Words from Karen, our new psychologist!

Karen Quimiz Rodríguez, the new psychologist for Starfish, shares her plans and thoughts about how to build confidence, encourage personal development, and provide a support system for our students.

Psychological Attention at the Starfish Foundation

Contributing to the Development of My Country

By analyzing the psychological aspects of the scholarship students of Starfish Foundation, one is able to diagnose various types of psychological phenomena, which often stem from: behavioral conflicts, conflicts stemming from certain family dynamics, a lack of self-esteem, and problems rooted in biology and physiology. During the time when the children's personalities develop, they are especially susceptible to risky behavior, such as the consumption of legal and illegal substances, and early behaviors concerning their sexuality, behaviors that, without a doubt, influence their personal and educational development.

"There is nothing more important than the education of the child and of the youth, since our whole life depends on this" -- Juan Martin Moye

The family, as the first link to society and the place where children develop their first values, plays a crucial role in the psychological attention given to the scholarship students. The systematic structure of the family, including the roles, structures, hierarchies, and limits of the family, often has deficiencies. A therapeutic approach to the family dynamic is certainly a way to improve life within the home.

With regards to improving individual and familial health and happiness, another crucial area (of students' lives) to focus on is that of sexuality. We are beginning to give informative workshops on this topic and we hope they can hopefully break the societal structures of "machismo" in the Ecuadorian society, where deep-rooted machismo still plays a role in the daily lives of communities. The objective of the first workshop is: to change misconceptions about the differences in gender roles in the adolescents of the Starfish Foundation in order to promote greater gender equality.

The objective of the second workshop is: to demystify the adolescents' preconceived ideas about sexuality in order to eliminate the myths that have arisen throughout history and their own personal lives. This workshop intends to inform the youth about the preventative campaigns that the Ecuadorian Ministry of Health provides, as well as reinforce the idea that sexual activity should be loving and reproductive. This workshop will also inform about methods of contraception, and will be aimed at a specific population of Starfish students. It will convey that reproductive sexuality is a normal process, and will use science to inform the students, rather than the students obtaining false information and rumors from their friends.

To further promote the development of the students through the teaching-learning process, we have created a third workshop about vocational interests with experts from different professions, including: 2 architects, a lawyer, a graphic designer, and internal members of the foundation who possess a university degree. The idea for this workshop arises from the students' misconceptions of many professions and lack of knowledge about other professions (other than the military and police). The aim of this workshop is to guide students' plans for their futures, and there will be a career test that will provide more career options for those students who do not aspire to one of the careers presented on this day.

It's a great pleasure to work with these students and promote their present and future development.

Karen Quimiz Rodríguez

General Psychologist

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Versión en Español:

Atención Psicológica en la Fundación Estrellita del Mar

Contribuyendo al Desarrollo de Mi País.

Al trabajar en los aspectos psicológicos con los estudiantes becados de la fundación, se puede diagnosticar diversos tipos de fenómenos como son los de tipo comportamental, conflictos en la dinámica familiar, conflicto en la esfera socioemocional (autoestima), problemas de origen biológico; Y en el contexto donde se desarrolla su personalidad, son vulnerables a las conductas de riesgo, como son el consumo de sustancia psicotrópicas legales e ilegales, comportamientos precoces sobre su sexualidad amorosa y reproductiva, que sin duda alguna influyen en su desarrollo personal y educativo. 

“No hay nada más importante que la educación de la niñez y de la juventud, puesto que de ella depende toda nuestra vida” Juan Martin Moye

La familia como célula principal de vinculación a la sociedad y de donde se desarrollan los primeros valores, juega un rol importante en la atención psicológica a los becados, se aborda desde un enfoque sistémico, la estructura familiar, funciones, roles, jerarquías, límites, etc. siendo este último de gran deficiencia dentro de la dinámica familiar, sin duda alguna se da la veracidad y el abordaje terapéutico para mejorar la convivencia en el hogar.

Otros de los trabajos que están próximos a realizarse dentro de las competencias es promover talleres sobre sexualidad, su génesis consistirá en romper los esquemas culturales machistas de la sociedad ecuatoriana que aún están vigentes dentro del contexto; El primer taller tiene como OBJETIVO: MODIFICAR CONCEPCIONES ERRADAS SOBRE LA DIFERENCIA DE LOS GÉNEROS EN LOS Y LAS ADOLESCENTES DE LA FUNDACIÓN ESTRELLITA DEL MAR PARA FAVORECER LA EQUIDAD.

El segundo taller tiene como OBJETIVO: DESMITIFICAR A LOS ADOLESCENTES LAS IDEAS PRE CONCEBIDAS SOBRE SU SEXUALIDAD PARA ELIMINAR LOS MITOS QUE HAN SURGUIDO A LO LARGO DE LA HISTORIA Y DE SU VIDA, este taller pretende informar a los jóvenes sobre las campañas preventivas que maneja el Ministerio de Salud Pública del Ecuador, y reestructuras las ideas que mantienen sobre una sexualidad amorosa y reproductiva, además de informar sobre los métodos anticonceptivos, este segundo taller estará dirigido a una población especifica de los becados, que precisamente se encuentran en todo el apogeo por informarse de su sexualidad reproductiva como proceso normativos de la edad, así considero importante que obtengan información por fuentes científicas, y no de inexpertos, (amigos que se encuentran en el mismo proceso generacional).

