Yoga in a Zimbabwe tavern is the latest mental health outreach in a struggling country
It's an unlikely setting for a yoga class. In Zimbabwe, the practice is rare and mostly found in the wealthy suburbs. Yet it is quietly taking root here in a beer tavern in Chitungwiza, a low-income town 30 kilometers (18 miles) outside the capital, Harare.
The initiative is led by Actions Winya, a yoga instructor who saw how economic hardship and social pressures were damaging the mental health of people in his hometown.
'Yoga is expensive … but we also got humans in the ghetto. They need mental wellness,' said Winya, who usually teaches in affluent areas, charging between $30 and $100 a month. That's an impossible cost for most, especially in a country where many survive through informal jobs.
Since 2023, Winya has been offering free weekend classes to some of those hardest hit by Zimbabwe's economic problems.
The sessions have become a source of relief for people navigating relentless challenges. Authorities acknowledge a growing societal crisis worsened by drug abuse, domestic violence and poverty, compounded by a shortage of public health services and therapists.
'I am a coach, so they bring the stuff that they face within families (to me). This is where we come in and say, 'Guys, come and try yoga, it can help somehow,'' Winya said.
Yoga, an ancient Indian practice, has become a multibillion-dollar industry and a daily ritual for millions around the world. The United Nations over a decade ago designated June 21 as International Day of Yoga.
In Africa, other countries like Kenya and South Africa are introducing yoga to poorer communities, with the Indian government promoting its spread across the continent.
Inside the tavern in Zimbabwe, mellow music played as about a dozen participants moved through poses. They had no mats, just a cold brick floor, but plenty of determination for inner peace. One mother tried to stay focused as her toddler dashed around, disrupting her poses.
For 47-year-old John Mahwaya, the practice has been transforming. A father of four, he also supports relatives in the countryside, a responsibility he said once weighed heavily on his mental health.
'My head was always spinning. I thought I was losing my mind, and the stress started causing back pains,' he said. 'Yoga helps me relax and clear my mind. I sleep peacefully these days.'
He said many Zimbabwean men bottle up their emotions, afraid to show weakness in a highly patriarchal society that prizes toughness.
'We focus on physical fitness, forgetting the mind,' he said. 'We suffer slowly, but what suffers first is the mind, and from there, it becomes a slow death.'
Edinah Makosa, 24, joined the class earlier this year and said it gave her hope.
'I used to be depressed a lot. You know, for people my age, our main stressors are unemployment and relationships,' she said.
'Yoga changed my mindset. I used to think negatively all the time. Now I have started selling beauty products to earn a living. As for romance, well if it works, it works; if it doesn't, it doesn't. I no longer stress about men. I go with the flow.'
As they practiced, the sounds of township life seeped in. Taxi drivers shouted for passengers. Vendors pushed carts, calling out to potential customers.
'We need a proper environment and studio. But we are trying,' Winya said.
For participants like Mahwaya, the location didn't matter nearly as much as the healing.
'We need to promote yoga in the communities because everyone has a mind. And fitness of the mind is the responsibility of everyone, regardless of where you live,' he said.
___
For more on Africa and development: https://apnews.com/hub/africa-pulse
The Associated Press receives financial support for global health and development coverage in Africa from the Gates Foundation. The AP is solely responsible for all content. Find AP's standards for working with philanthropies, a list of supporters and funded coverage areas at AP.org.
Farai Mutsaka, The Associated Press
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And try to avoid running multiple appliances, like your dishwasher and washing machine, until late at night when temperatures drop. Whether it's a thumbs-up (👍), crying with laughter (😂) or, my personal favorite, the pink heart (🩷), more than 90% of people use emojis daily when they text or email or are on social media. Emojis are a way of communicating, but according to study published this week in PLOS One, they can also make people feel closer and more satisfied in their relationships. In the study, researchers asked 260 adults ages 23 to 67 years to imagine texting a partner and then rate how responsive the partner seemed. The result? Partners who used emojis were rated as more responsive than those who only texted. And it didn't even matter whether the emoji had a face or not — the mere presence of emojis was enough to make people feel a sense of connection with their partner. 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