Interview with Elizabeth Irvin, LCSW, Executive Director of The Women’s Initiative

Who do you aim to help at the Women’s Initiative, and what do you hope to accomplish as an organization in doing so?

Our clients are women as well as transgender and gender nonconforming individuals who would otherwise not have access to mental health care in our community. Most of those who receive care with us have experienced traumas including abuse, violence, divorce, illness, the death of loved ones, racism, homophobia, transphobia, police brutality, immigration, and acculturation that significantly impact their mental and physical health.

Our goal is to support each individual’s capacity for healing by providing effective counseling, social support, and education so they can transform life challenges into positive change and growth. We believe that this work results in better mental and physical health not only for the individual being served but also their family and community.

Why is your organization focused specifically on women’s mental health? What are the challenges unique to women that seek your services, and do they reflect statistical or cultural trends in broader American society and/or population? 

Women face unique challenges to their emotional well-being and ability to access care due to numerous social and economic issues, including insufficient financial resources, caregiving burdens, discrimination, and disproportionate trauma from experiences including domestic violence, sexual assault, racism, homophobia, police brutality, immigration and acculturation, and transphobia.

Women and communities of color in our region—as throughout the country—have also been uniquely impacted by COVID-19. We are only just beginning to understand the impact of the pandemic and resultant economic recession on our community’s mental health and ability to access care. We anticipate a substantial increase in the need for our work as we come into pandemic recovery. 

Given the plethora of structural and personal issues that have been exacerbated for many due to the pandemic, has there been a primary or major issue that’s been brought up with clients during this time?

One major theme that cuts across many people’s experiences of the pandemic is grief. There is, of course, the grief of losing loved ones, whether to COVID or for any other reason, and not being able to gather to mourn and find comfort with family and friends. There is the grief of losses of jobs and financial security. There is the different but still very real grief of not being able to mark milestones and accomplishments—graduations and weddings and births we couldn’t attend. And there is also the grief over the loss of everyday life as we knew it.

Your organization seems to serve a diverse group of clients, who likely face many different types of issues based on their different identities and life experiences. How do you meet the varying needs of your clients, and have there been any challenges in doing so?

Absolutely—our trauma-informed, culturally responsive approach is based on a recognition of how identity, life experiences, discrimination and violence impact an individual’s healing process, particularly for groups that experience systemic oppression. Racism, immigration and acculturation stress, xenophobia, transphobia, police brutality—these all compromise an individual’s sense of safety and well-being and require unique support. 

We currently have two programs that are designed to support women of color during a time of ongoing racial trauma. The Sister Circle Program aims to meet the unique needs of people from across the African diaspora who identify as women. Their offerings include support groups for Black women; mind-body programs like yoga and West African Dance; and Call-in Clinics that are staffed by Black therapists. The Bienestar Program (“bienestar” means “well-being” in Spanish) offers mental health to Latina women in Spanish. Their offerings include support groups, mindfulness and stress reduction education, and a Call-in Clinic staffed by Spanish-speaking therapists.

In addition to these specific programs, our entire agency is committed to a cultural humility approach with the goal of building authentic and healing relationships across difference with our clients, the communities we serve, and our colleagues. We embrace this particular term, “cultural humility,” which originates in the health care field, because it describes an ongoing process—rather than a box you can check—of critical self-reflection, mitigation of power imbalances, and institutional change. We see this as the way forward to address longstanding health disparities for communities that experience systemic oppression. 

You have been providing your services mostly though telehealth due to the pandemic. What kinds of benefits and challenges have risen from that, especially considering disparities in internet access?

Pivoting to telehealth early in the pandemic enabled us to offer uninterrupted mental health care to the community, including individual counseling, Call-in Clinics, and virtual groups.

We’ve found that telehealth offers a huge number of benefits to many of our clients. Specifically, telehealth has made it a lot easier for many to make their counseling appointments because it removes barriers around transportation and childcare, and in general is easier to fit in with work and family schedules. Our agency was built around providing radical access to mental health care to all who need it—and so even as we begin to offer in-person care at our offices again, we will continue to offer telehealth as a service into the future because we see how it enables some individuals to more easily access care.

Nonetheless there is a minority of people for whom telehealth poses more challenges. Access to reliable internet can be an issue, although since we are also able to do sessions over the phone, we have ways around this. A more pervasive issue is privacy: Many people do not have a space in their home or community where they feel they can have a confidential conversation. To address these issues, we have been offering access to telehealth in our office: in other words, a client can use one of our computers in a private space at our Main Office to speak to their therapist. 

The other thing that you miss with telehealth is the calming experience of coming to a safe place for a period of time that is all about nourishing yourself. Before the pandemic, many of our clients described how a trip to our office was a weekly treat—a bit of self-care in and of itself. Many clients would come early to sit and have a cup of tea in our peaceful waiting room before their appointment with a counselor. We’re looking forward to a time when we can offer that again. 

What would you suggest for someone interested in becoming involved with The Women’s Initiative, whether through a volunteer or internship position? 

UVA students have long been fantastic supporters of The Women’s Initiative as interns and volunteers. We currently have interns through the UVA Intern Placement Program. In addition to that, our number one need for volunteers is working weekly shifts at our front desk, offering a warm welcome to clients over the phone and in person. There are also opportunities to help with community outreach and other administrative tasks. Those interested should reach out to our volunteer coordinator, Laura Snyder Brown, at lsnyderbrown@thewomensinitiative.org.