Most of us have heard the phrase “You can’t love someone until you love yourself,” at some point in our lives. This idea is often applied to relationships, but at ROI, we feel that a similar message applies when it comes to helping others heal from trauma. If we struggle with resilience and growing from our own traumas, it can be incredibly difficult to help other people grow from theirs.

ROI’s community ambassador, Na’im Akbar, recently gave an address at the Kate B. Reynolds Charitable Trust’s 75th anniversary celebration.  Na’im spoke about his road to becoming a certified resilience educator. By working through personal adversity and trauma, Na’im has been able to help inmates, students, parents, and school resource officers learn to understand and heal from their own adversity. Na’im’s story illustrates an important concept for any individuals—and especially for nonprofit employees.

Na’im’s Story

Na’im wasn’t always a member of ROI’s team. In 2003, Na’im was sentenced to 25 years in prison. In Virginia, where he was incarcerated, laws required inmates to serve 85% of their sentence before becoming eligible for parole. Determined to change his life for the better, Na’im knew he had two options: he could spend the next 25 years waiting for his release date, or he could make the most of his time in prison, trying to contribute to the new world around him. Inspired by his own faith, Na’im began diligently working toward an early release date.

Na’im found a passion for helping other inmates in prison. Over six years, he worked as a tutor and defended inmates in prison disputes, similar to a lawyer. His peers recognized him for his work ethic and commended his efforts. After a move to another facility, Na’im was released in September 2015, after serving just 13 years of his original 25-year sentence. But he knew there was much work to be done in his transition back to civilian life, so he continued his pursuit of self-transformation in the service of others. He worked in re-entry programs, helping other former inmates manage their new lives.

But Na’im found his calling after attending an ROI presentation. He was immediately “hooked” by ROI’s mission, and soon attended trainings to become a certified Resilience Educator. Today, he works with schools, helping students recover from childhood trauma. However, Na’im also recognizes that for trauma healing to work, a child’s network must also be supportive. This is why Na’im provides resilience training to parents and school resource officers as well. Because of his promise to work on himself way back in 2003, Na’im has been able to help dozens of other people work through their adversity as well. 

Why You Should Heal Yourself First 

Nonprofit work is not easy. It can be highly stressful and expose employees to difficult situations, fast-paced projects, and huge goals with limited budgets. To better prepare ourselves to handle this work, it is vital that we take care of ourselves first. When we are mentally well, we can think clearly, make good decisions, and manage our work more effectively—which means our communities will benefit more in turn.

Where to Find Help In Healing

If you’ve gone through ROI’s resilience training programs, you likely have tools and resources you use to help address traumas and adversity in your own life. If you’re new to ROI, we can offer you many resources to help you manage stress in a healthy way while understanding where your stress may come from. 

Alternatively, talk to your own supervisors about your organization’s offerings for mental health care. You may discover you have access to programs you didn’t know about, or be able to start a support group in your own community. 

Nonprofit work can be grueling, so it’s imperative that we put our own healing needs first. Just as Na’im shared, when we feel inspired and invigorated, the possibilities are endless for how much we can achieve. Contact our co-founder, Seth Saeugling at seth@ruralopportunity.org to find helpful resources and trainings that can help you and your own team manage stress. Or, explore ROI’s Trauma and Resilience 101 and Reconnect for ResilienceⓇ Training Opportunities.