Latest news with #TheFriendshipBench:HowFourteenGrandmothersInspiredaMentalHealthRevolution
Yahoo
09-02-2025
- Health
- Yahoo
The Friendship Bench: Bringing talk therapy into underserved communities
Dr. Dixon Chibanda remembers like yesterday the moment in 2005 that changed his life. "During my formative years working as a psychiatrist, I lost a patient of mine to suicide. Erica was her name. She had hanged herself from a mango tree in the family garden." Erica was just 25 years old. Chibanda, a psychiatrist based in Harare, Zimbabwe, says her family knew she needed help. "They lived some 200 miles away from where I worked," he said. "And they just didn't have the equivalent of US$15 to get onto a bus to come to the hospital." At the time, there were only 10 psychiatrists serving 13 million people in Zimbabwe. So, Chibanda came up with an idea involving grandmothers: "These grandmas were actually, you know, the custodians of the local culture and the wisdom, and they were rooted in their communities. And I was like, what if we could train them to be the first port of call for anyone needing to talk in a community?" So, in 2006, Chibanda introduced the "Friendship Bench," a talk therapy program that brings mental healthcare directly into underserved communities. The program is free, and the grandmothers were happy to donate their time. He chronicled this journey in a new book: "The Friendship Bench: How Fourteen Grandmothers Inspired a Mental Health Revolution" (New World Library). "When I first started this, in fact we called it the Mental Health Bench," he said. "Interestingly, nobody came to the Mental Health Bench, because of the stigma, until the grandmas said, 'You know, why don't you turn it into a Friendship Bench?'" During that first year, 14 volunteer grandmothers shared a Friendship Bench with several hundred visitors in that one suburb. Chibanda says the program has since expanded beyond grandmothers to include over 3,000 older listeners who last year saw more than 300,000 people all over Zimbabwe. He said, "There are a lot of people out there who are struggling to just connect with another human being. And this gives them that opportunity, to be able to sit down with someone who is empathic." Globally, just under 300 million people are struggling with depression, according to the World Health Organization. Only about one-third of them receive any treatment. And at a time when we're facing an epidemic of loneliness and isolation affecting 1 in 5 American adults (according to a 2024 Gallup poll), the Friendship Bench is hitting the road, expanding to vulnerable communities in 9 countries and counting, including the United States. At the Washington Seniors Wellness Center, in our nation's capital, the program is being piloted by the nonprofit organization HelpAge USA, which focuses on the inclusion of older people. Seventy-four-year-old Arnette Ibitayo says she was struggling with the deaths of her son and brother. "My son's was sudden; he had a heart attack at 44," she said. "And then my brother had COVID." She turned to the Friendship Bench. "So I'm, you know, feeling down, depressed," she said. "I think I need to talk to somebody, because I felt like isolating and staying home. And it was very comforting to get it out. And I wasn't judged, and I was able to speak freely, and the person gave me some helpful advice." That person was Theresa Kelly, a retired schoolteacher, who listened to Ibitayo's story. "We don't solve problems for them," Kelly said. "Sometimes you don't realize that you can be your own problem solver. And when they finish, we want them to leave empowered." A screening process refers more serious cases to professionals. For almost 20 years now, Dr. Chibanda has been using his medical training to help analyze and improve the program. "The Friendship Bench is actually rooted in a lot of research," he said. "These grandmas were a lot more effective than trained mental health professionals at alleviating symptoms of both depression and generalized anxiety disorders." Arnette Ibitayo said she felt better after just one session with Kelly: "I was more at ease. It worked. It was working." "You feel a little less depressed now?" I asked. "Yes, uh-huh. There's hope that things are going to be better." So, what's the special sauce when it comes to grandparents? According to Chibanda, it is "the natural abilities that come with having a long-lived life on the planet. They've seen a lot. They've experienced a lot. They have, you know, the battle scars of life, which they bring to the