Table 3.

Illustrative quotes of perceived mental health changes after intervention participation

Perceived mental health outcome	Illustrative quote	Participant characteristics
Mental health improvements
Decreased stress	The doctors would ask me if have been taking my medication as required and asked if I was going through any stressful moments. I told them that I was stressed because of lack of money to buy food for my children. I remember my husband would tell me he had no money when I asked him for some and in such a case we would go hungry. Such things used to cafuse a lot of unhappiness in my family and I was stressed a lot. That is why my CD4 was falling. That is when I joined Shamba Maisha and I started having a better life because my stress about money disappeared.	Female participant, intervention end, 28 years old
	Before we started farming, just like I told you getting vegetables would stress us out but now we are able to get vegetables. I have now been taught how to plant vegetables so I donť need to borrow. It has really relieved us from the stress of borrowing vegetables.	Female participant, intervention end, 30 years old
Reduced anxiety	When I did not have money or food in the house, I was very worried as there was no one to give me enough food for my children and I...Food security is good as one is peaceful. I know my children will eat well. Shamba Maisha has been very beneficial as I am able to harvest and sell my vegetable even when he [my husband] does not give me money.	Female participant, early intervention, 32 years old
Clarity of mind	Shamba Maisha helps keep my mind settled. There are times I can be very worried but when called for a meeting and later given some money, I come back very happy. I am relaxed... Food is what normally causes the mind to be unsettled but they have taught me to look for the food hence I am at peace. When someone lacks food they tend to think a lot, which gives room for stress that can lead to other diseases. However, when food is plentiful the mind is settled and an individual can easily go about their daily chores. Whenever I have food in the house and my children are all feeling well, I can farm peacefully without any worries at all.	Male participant, intervention end, 40 years old Female participant, intervention end, 30 years old
Fewer depressive thoughts	I was surviving on buying them [vegetables] from the market in small portions and when we did not have money we could easily go to bed on empty stomachs. That coupled with my health status used to make me feel low and at times make me wish for death because one doesn’t see the need of suffering like that...It [Shamba Maisha] has given me hope; I don’t feel isolated through engaging in it. I don’t get stressed because the time that I would have been thinking about the issues troubling me I just fall asleep.	Male participant, intervention end, 40 years old
Hopefulness & future outlook	After going for the test and discovering that I was sick, I saw no future. I thought that I was done with this life. There is a question they asked here, that “Have you have ever felt in your heart for 3 months that you have no life?” and that is something that has happened to me. But when I sat down alone later, I felt that my heart should not lose hope, because I am someone who is working, God has given me life, these drugs are here, and we also have Shamba Maisha and they tell us that they have come to uplift our living standards. When you have that hope then there is some little help that you also get.	Male participant, early intervention, 35 years old
	There is hope…the things that we have been given at shamba maisha and the teachings give us anticipation of better things in the future and as a result I don’t think too much.	Male participant, intervention end, 46 years old
Mental health impairments
Increased stress	We had to work harder to achieve good yields. Let me tell you, when your mind is not at peace, you have to tighten (try to work and think harder). When your mind is not at peace, even your health will not be good. When you have a lot of work, for instant, when you need to work on the watermelon, butternut, do mulching, watering. You cannot be at peace. And remember this small money we get we need to utilize in our house.	Male participant, early intervention, 34 years