Giving Compass' Take:

• Writing for News Deeply, a psychosocial community health worker in Syria discusses the mental health crisis that has affected his family and the community during the region's conflict.

• Humanitarian relief organizations must address the trauma that cripples victims of war, not just in Syria but across the world. Part of that means putting trained professionals in areas where they can have direct access to those in need.

• Here's how six years of war has impacted the mental health of Syrian children and what donors can do.

Before the war [in Syria], I remember wanting to graduate, get a job, get married and build a house. Now, my own family is broken. One of my brothers died in a bombing and another fled. Some of my sisters left, too. My younger brothers have no future because there are hardly any schools left — they are open a couple of days a week, and when one school is attacked, the others close out of fear. Schools are being used as shelters because they are safer than houses. Children are afraid, and we are worried about their mental health and inability to go to school.

In Idlib, many Syrians also suffer from depression. Most cases are a result of the war. They are sad, they do not love anything any more. Many desire death rather than continue living this way. Half of all Syrians in the country are in need of mental health support, but the World Health Organization estimates that 50 percent of psychiatrists have fled the country.

One of my sisters was diagnosed with extreme depression after my brother died. She was so sad about what happened to our family. She became very isolated and was unable to do things around the house or activities she usually enjoyed. She’s now on antidepressants and has shown great improvement. I have tried to support her along the way.

Read the full article about the mental toll of the Syrian war by Abdullah at News Deeply.