bench. All we're doing as Friendship Bench is helping them to use those stories, those experiences, to help others." And the bench is giving them something back. Theresa Kelly said, "I love helping people, empowering people. It makes me feel good. Makes me feel that [I have] still another purpose, that after retirement there's still something, you know, that I can do that can help others, that it's not over." For more info: Chibanda, Centre for Global Mental HealthAfrican Mental Health Research Initiative (AMARI)Friendship Bench DC (HelpAge USA)Washington Seniors Wellness Center, Washington, "The Friendship Bench" (SeaLion Films)"The Friendship Bench: How Fourteen Grandmothers Inspired a Mental Health Revolution" by Dixon Chibanda, MD (New World Library), in Trade Paperback and eBook formats, available April 22 via Amazon, Barnes & Noble and Story produced by Robbyn McFadden. Editor: Joseph Frandino. If you or someone you know is in emotional distress or a suicidal crisis, you can reach the 988 Suicide & Crisis Lifeline by calling or texting 988. You can also chat with the 988 Suicide & Crisis Lifeline here. For more information about mental health care resources and support, The National Alliance on Mental Illness (NAMI) HelpLine can be reached Monday through Friday, 10 a.m.–10 p.m. ET, at 1-800-950-NAMI (6264) or email info@ See also: Chip Reid on addressing the long-term mental health of U.S. service members ("Sunday Morning")Addressing the pandemic's mental health fallout ("Sunday Morning")Recognizing the signs of postpartum depression ("Sunday Morning")SAINT: Hope for new treatment of depression ("Sunday Morning")Melissa & Doug co-founder opens up about her secret struggle ("Sunday Morning")Reaching out: How caring letters help in suicide prevention ("Sunday Morning") Extended interview: Cynthia Erivo The Friendship Bench: Bringing talk therapy into underserved communities Weaving a fascination for lace
CBS News
09-02-2025
- Health
- CBS News
The Friendship Bench: Bringing talk therapy into underserved communities
Dr. Dixon Chibanda remembers like yesterday the moment in 2005 that changed his life. "During my formative years working as a psychiatrist, I lost a patient of mine to suicide. Erica was her name. She had hanged herself from a mango tree in the family garden." Erica was just 25 years old. Chibanda, a psychiatrist based in Harare, Zimbabwe, says her family knew she needed help. "They lived some 200 miles away from where I worked," he said. "And they just didn't have the equivalent of US$15 to get onto a bus to come to the hospital." At the time, there were only 10 psychiatrists serving 13 million people in Zimbabwe. So, Chibanda came up with an idea involving grandmothers: "These grandmas were actually, you know, the custodians of the local culture and the wisdom, and they were rooted in their communities. And I was like, what if we could train them to be the first port of call for anyone needing to talk in a community?" So, in 2006, Chibanda introduced the "Friendship Bench," a talk therapy program that brings mental healthcare directly into underserved communities. The program is free, and the grandmothers were happy to donate their time. He chronicled this journey in a new book: "The Friendship Bench: How Fourteen Grandmothers Inspired a Mental Health Revolution" (New World Library). "When I first started this, in fact we called it the Mental Health Bench," he said. "Interestingly, nobody came to the Mental Health Bench, because of the stigma, until the grandmas said, 'You know, why don't you turn it into a Friendship Bench?'" During that first year, 14 volunteer grandmothers shared a Friendship Bench with several hundred visitors in that one suburb. Chibanda says the program has since expanded beyond grandmothers to include over 3,000 older listeners who last year saw more than 300,000 people all over Zimbabwe. He said, "There are a lot of people out there who are struggling to just connect with another human being. And this gives them that opportunity, to be able to sit down with someone who is empathic." Globally, just under 300 million people are struggling with depression, according to the World Health Organization. Only about one-third of them receive any treatment. And at a time when we're facing an epidemic of loneliness and isolation affecting 1 in 5 American adults (according to a 2024 Gallup poll), the Friendship Bench is hitting the road, expanding to vulnerable communities in 9 countries and counting, including the United States. At the Washington Seniors Wellness Center, in our