We are a subsidiary of Soul Fitness Ltd, a fitness outfit using dance to improve the total wellness of its clients – mind, body, soul. After just a few sessions, even before registering change in their bodies, there was notable change in how they perceived life. They were definitely happier, more confident, less prone to anger, their families and colleagues also recognized and liked the change in them. We soon came to the realization that the dance classes were bringing healing. That many people actually go about their days depressed, or suffering from anxiety and other mental health conditions thinking it is just life and they have to toughen up to cope.

One day when visiting a relative in the Alcohol and Drugs Unit of National Referral Mental Hospital, our founder got the idea to do one dance session with the patients there thinking that unlike the “other” patients, they were well enough to follow the routines and since they “supposedly” pick up the vice in places that play similar music, they would appreciate it better. Instead, the hospital administration in their response to our request, insisted that we dance with the “other” patients which we agreed to reservedly. That first class however changed our lives forever and we gladly went back every month for three (3) years until the COVID 19 pandemic.

A year into the sessions, with a deeper understanding and appreciation of mental health and its challenges, we knew we had to do more hence the birth of Soul Foundation Ltd. Our unique perspective is not of a sufferer, a practitioner or non-medical staff of the hospital, but ordinary people who have taken the time to see with an open mind what goes on with these patients, how they perceive us and of course the misconceptions people like us (who believe we are fine) have about them. This is why we felt the strong need to start raising awareness of mental health and the Butabika Hospital itself.