve our mood. The fact that this is our prep for facing the Lord and Creator of all that is in the Heavens and Earth strengthens our cognitive health. Being conscious of our words and actions helps us to indulge in an introspective assessment of our strengths and weaknesses.
For self-healing remember Allah in silence: Ground yourself in a sitting position with your feet touching the ground and a straight back. Close your eyes and feel the water flowing down from your mouth to your throat. Take 3 sips of water. With every sip, recite: Bismilah-Ir-Rahman-nir-Rahim (In the name of Allah, Most Compassionate- Most Merciful). This exercise reminds us to be grateful for Allah's blessings. Water taken in this manner purifies, energizes, and cleanses our spirit and releases our mind from negative thoughts, when taken in appreciation as a favour from Allah. For self-healing remember Allah in silence. Ground yourself in a sitting position with your feet touching the ground and a straight back. Close your eyes and feel the water flowing down from your mouth to your throat. Take 3 sips of water. With every sip, recite: Bismilah-Ir-Rahman-nir-Rahim (In the name of Allah, Most Compassionate- Most Merciful). This exercise reminds us to be grateful for Allah' blessings. Water taken in this manner purifies, energizes, and cleanses our spirit and releases our mind from negative thoughts, when taken in appreciation as a favor from Allah.

Strategic Response

Delegate tasks such as communications, media engagement, issuing press releases, engaging with civic and provincial government mobilization, and drafting letters, and petitions to organizations that are experts. We can all sign on and offer support. This will coordinate the narrative, and offer a cohesive message, reflective of all provinces.
Volunteer your time and expertise to share the workload.
Make financial contributions to strengthen organizational capacity for social and mental health services.
Collect and document incidents of hate to local organizations that will connect with NCCM. This will centralize data and reduce workload.
Reach out to lawyers, psychologists, and social workers and coordinate support services with local organizations both Muslim and general service providers (eg Family Health Team, Public Health Unit, Community Health Centre etc).
Connect with allies who are educated in Human Rights, Islamophobia, and the History of Palestine to improve access to workshops and training (eg Bystander Training, Digital Literacy Training, Media Training etc).
Organize safe spaces for outreach events and teach-ins.
Offer opportunities for community members to recharge from stress and grief (see resources).