In ICUUW, we’ve been concerned with women’s mental health for some time. Depression, anxiety, and panic attacks are still often unspoken concerns, despite significantly impacting our overall well-being. These conditions are not gender-specific; they are global public health issues and the WHO has noted that globally, over 1 billion people are living with mental health conditions. Research has shown that women experience depression and anxiety at twice the rate of men. Every day, millions of women navigate stress, anxiety, grief, and trauma alone and in silence--without much support at home or outside, despite available resources. The situation is even more serious in remote and underserved communities, where professional services are scarce or carry significant social and cultural stigma.
In July 2021, we hosted an international roundtable of U*U women leaders discussing the losses and traumas generated by the COVID pandemic, offering coping and healing strategies for individuals and communities alike. Panelists included members from the Philippines, Romania, India and USA. This roundtable was taped and made available on our YouTube channel with the title Healing from Trauma across Cultures. Even five years after COVID, the strategies for coping are still good reminders.
In 2023, ICUUW and UNOSZ (the Unitarian Women's Association of Romania) addressed the need for more information and support with "mental health weekends" for women. In partnership with UNOSZ, we conducted a series of mental health weekend workshops for women in Transylvania, where throughout 2023 and 2024 approximately 100 women developed skills and competencies to cope with stress, trauma, problems, and adversities in life.
In 2025, the success of these workshops inspired us to ask: How can we help others and extend these benefits to women around the world? And thus, we started working on a handbook based on the workshops.
Earlier this year, Board member Rev Erika Orbán conducted two online resilience workshops reaching almost 30 participants. The workshops offered a gentle, meaningful space to explore what sustains and what connects us. Erika covered five ways to tap into our spiritual resources and guided us in discovering the universal in the personal while experiencing our interconnectedness as a global UU community.
Also this year, the work on the mental health handbook was completed and we published Mental Well-Being for Everyone on our website to make it available to everyone. The handbook was edited by Gizi Nagy and Zsofi Sztranyiczki, and is available in both Hungarian and English. The handbook cannot replace professional care; we do believe it can provide valuable guidance, help people, especially women, recognize signs of emotional distress, encourage healthy coping mechanisms, and remind them that they are not alone.
ICUUW knows that when women are equipped with the tools and resources for their well-being, they are better able to care for themselves and their families, to contribute to their communities, and to thrive.
As a global partnership of Unitarian*Universalists who work for all women’s and girls’ equity through U*U connections around the world, we are a network that makes available resources created by women in one part of the world to women living in other parts far away. We’ve already heard from our members in India that they want to translate the mental health handbook into their local language and use it for workshops there!
The insights gained and knowledge created in one place can reach women far beyond the place of origin, demonstrating that compassion, education, and partnership truly know no borders.