Partners have organised nine (9) self help groups' sessions in Sofia, Veliko Tarnov and Karlovo within the project life time.

The self help groups discussed the problems of the family carers and strategies to overcome the every day negative emotions and stress and also why family carers need to support each other. The groups' discussions came to the conclusions that very often people, who take care alone for dependant family members, are practically and emotianally embarrased to cope with evrything, and need very much the support from other family members, other carers, professionalists and local authorities.

Sharing of experineces in the self help groups, helped the participants to see that their situations are not isolated cases and they have around them many people, living in the same town and having the same problems, and that they can cooperate, at least in sharing of the lessons learned and in discussing the barriers and dificulties that they faced and solutions that they found, because as one of the particpants said:

"Sharing of a problem is 50 %  a solution of the problem“.

In self help groups were shared many negative emotions and experiences:

• Domestic violence
• Helplessness 
• Depression
• Exhaustion
• Depersonalization
• Ingratitude from others
• Dissapointment from relatives and family members
• Solitude – what happens in the families is not shared easily outside of them
• Guilt and doubts wheather carers cope well with the tasks 
• Co dependence between carers and persons they care for

BUT also:

• Ability of carers to face their fears
• Resistence and strength developped
• Strategies of carers to keep their energy
• Awereness that carers should not neglect their own needs
• Feelings that carers may benefit from hard situations, when they talk about them and share their experiences
• Opinions, that carers should not give up for searching the balance between cares for others and cares for themselves
• Confidence, that self help groups may help and may support

We are very thankfull to all participants in the self help groups in Sofia, Veliko Tarnovo and Karlovo who came and dared to share openly their personal emotions. We express deep admiration and gratitude to those people who have very busy every day care schedules, but found time to come and to contribute needs and problems of family carers in Bulgaria to become more visible and to be discussed !

The project „ Empowerment of Family Carers" (Care4care) № BG05/1081 is  implemented with the financial support of  The NGO Programme in Bulgaria under the Europena Economic Area Finacial Mechanism 2009-2014.

Responsibility for the information and views set out in this webpage lies entirely with the author  Center of Women's Studies and Policies and under no circomstances does not reflect the official opinion of the EEA Finacial Mechanism and the Programm Operator of the NGO Programme in Bulgaria.