The HEROINES Project is an Erasmus+ innovative training course created to empower women with mental health challenges, making them aware about their rights, different kinds of violence and about unfair situations that they usually accept as normal.
Five European organizations made it happen: Metanoia and the Finnish Association of Biblio-Poetry therapy were the experts in charge of developing the training materials, whereas Fundación INTRAS, OZARA d.o.o., the Society of Social Psychiatry P. Sakellaropoulos and the own Finnish Association were in charge of piloting the course during eight months to test the suitability of the contents created and the methodology developed. Feedback from these four pilot courses is really positive, self-esteem of the women has increased in most of the cases, they found a safe poetry group where they were free to talk about difficult or even abusive situations that they faced in the past or even nowadays, strong bonds between women were created, etc. Overall, the therapists working with these women noticed an increase in their wellbeing and in their energy to move forward in their recovery process and personal life project.
