December Article

Finally, December is here, and while its often indicated as a time for joy and connections, it also brings professional deadlines, personal obligations, and the emotional labour of navigating social spaces. Enjoy this article as you engage with some of the activities as we conclude the year.

WOMXN LEADERS’ VIRTUAL SUPPORT CIRCLE: ‘Closing Ritual; Cultivating Calmness this Festive Season’

As the year draws to a close and the pace of the festive season begins to accelerate, we recognize the unique pressures and demandsplaced upon womxn leaders. FARUG continues to provide a virtual safe space for womxn leaders to collectively offer care and support as well as declutter, hence strengthening womxn leaders’ mental resilience, wellbeing and self-care. As a closing ritual, with guidance from the wellness journal’s theme Cultivating calmness, the virtual safe space was designed to acknowledge the significant emotional and professional labour of womxn leaders, celebrate their successes, and deliberately create a mental and emotional space for rest as they transition into the holiday period. This was a safe, confidential and affirming space for womxn leaders that offered support and allowed reflections sharing and practical strategies such as, setting Healthy Boundaries for managing expectations from work, family, and community during the holidays, Mindful Simple techniques to anchor themselves and reduce holiday stress and burnout, Peer Support and Shared Wisdom and Honouring their pace, to give themselves permission to slow down and rest without guilt thus maintaining their well-being as they celebrate the festive season while they transition into the new year.

MERRY DECEMBER; SAFETY AND SECURITY DURING FESTIVE SEASON

The festive season always comes with a lot of baggage, traumas and insecurities since, this period calls for family reunions and social gatherings. And as we head into the election period, there is increased tension, anxieties and fear among the womxn community, due to the propaganda and narratives associated to the diverse communities. As we closed out the year, it was important to remind the womxn community about their safety and security during the festive season and the forth coming elections ahead next year. Our last Social informative gathering centered around navigating both online and physical safety. The conversation emphasized the use of secure VPN, alterative Apps such as Signal, Telegram among others. For the womxn who intend to celebrate their festive seasons with their families, relatives and friends, they were cautioned to stay highly alert and conscious of their language, the circles they associate with the kinds of events and gatherings they intend to attend. This was important to ensure their safety as well prepare for the forth coming elections.

WOMXN MENSTRUAL HEALTH CAMP

Many womxn community avoid accessing menstrual health care due to fear of discrimination or lack of provider sensitivity. In bridging this gap, FARUG convened a menstrual Health SRHR camp, that was designed to centre womxn’s experiences in reproductive health with key objectives on education on dignified menstruation, and management, distribution of eco-friendly menstrual products, community through creating a peer-support environment to discuss the intersection of sexual orientation and menstrual health. facilitate the Menstrual Health SRHR camp, designed specifically to provide a safe, inclusive environment for womxn community to access specialized menstrual healthcare and rights-based information. The menstrual health camp successfully reached more than 40 womxn individuals, providing a safe and affirming environment to address menstrual health and SRHR needs that are frequently overlooked by mainstream healthcare. By centering the lived experiences of queer and non-binary Menstruators, the camp moved beyond basic hygiene to address body autonomy, gender-affirming care, and medical inclusivity.