Northwold resident and registered lay counsellor offers telephonic counselling

During the lockdown, Chizhande made her services available through an organisation which specialises in online counselling. Outside of that, she made her services available throughout lockdown on her Facebook page.

Chizhande has always been passionate about mental health which led to her to pursue a career which allowed her to give people the tools to take care of themselves and land softly when dealt a difficult hand.
Through telephone conversations, she would counsel people through the body she worked for where she would provide open-ended guidance to people who would call in. This continued in her personal capacity free of charge on the hotline she provided on her Facebook page where she received a good response from her followers who sought mental health support.

She said that consistently being indoors during lockdown had a negative effect on the mental health of many who sought her services. Those who had established mechanisms to cope with life’s demands, which involved being outside and social activities, were at a disadvantage due to lockdown restrictions. This was followed by the domino effects of Covid-19 such as being financially displaced.

As life winds back to normal, Chizhande expressed that many find themselves anxious to pick up where they left off. Although due to the unexpected interruptions, she offered uncertainty as to if this was the best way to approach the country’s newfound freedom.

Details: Purity Chizhande 073 108 3112; Facebook page Purity Chizhande Counseling 1 on 1