Raised by Japanese parents in a foreign land, my upbringing instilled in me a deep curiosity for diverse cultures and a desire to work for the United Nations. During my gap year, I took the opportunity to serve as a UN Volunteer with IOM in Madagascar.

I began my UN Volunteer assignment in December 2020, when we were facing the challenges of the Coronavirus pandemic in numerous ways. Many were experiencing physical and mental challenges, yet there was not much space to discuss these.

Tell us about the nature of your posting I am a UN Volunteer with UNSOS based in Mogadishu, Somalia. The core mission of UNSOS is to provide critical support needed by the African Union Mission in Somalia (AMISOM), the UN Mission in Somalia (UNSOM) and Somali Security Forces for effective peacebuilding efforts in Somalia.

In November 2016, I started my assignment with the UN Mission in South Sudan (UNMISS) as a medical doctor and was directly assigned to Bentiu in Unity State. After three years there, I was re-assigned to the capital, Juba and have been working here since then.  I am currently on my third UN Volunteer assignment. My first mission was in Timor-Leste from 2008-2012 and my second was with the UN Mission in Liberia, where I was assigned in Monrovia from 2014-2015. Keeping mental health in check

Virginia Pérez, Chief of the Child Protection Programme with UNICEF in Bolivia, drew on her past experience as a volunteer with a free phone helpline in Spain that assisted children, recalling the impact it had and how they were able to enter the heart of a family through the phone.

There is no doubt that 2020 has been challenging. Difficult work situations, changing contexts, working from home and in many instances, disconnection from friends and family. It has forced us to confront our personal and professional realities in new ways. In my personal situation, I am a single mother and COVID-19 has taught me I wear many hats – I am a mother, father, student, team leader, subordinate. Of course, this has been hard on my mental health and wellbeing.

Mental health is more than the presence or absence of a mental illness. It is a crossroad between emotional, psychological and physical well-being. UN Staff Members and UN Volunteers are not immune and may even be more susceptible to mental health issues, due to the nature of their jobs and tireless service on behalf of universal peace and sustainable development.

As a result of COVID-19, many people have experienced changes in their mental and physical wellbeing, due to isolation, restrictions and unexpected situations resulting from this unpreceded crisis. I have seen this happening in the Asia-Pacific region among UN Volunteers, colleagues and peers, especially those living away from their families and loved ones, who may have been more affected by this situation than others.