Advice for volunteers feeling strain in Ukraine
Experts offer their advice to young volunteers who are starting to feel the strain after months of war in Ukraine
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- Українська
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Since the full-scale war broke out in Ukraine in February, violence has devastated millions of lives. However, there is hope for the future – a new survey from U-Report and the Ukrainian Volunteer Service (UVS) has shown that legions of volunteers are fighting back, with one in every three people stepping up to help their fellow Ukrainians.
The survey indicated that over half of the 5,603 respondents aged 14-34 had been volunteering since 24 February. Their work included helping out at humanitarian hotspots and supporting and coordinating activities for the internally displaced. Over 50 per cent stated that helping the country was their reason for volunteering.
However, after months of hard work and amid an ongoing war, many volunteers may now be beginning to feel exhausted. Below, volunteering experts offer their advice on how to restore a sense of inner energy and find the motivation to continue.
Anna Bondarenko, the founder and head of UVS, recommends communicating more with friends and relatives to encourage healing and remember your inner mission.
"Our community finds support in communicating with each other, with other volunteers, colleagues, relatives and friends,” says Anna. “Reflections, meetings with the team and psychological counseling provide strength and an understanding of how to cope with burnout. It is important to remind ourselves that every step we take is beneficial, even if the result seems not so obvious.”
Volunteers are definitely superheroes,” she adds, “but even they can't cope with everything and respond to every need. Remember that every little action has a huge impact."
Anna also recommends reminding yourself of the motivation behind your volunteering.
"Remind yourself about the problem you are solving and how it helps others. When you see the elderly smiling after receiving a food package, it inspires you to help those who need it."
Clinical and crisis psychologist Kateryna Tkachyshyn suggests taking breaks for as long as you need, since only those with resources and inner strength can help others.
"Your main task is to stay healthy and continue this difficult marathon of challenges as long as you can,” says Kateryna. “You can't just make it a short sprint. You have to pause to rest and take care of yourself, otherwise you won't be able to keep going. This doesn't mean you give up volunteering. This is how you care for yourself so that you'll have enough resources to help others."
Volunteer Diana Lytvynova agrees it is crucial to care about your own emotions, too.
"Pay attention to your feelings of guilt or anger,” she says. “Take a break to understand uncomfortable emotions and give them a safe release. I believe volunteering is an activity for the sake of someone or something, not just a way to get busy or to work through the feeling of guilt. Positive motivation will give you more strength and inspiration to volunteer".
Anna Bondarenko and her UVS team also suggest reading books such as ‘Defining Decade’ by Meg Jay or ‘Dare to Live Your Dream’ by Barbara Sher.
"Volunteering is definitely inspiring and it helps to make a difference,” says Anna. “When we help others and see the results of it, we become happier and realize the value of our impact. In times of war and humanitarian crisis, volunteering becomes a powerful tool for engaging people in making change. Volunteering gives a deeper sense of life, kinship with other people, support, trust, interaction with others, while for some groups it even provides a feeling of security."
To discover volunteering opportunities, use the all-Ukraine Volunteer Platform.
