Before and After

Before this group I had no friends, no fun, I never talked about myself, I never wrote my thinking. No talking to somebody about my troubles, no time for myself, I wasn't able to make a joke.

After this group I met new friends, I had fun, I learned to talk about myself, I was able to talk to someone about my troubles, I met a couple of hours every week with a group of ladies. There is now, with open hands, new vision, new hopes, open hearts, laughing, and I can make jokes.
—Sharar

Changes

Through ongoing recording and comparisons of my observation of the women as they took part in the group activities, as well as their involvement in the project on the whole, I was able to recognize and document small but notable changes in each of them.

Awareness and Easing of Comfort Zones

Subtle yet telling changes taking place were evident in the easing of comfort zones; the women were more likely to try new ideas presented to them with less resistance than at the beginning of the sessions. Over time, the women became more relaxed with the group members and with myself as facilitator. As evident from body language, participants were assuming a more relaxed posture, choosing to sit nearer one to another. Sharing personal items such as pens and cough drops, they also began to share personal stories much more freely than they did in the beginning and began arranging times to connect with one another outside of the group.

Changes in Self-Concept

Women's writing and discussions point to ways in which their selfconcept changed.

It was hard for me to ask for help. I did terrible in school and I hated it anyway so I quit. I always thought it wouldn't matter and it didn't for a while, but then all of a sudden my job changed. There was more reading I had to do so I had to quit. I felt awful and I was afraid people would find out. I was so embarrassed before but now I learned that I am not alone—there are lots of folks who have reading problems and I actually feel better about myself because I understand now that it is just another skill. Like I learned to sew so I can probably learn to read and just because I can't read doesn't mean I'm stupid.