Gaza: “I worry what will happen to people's mental health. The ceasefire needs to hold.”
Following her recent return from Gaza, child psychotherapist Katrin Glatz Brubakk discusses the state of people's mental health and explains why it is crucial for the ceasefire to hold.
Her trip last month follows Katrin's previous time in Gaza last August. Both times she worked as a mental health activities manager with Médecins Sans Frontières / Doctors Without Borders (MSF).
What was the state of people’s mental health when the ceasefire was announced?
“When the ceasefire started, people could finally breathe a bit easier. They had been in survival mode for more than 15 months and finally didn't have to worry that bombs would drop on their tents during the night or that their children might get killed while they went out to fetch bread or water. They started to gain a bit of hope that life might go back to some form of normal.
But then they started to worry about the future. How long would the ceasefire last? Could they move back to their old homes?
How long would it take before their children could get back to school, and would there even be any kind of normal life again in Gaza with all the destruction? What I saw was the "grief of peace" emerging.
During the war, survival was the only focus, but with the ceasefire, people began to grieve everything they'd lost: their houses, their normal life, family members—some still under the rubble—their children's education, their sense of security, prosperity, and hope for the future. Even though the bombs weren't falling anymore, there was still a lot of worry.
They've been clinging to the hope of getting back to their lives for as long as the ceasefire lasts. One of my colleagues said, "It doesn't matter how much has been destroyed, it doesn't matter that we've lost everything as long as they're not killing us."
I really worry about what will happen to people's mental health in Gaza. The ceasefire needs to hold.
Children have been looking forward to going back to their rooms, seeing their friends, and going to school again. If the ceasefire doesn't continue, that hope will be gone, and it will be devastating for the people of Gaza.”
“All the things that are the basis of healthy human development are being taken away from them. This war will live in these children for years to come.”
What did you encounter when you worked at Nasser Hospital in Khan Younis and at the modular field hospital in Deir-al-Balah?
“The mental health of both children and adults in Gaza has been severely affected. They have gone through immense trauma, worrying about their lives for more than a year.
We see depressive symptoms in adults and children—some pulling out their hair, biting themselves, being restless all the time, or becoming totally withdrawn from the world because they can't take it anymore.
One of the children I met in Gaza is "the koala bear." Her mother calls her that because she clings to her all the time. She’s a beautiful little girl, three years old, with curly hair and curious eyes, but as soon as you get close, she moves back, fearful, and clings even tighter to her mother.
She lived in northern Gaza with her family. First, they were bombed, and she was injured. Then they didn’t have enough food, and her little sister, just one year and two months old, starved to death. After that, this little girl started to cling to her mother constantly.
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She doesn't leave her side when she's sleeping or when she's awake, or even when she gets curious about something—she always makes sure to stay very close. These are the effects of war on children.
They spend their entire time being scared, having experienced that life can be extremely uncertain and that the worst can happen to them. They don't spend time being children as they should—playing, learning, exploring, making friends.
All the things that are the basis of healthy human development are being taken away from them. This war will live in these children for years to come.”
Why is it important that the ceasefire lasts?
“The ceasefire needs to hold because without it, these children will once again be trapped in extreme survival mode, where every moment is about staying alive.
It needs to hold because their future is being stripped away from them. The ceasefire needs to hold because the toll of this war on the people in Gaza has been immense, both physically and psychologically.
They can’t take it anymore. They can’t take the fear of getting killed every day or of keeping their children alive. The ceasefire in Gaza needs to hold because the uncertainty, fear and trauma have lasted too long for anyone to bear.”
MSF and the Israel - Gaza war
An unprecedented humanitarian crisis is unfolding in Gaza. MSF teams have worked to treat the wounded and supply overwhelmed hospitals as indiscriminate airstrikes and a state of siege threaten millions of men, women and children.