Thomas Okumu,third on the right row (tall guy) ,behind the lady with the red T-shirt ,during a Team Building activity facilitated by MIDRIFT HURINET


“As Thomas Okumu, I serve as a PFA provider in the Bondeni intervention area.

This role has equipped me with the necessary skills and knowledge to address mental health issues.

I am a Community Health Promoter, an elder, a pastor, and a businessman at Top Market in Nakuru Town.

In my line of work, I encounter various Mental Health concerns affecting the community.

Through training and experiences in different fields, I can use what I have learned and my emotional intelligence to respond to various issues.

One notable situation happened in my place of work.

A colleague trader found out that another lady trader had an affair with her husband.

This did not go well with her.

She had always trusted him and believed in the quiet promises of his love.

She wondered how she missed the signs, how his eyes no longer seemed to belong to her, how the spark that once lit their conversations had dimmed.

The woman, who once radiated confidence and security, now felt like a shadow of herself, questioning her worth and value and whether the love they shared was real or just an illusion.

She is caught in a paradox: clinging to what she once believed while quietly mourning the love that has slipped through her fingers.

She confronted the lady, and this did not go well. It generated an altercation that nearly turned into a fight.

I stepped in and calmed the situation, now attracting bystanders and traders.

The lady explained the situation, and I called my colleague at work to get her side of the story.

After listening to them, I called the husband, who opened up and narrated what had happened.

His father rejected the idea of him being part of the case and said it was a family issue his son could solve.

I went back to the lady whose husband was accused of having an affair and inquired if she needed more help from me.

She agreed, and I took her through a PFA session, which later linked her to a PM+ Helper.

After a few weeks, she called me and informed me that the PM+ Helper had been helpful to her, her family, and her Mental Health.

She also said her relationship with her husband is now good.

I felt a surge of warmth ripple through the calls, a quiet but profound sense of fulfillment.

The voice on the other end was filled with gratitude, a weight lifted, as she expressed her thanks for the support she received from the PM+ helper.

There is a deep satisfaction in knowing that the referral, a simple act that may have seemed minor at the moment, has had such a transformative impact on this person's journey toward healing.

The sense of connection is palpable.

It's a feeling of quiet victory, a recognition that my role, though sometimes invisible in the grand scheme of things, is crucial in the quiet moments of someone's recovery.

I smiled softly, knowing I had helped give someone the tools to rebuild. As the call ended, I felt an overwhelming sense of purpose—a reminder of why I had chosen this path in the first place.

 

The situation also helped me realize that the skills imparted from PFA training are instrumental in helping community members manage life challenges, as other traders started coming to me and sharing their issues; I assisted in some and referred others.

I also enlightened them on other mental health concerns, how to address them, and the available referral networks.

I have also reinforced the same message to the people I minister to.

With a heart full of compassion and a mind equipped to recognize the signs of distress, I open a safe space for healing that transcends traditional boundaries.

By weaving mental health discussions into sermons, prayer meetings, and one-on-one conversations, I gently dismantle the stigma that surrounds emotional pain, offering both spiritual and psychological support.

My words are drenched in scripture and grounded in practical wisdom. I encourage congregants to seek help, not hide in shame, and to see mental health as just as worthy of care as physical health.

My role is profound. By embracing my training in PFA, I bring a sense of wholeness to the ministry, making the church a sanctuary for the soul and mind.

In doing so, I transform the church into a true community, where healing isn't just spiritual, but deeply human, where vulnerability is met with empathy and care, and where no one walks alone in their mental health journey."

By:Jacob Karani