nation's capital, the program is being piloted by the nonprofit organization HelpAge USA, which focuses on the inclusion of older people. Seventy-four-year-old Arnette Ibitayo says she was struggling with the deaths of her son and brother. "My son's was sudden; he had a heart attack at 44," she said. "And then my brother had COVID." She turned to the Friendship Bench. "So I'm, you know, feeling down, depressed," she said. "I think I need to talk to somebody, because I felt like isolating and staying home. And it was very comforting to get it out. And I wasn't judged, and I was able to speak freely, and the person gave me some helpful advice." That person was Theresa Kelly, a retired schoolteacher, who listened to Ibitayo's story. "We don't solve problems for them," Kelly said. "Sometimes you don't realize that you can be your own problem solver. And when they finish, we want them to leave empowered." A screening process refers more serious cases to professionals. For almost 20 years now, Dr. Chibanda has been using his medical training to help analyze and improve the program. "The Friendship Bench is actually rooted in a lot of research," he said. "These grandmas were a lot more effective than trained mental health professionals at alleviating symptoms of both depression and generalized anxiety disorders." Arnette Ibitayo said she felt better after just one session with Kelly: "I was more at ease. It worked. It was working." "You feel a little less depressed now?" I asked. "Yes, uh-huh. There's hope that things are going to be better." So, what's the special sauce when it comes to grandparents? According to Chibanda, it is "the natural abilities that come with having a long-lived life on the planet. They've seen a lot. They've experienced a lot. They have, you know, the battle scars of life, which they bring to the bench. All we're doing as Friendship Bench is helping them to use those stories, those experiences, to help others." And the bench is giving them something back. Theresa Kelly said, "I love helping people, empowering people. It makes me feel good. Makes me feel that [I have] still another purpose, that after retirement there's still something, you know, that I can do that can help others, that it's not over." For more info: Dixon Chibanda, Centre for Global Mental Health African Mental Health Research Initiative (AMARI) Friendship Bench DC (HelpAge USA) Washington Seniors Wellness Center, Washington, D.C. Documentary:"The Friendship Bench" (SeaLion Films) "The Friendship Bench: How Fourteen Grandmothers Inspired a Mental Health Revolution" by Dixon Chibanda, MD (New World Library), in Trade Paperback and eBook formats, available April 22 via Amazon, Barnes & Noble and Story produced by Robbyn McFadden. Editor: Joseph Frandino. If you or someone you know is in emotional distress or a suicidal crisis, you can reach the 988 Suicide & Crisis Lifeline by calling or texting 988. You can also chat with the 988 Suicide & Crisis Lifeline here. For more information about mental health care resources and support, The National Alliance on Mental Illness (NAMI) HelpLine can be reached Monday through Friday, 10 a.m.–10 p.m. ET, at 1-800-950-NAMI (6264) or email info@ See also:
CBS News
06-02-2025
- Entertainment
- CBS News
This week on "Sunday Morning" (February 9)
The Emmy Award-winning "CBS News Sunday Morning" is broadcast on CBS Sundays beginning at 9:00 a.m. ET. "Sunday Morning" also streams on the CBS News app beginning at 11:00 a.m. ET. (Download it here.) Hosted by Jane Pauley. COVER STORY: Pitch perfect: Commercial spokespeople talk about their TV fame You know them at Flo, the Progressive Insurance saleswoman; Mayhem, the human embodiment of disasters covered by Allstate; and the unstoppable dancer from the Jardiance diabetes drug ads. Correspondent David Pogue talks with actors Stephanie Courtney, Dean Winters and Deanna Colon about how becoming nationally famous via TV commercials has (or hasn't) changed their lives. Stephanie Courtney, The Groundlings Follow Dean Winters on Instagram Follow Deanna Colon on Instagram ALMANAC: Feb 9 "Sunday Morning" looks back at historical events on this date. ARTS: The art of boxing Rita Braver reports. For more info: For more info: "Jim Gaffigan: The Skinny" on Hulu HEALTH: The Friendship Bench: Bringing talk therapy into underserved communities Dr. Dixon Chibanda was one of the few practicing psychiatrists in Zimbabwe when he founded the Friendship Bench, a program that trained grandmothers to serve as "first responders" for those seeking mental health