This weekend I attended a volunteer training course for Foreign Women's Support Phone Line organized by the Foreign Women's Association Paruyon.
The course comprises of three sessions and the topic of the first session was "Introduction to Mental Health" by Dr. Joe Enright, Clinical Neuropsychologist, TELL Japan. We learned the basics of various types of mental health problems and Cognitive Behavioral Therapy, as well as effective methods to overcome the problems and self-help strategies.
TELL has a long history and has provided free telephone counseling services for international community since 1973! They have offices in Tokyo, Yokohama and Okinawa, and you can use their phone and chat service from anywhere in Japan.
Paruyon, where I work as a volunteer coordinator, also offers a support phone line service.
Volunteers who completed a peer support training course will listen to you.
Time: Third Saturday and Fourth Wednesday of the month 9:30-11:30am
Fee (regular phone charges apply)
Phone number: 080-4021-3005 Skype: Peer Support Paruyon
I can't wait to attend the other two sessions to complete the course!