A few months ago, after one of our sessions, a young child quietly waited behind while the others left. They looked up at me and said they wanted to become a “doctor for the mind” one day, because before these lessons, they didn’t know helping people who feel sad, scared, or overwhelmed was even something you could do.

On another day, a teacher told me that one of their pupils, who had previously been withdrawn and struggling, had started helping other children when they were upset, repeating the exact words they had learned in our sessions: “You’re not alone. It’s okay to talk.” The teacher said, “This is already changing how they care for each other.”

I’m raising £2,000 to continue and grow a mental health project I built from the ground up in communities across Africa where there is currently no mental health provision and where people have told me they need this support above anything else.

When I first visited, I didn’t arrive with assumptions. I asked simple questions: Do you want support? What would help you most? The answer was clear. They wanted to understand their minds, to help their children cope with adversity, and to build something that could last.

As a mental health professional, I created tailored lesson plans and began working in schools with pupils and teachers. Over the past three years, this has grown into training trainers across kindergartens, primary and secondary schools, adult education centres, safe houses, orphanages, and wider community groups.

I’ve sat with rooms full of adults who told me no one had ever spoken to them about mental health before and watched as they realised they could now support not only themselves, but others. I’ve seen children learn they are not “broken,” just human. I’ve seen teachers realise they can support students in ways they never thought possible. I’ve had community members approach me after sessions asking, “When will you come back? We need more of this. We want to teach others.”

The goal has always been sustainability: empowering local people with the knowledge, skills, and confidence to support mental health within their own communities, in their own ways. That’s now happening. People who once had no access to this knowledge are becoming leaders and teachers themselves. Children have spoken about wanting to become mental health doctors. Teachers, carers, and community leaders are stepping forward and requesting further training so they can continue this work long-term.

They want more. They are ready for more. And the most powerful part is that this is becoming sustainable - communities building their own mental health support, in their own voices, in their own way.

I do this work voluntarily. I don’t get paid for it. I fund the travel, materials, and give my professional time freely because I believe access to mental health support should not depend on where you are born. But as a self-employed professional, this means taking unpaid time away from my business, without paid leave or income, and personally covering the costs to continue. I’m deeply committed to this work, but I can’t sustain making multiple trips each year entirely from my own pocket.

With your support, I can continue training trainers, expanding access, and helping communities build their own lasting mental health support systems. Your contribution directly enables this work. You’re providing the funding; I’m providing the time, skills, and ongoing commitment.

Your donation isn’t just funding a trip. It’s helping a teacher support hundreds of students. It’s helping a caregiver understand trauma. It’s helping a child realise they have a future and that they can help others too.

From kindergarten to primary school, high school, adult education centres, safe houses and orphanages, people of all ages have benefitted from learning how to look after their mental health, cope with adversity, develop a more positive mindset, and navigate the stresses of life in their communities.

Mental health support simply doesn’t exist in many of these places. But together, we can help change that. With relatively small contributions, something truly life changing can continue and grow.

With your support, I will continue giving my time, expertise, and heart to this work.

Donate here or take a look at all the charity work projects I'm supporting and other ways you can get involved here: https://www.drvikkibarnes.com/charity-work

Thank you for helping make mental health support possible where it doesn’t yet exist and for being part of this story.