assistance in underserved communities. The program has since grown to include nearly 3,000 elderly listeners attending to more than 200,000 people all over Zimbabwe, and is now expanding to vulnerable communities in nine countries, including the United States. Chibanda talks with CBS News chief medical correspondent Dr. Jon LaPook about how elderly advisers can be effective at alleviating symptoms of both depression and generalized anxiety disorders. Dixon Chibanda, Centre for Global Mental Health African Mental Health Research Initiative (AMARI) Friendship Bench DC (HelpAge USA) Washington Seniors Wellness Center, Washington, D.C. Documentary: "The Friendship Bench" (SeaLion Films) "The Friendship Bench: How Fourteen Grandmothers Inspired a Mental Health Revolution" by Dixon Chibanda, MD (New World Library), in Trade Paperback and eBook formats, available April 22 via Amazon, Barnes & Noble and PASSAGE: In memoriam "Sunday Morning" remembers some of the notable figures who left us this week. MEDIA: The New Yorker magazine's first hundred years The New Yorker, the beloved weekly magazine encompassing journalism, fiction, poetry and cartoons, is celebrating its one-hundredth birthday. "Sunday Morning" contributor (and New Yorker writer) Kelefa Sanneh goes inside the magazine's history with editor David Remnick, manager Bruce Diones, and Fergus McIntosh, who leads the magazine's battalion of fact-checkers, to discuss The New Yorker's longevity, national reach, and idiosyncratic appeal. For more info: The New Yorker "A Century of Fiction in The New Yorker 1925-2025," edited by Deborah Treisman (Knopf), in Hardcover, eBook and Audio formats, available February 25 via Amazon, Barnes & Noble and "A Century of Poetry in The New Yorker 1925-2025," edited by Kevin Young (Knopf), in Hardcover, eBook and Audio formats, available February 25 via Amazon, Barnes & Noble and Exhibition: "A Century of The New Yorker," beginning Feb. 25, at the New York Public Library, New York City HARTMAN: Met guard MOVIES: "Wicked" star Cynthia Erivo on soaring to success Cynthia Erivo, the dynamic vocalist who has won a Tony Award, a Grammy, and an Emmy, is now up for a best actress Oscar for playing Elphaba in the movie version of the musical "Wicked." She joins correspondent Seth Doane in East London, to show him the theater where she got her start. Erivo also discusses why she's often felt like the odd one out; how an estrangement from her father drove her to succeed; what she brought to the role of the Wicked Witch of the West; and the power she feels from singing live on a film set. For more info: "Wicked" is playing in theaters, and is available on Blu-Ray/DVD and VOD Follow Cynthia Erivo on Instagram ARTS: Weaving a fascination for lace A delicate jewel among textiles, lace is an elegant and deceptively simple creation whose appeal has been spun for centuries. Correspondent Lee Cowan teases the threads of the misunderstood history of lace, and talks with some of the hundreds of lacemakers who shared their craft at the annual convention of the International Organization of Lace, Inc. BEVERAGES: A spirited take on maple syrup This is not your grandad's maple syrup; Hollerhorn Distilling, in Naples, N.Y., makes spirits from locally-produced maple syrup, transforming the golden nectar, aged in used bourbon casks, into a clear, 80-to-100 proof liquor. Correspondent Luke Burbank takes a sip. COMMENTARY: Sports Illustrated's 4th-quarter comeback The great comeback makes for one of the most popular sports tropes – and Sports Illustrated got to live one, when the venerable weekly magazine and its staff overcame financial obstacles to maintain its 70-year-long print tradition of sports journalism. "60 Minutes" correspondent Jon Wertheim comments on how a team, near defeat, refused to concede and came back as winners. WEB EXCLUSIVES: The Vespa, the sporty Italian motorbike, is as much a fashion accessory as it is a set of wheels. Seth Doane visits the Vespa factory in Pontedera, Italy, and takes a trip through Rome with Annie Ojile, an American expat who started a Vespa tour company, Scooteroma. (Originally broadcast on May 21, 2017.) For more info: Scooteroma, Rome Vespa Club NYC (Facebook) IN MEMORIAM: Notable Deaths in 2025 (Gallery) A look back at the esteemed personalities who left us this year, who'd touched us with their innovation, creativity and humanity. Full episodes of "Sunday Morning" are now available to watch on demand on and Paramount+, including via Apple TV, Android TV, Roku, Chromecast, Amazon FireTV/FireTV stick and Xbox.
