Mental Health Resilience Tour at Kenya Medical Training College (KMTC) Mombasa.

The Kenya Mentals and AIDS NGOs Consortium (KMAANCO) organized and hosted the KMTC Mental Resilience Tour to strengthen substance use prevention, mental wellbeing, and resilience among students at Kenya Medical Training College (KMTC).

Recognizing that stress, trauma, anxiety, depression, and other mental health challenges can increase the risk of substance use, the tour focused on equipping students with the knowledge and skills needed to build resilience, make healthy decisions, and seek support before challenges escalate into harmful coping behaviors.

The event brought together students in an interactive learning environment featuring discussions on substance use prevention, mental health, stress management, peer influence, emotional wellbeing, HIV/AIDS, and tuberculosis (TB). Participants explored the underlying factors that contribute to substance use among young people, including academic pressure, social influences, financial hardship, family challenges, and stigma, while learning practical strategies for prevention and recovery.

As part of the initiative, KMAANCO launched the KMTC Mental Resilience Club and the Safe Space Initiative, creating a confidential and supportive platform where students can access peer support, mentorship, psychosocial guidance, early intervention, and referral services. The initiative aims to strengthen protective factors, encourage help-seeking behavior, reduce stigma, and promote healthy lifestyles free from substance misuse.

Through this program, KMAANCO continues to advance evidence-informed approaches to substance use prevention by integrating mental health promotion, resilience building, peer support, and public health education. The organization remains committed to empowering young people to make informed choices, improve their wellbeing, and become champions of prevention within their institutions and communities.

#KMAANCO #MentalHealth #Resilience #KMTC #SafeSpaces #YouthEmpowerment #EndTheStigma

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