Every August, the country celebrates Women’s Month to highlight the remarkable achievements of women – past and present – who have contributed to building a better society.

However, South African women and girls face significant mental health challenges, exacerbated by socio-economic disparities, historical inequalities, gender-based violence (GBV), and cultural factors.

To address these challenges, the School of Hard Knocks (SoHK), a Cape Town-based mental health and sport non-profit organisation, has launched the NxtGenWomxn initiative. This targeted intervention is crucial for addressing the unique mental health burdens that women bear.

Last week, SoHK celebrated a group of 20 young women who completed a three-week training course to become facilitators of the NxtGenWomxn program. These facilitators work for community development organisations across Cape Town, particularly in disadvantaged areas like Khayelitsha, Gugulethu, and Hanover Park, which are plagued by social ills.

They were trained to deliver the NxtGenWomxn programme, which consists of six one-hour long sessions. Each session is designed to create a safe environment where participants can reflect on their experiences and experiment with new ways of thinking and behaving. These sessions aim to enhance their ability to recognise and regulate emotions, improve relationships, cope with emotional distress, and boost their overall mental well-being. Results show that 77% of participants report improved mental health, 93% have better relationships, 74% learn healthy ways to deal with overwhelming emotions, and 64% learn who to reach out to when they are struggling.

The programme’s purpose is to address the trauma that girls and women endure by fostering a safe space that encourages sharing, learning, and support. It also provides access to mental health resources and costs less than R100 per person per session to deliver. This programme is a much-needed cost-effective intervention for the mental health crisis our country faces.

To date, NxtGenWomxn has reached over 500 women and girls and has been extremely well-received. Hence the need for more facilitators to be trained to widen the reach and impact.

Lana Rolfe, SoHK’s Chief Operating Officer, explained the rationale behind the program: “In 2022, our partner schools reported higher levels of self-harm, substance abuse, teenage pregnancy, and suicide ideation and attempts than ever before. There was an urgent need for a shorter, focused intervention for adolescent girls. After consultations and focus groups with topic experts, SoHK SA created a six-part, evidence-based curriculum. The program has been extensively piloted and is now ready for phase one roll-out.”

One of the newly trained facilitators, Tammy-Jo Matthews from the Hanover Park-based First Community Resource Centre, works primarily with young girls and children with traumatic backgrounds. She said, “I’ve learned a lot of techniques and tools that I can now implement with the kids I work with, all of whom come from backgrounds of trauma and struggle to deal with their emotions. With the tools and manual we received from this workshop, I can now support our young girls and even our boys in regulating their emotions, having difficult conversations, and understanding the importance of relationships and mental health.”

Matthews highlighted a significant challenge in her community: many women are in unhealthy relationships but don’t recognize the toxicity. “They don’t understand that the relationship is unhealthy; they think it’s normal. Understanding that they are worthy of so much more will give them a sense of belonging and the tools to leave the situations they are struggling to escape.”

She shared a tragic story from early August when she attended the funeral of a woman allegedly killed by her gangster partner. “She didn’t know how to leave the relationship, so she was stuck there for years, and now it has led to her death. It’s heartbreaking, and we must start working with young girls to make them understand their worth and that they don’t have to stay in such relationships and environments.”

Another participant, Indivile Magadlela from Gugulethu, was impressed by the emotional well-being and personal coping mechanisms taught in the NxtGenWomxn program. “The tools we’ve gained will help us be emotionally stronger, and we can pass these skills on to others. This program has empowered me with the skills to deal with mental health situations and, more importantly, to share those skills with others, whether at work, in the community, or within the family.”

Nontuthuzelo Ndongeni, also from Gugulethu, reflected on the stigma around mental health in black families, where talking about such issues is often discouraged, leading to deteriorating mental health. “For me, the big thing is to help kids so they don’t experience the mental health challenges we faced. To prevent it before it even happens. In underprivileged communities, people don’t talk about mental health or how it impacts physical well-being. Exposing children to these kinds of helping mechanisms drives me to be involved in community development work.”

To find out more, visit the School of Hard Knocks website at www.schoolofhardknocks.co.za or contact the SoHK team at info@schoolofhardknocks.co.za