CODEPENDENCY – UNLIMITED DEVOTION Erasmus Project

Project Title

CODEPENDENCY – UNLIMITED DEVOTION

Project Key Action

This project related with these key action: Cooperation for innovation and the exchange of good practices

Project Action Type

This project related with this action type : Strategic Partnerships for adult education

Project Call Year

This project’s Call Year is 2019

Project Topics

This project is related with these Project Topics: Post-conflict/post-disaster rehabilitation; Health and wellbeing; New innovative curricula/educational methods/development of training courses

Project Summary

Context of the project:

Dependencies are an issue in many countries around the world, affecting millions of people. They change the lives of the addicts, deprive them of their prospects and opportunities for realization. They take away their health, sound sleep, the communication with others, the ability to make their own family. According to official data in Bulgaria, only registered heroin addicts are about 30 000, the number does not include the latent ones. With them added up, and all other drug-dependent, the numbers of narco-addicted is many times higher. If, together with the addicts, we also consider their families, then the problem can be defined as pandemic. For the family, however power and resources they use, whatever funds they invest, it is difficult to handle such situation. They are filled with guilt, shame and shut themselves up. The family become self-insulated and encapsulated. They are trying to solve the problems themselves, but in fact, such route needs a well-timed caring hand.

The dependency is a problem not only for the addicts but also for the people in their immediate environment – the family. The codependency is a recognizable pattern of solid, schematic behavioral and personality traits, caused by the disparaging attitude which each person faces in a dysfunctional system. The symptoms of dependence and codependency are similar, they are like a mirror image. Just like dependency, codependency also evolves, deepens and becomes more and more dangerous to the lives and health of the people closest to the addict. The codependent need to be supported and differentiate themselves from the addicts, and thus able to adequately influence their dependent relatives.

The goal of the project is to reach a maximum number of codependent people, to help them cope with the problems of cohabitation with an addict and to lead them back to normal life more quickly. We also rely on the educational side of the platform which we will build, aiming at its preventive impact, so that the situation of dependency in the family is realized faster and that adequate measures are taken.

As a result, the project should act in the direction of strengthening the family as a major structural cell of society. To set the codependent free, to make them more confident and actively help them to release themselves of the stress of the problem which leads to their de-socialization.

The tool for achieving the project’s objectives is to build an online platform for active help which to educate the codependent and the public about the risks and ways of dealing with the problems arising from cohabitation with a dependent person. It will also rely on building a self-assessment methodology; a system for quick and competent consultation with an expert; building an environment which will guarantee anonymity and security; an educational program with visual materials and teaching aids. Training seminars and specialist meetings will be held to enable the online system to be used as a tool for support in their work. A campaign to promote the platform and its benefits is planned to be organized, too.

Number and profile of participants:

The project will be attended by 7 organizations from 6 countries – Bulgaria, Austria, Great Britain, Romania, Italy and the Czech Republic. The coordinator of the project – Harmonia Center for Psychological Support and the Multi Ethno Forum Association registered for public benefit will represent Bulgaria. Partner organizations from other countries are: TUROREIN – Austria, FSN Association z.s. – Czech Republic, Young 3D Association – Romania, Associazione culturale “Mediterrart – Italy, Action Exchange – United Kingdom. Among the organizations which are united by their social education profile, the Czech Association participates for the first time under the Erasmus + Program. The project team includes psychologists, pedagogues, social consultants, economists, non-formal education moderators as well as professionals in the visual arts, Internet and IT technologies. The project has a duration of 30 months from 1-10-2019 to 31-03-2022.

Expected results:

The main outcome of the project is the development of an innovative multilingual platform for the benefit of the codependent. The problem is transnational, and if the project is implemented, many people in a dead-end situation from different countries will be given the opportunity to acquire key competencies and basic skills to take on the path of change. The project involves organizations with diverse profiles and relevant expertise, united by the general idea of creating a high quality product to help thousands of affected people not only in Europe.

Project Website

https://codependency.eu/

EU Grant (Eur)

Funding of the project from EU: 126850 Eur

Project Coordinator

Center for psychological support “Harmony” & Country: BG

Project Partners

• “Multy Ethno Forum” Association
• ASOCIATIA TINERII 3 D
• FSN Association, z.s.
• TUROREIN – Verein zur Förderung transnationaler Jugendinitiativen
• MediterrArt APS
• ACTON EXCHANGE LTD