Además favoreciendo el desarrollo de los jóvenes becados en su proceso de enseñanza-aprendizaje, se ha desarrollado un taller sobre sus intereses vocacionales, con expertos invitados de diferentes profesiones, contamos con la colaboración de: dos arquitectos, un abogado, una licenciada en diseño gráfico, y con la experiencia de miembros internos de la fundación que cuentan con un título universitario, esta idea surge a raíz de una concepción errada sobre sus deseos y aspiraciones profesionales, sus ideas se limitan a querer ser, policías, militares, marinos, vigilantes de tránsito vial, para encaminar sus propósitos futuros se ha elaborado el taller y que conozcan otras profesiones a las que pueden aspirar, allí mismo se aplicará un test para aquellos jóvenes que no se identifiquen con alguna.

Es un gran placer contribuir con estos jóvenes hacia su presente y su futuro.

Karen Quimiz Rodríguez
Psicóloga Generalista

Bailando en la Lluvia ~ Dancing in the Rain

Jane, or Talia as she is called here in Ecuador, volunteered with Starfish during summer 2014, and has joined us again this year.  Since rainy season has been longer than usual, Jane is experiencing her first rainy season and today shares with us a great reflection on what rain means in our Starfish communities.

Photo Credit: Mary D.

"We were soaked, from head to toe. At that point, it didn’t matter anymore. The rain soothed; it cooled our bodies. We were going to get drenched anyway, so we figured, Hey, might as well enjoy the precipitation.

There was a sense of liberation in feeling the rain on our skin, allowing the earth to soak us.

We were alive.

Dancing in swirls, singing “Bailando,” happily eating guineos empastados, hopping around giant puddles, trying not to fall into any rushing “rivers” as we made our way up the steep loma to Erica’s house.

We peeled garlic under a wobbly tin porch “roof,” surrounded by Erica’s family, cousins, and neighbors. 45 pounds of peeled garlic earned the family $5.

I had been thinking about the rain. Pounding on the tin roof, flooding the streets and walkways, soaking our clothes, saturating the dirt cancha where the children played soccer, inviting mosquitos to rest in its puddles, nourishing the earth’s greenery.

“What struck you most of about your first week?” Meredith, a rad Catholic missionary we were blessed to meet this week, asked us.

“La lluvía. The rain,” I answered immediately, without hesitation. After three previous trips to Ecuador, what stood out most in my mind was the liquid precipitation that fell from the sky. Before this year, I had never been to Ecuador during the rainy season — only during the dry season, when it never rains.

The rain had been challenging me.

I had never given it much thought, especially from a social justice perspective.

In the U.S., rain is just rain.

It waters the earth. It means a gray, drizzly day. With an umbrella and adequate infrastructure, liked paved roads and sturdy houses, it doesn’t physically affect us much. In fact, for me, the rain carries hope. April showers bring May flowers. Rain helps the flowers grow and bloom and radiate brilliant beauty. We can wait through the storms with the hope that the flowers are coming — that the rain is going to result in something good and beautiful.

Rain is not quite the same here, nor does it carry the same hope. Yes, the rain waters the plants, allowing for a lush landscape, and allows for cooler temperatures; however, its negative consequences seem to far outweigh its positive one(s).

Here, the rain directly affects the marginalized — our host family, friends, students, neighbors.

In Ecuador, el invierno (when it rains) normally lasts from December to April; however, this year it’s decided to stick around with a vengeance for a few extra weeks, raining at night and sporadically throughout the day. Just yesterday, it started pouring as the Integration Day came to a close around 2pm.

The rain doesn’t appear to bother the kids much — they’ll happily continue playing soccer barefoot and walk home without an umbrella or anything to shield them from buckets of water. They will talk about the rain, though, and how awful it can be at its worst. They will mention family members who have been sick and in bed with dengue or chicuguña, two serious mosquito-borne illnesses. As Marcos, one of the Starfish’s educadores, explained to us, there has been a significant increase in the number of cases this rainy season.

Here, rain is a public health threat. Especially for the many people who have limited-to-no access to quality medical care. Mosquitos, which thrive in warm, damp places, especially in standing water, carry potentially fatal diseases if not treated.

The rain affects infrastructure. It wrecks foundations and causes roads and the exterior of buildings to wear down. It can destroy weak cane houses, leaving people homeless or with significantly damaged homes.

The rain affects transportation. It floods the roads, forming large “rivers” and puddles in dirt roads, making it impossible for a car or bus to pass. Just walking through these muddy messes is a challenge.

The rain affects pollution. It carries heaps of trash, sewage, and other pollutants, into the streets where people step.

And Jackie and I are not even here for the thick of it. We are only here for the tail of the season, when the rain is finally beginning to calm down.

I had never given much thought to weather and precipitation before — something that is out of our control, but without a doubt, seriously impacts poverty. No wonder countries in tropical regions tend to be the most underdeveloped. In many ways, intense rain and heat coupled with poor infrastructure perpetuate a cycle of poverty.

I’m not sure I’ll ever see rain in quite the same way. And maybe you won’t either."

~Jane L., Starfish Volunteer.  Read more reflections from Jane on her blog!