To commemorate the occasion ‘World Mental Health Day’, Amity Institute of Psychology & Allied Sciences organized a Panel Discussion on the WHO theme of the year “Together we can prevent suicide", in which eminent personalities working in the area of mental health discussed about the challenges faced and reforms to curb mental health issues.
Dr. Deepak Raheja, Psychiatrist, Director, the Hope Foundation, Delhi talked about the psychological counselling earlier within the realms of home itself, with family members talking to each other but now with changing times, we are heading towards individual autonomous society. He pointed out that in west, the support system is different because the number of people to be catered are less, importance given to life of a person is significant while in countries like India and China there are an explosion of population, hence the. “It is important to strengthen the weakest link, economic ramifications to what we do is extremely important to us.
Dr. Deepali Batra, Clinical Psychologist, Director, Psychological Academic learning Services (PALS) for Children, Delhi spoke about the psychological factors about mental health; how as a team one can encourage awareness about mental health; how can one identify if a person has suicidal ideation and what all skills are necessary for a community and as an individual for what we can do. “The definition of mental health has changed as good mental health is now all about having a good quality of life, joy and living. In our country, stigma about mental health forces people not to talk about mental health. That needs to change,” shared Dr Batra.
Dr. Kiran Modi, Founder Udayan Care, Delhi suggested the gathering on being sensitive to the trauma faced by a child and not to offer physical touch or comfort to the victim in the first instance. “One should gain the trust of the child and then try to help them regain their mental health,” shared Dr. Modi. She also narrated an incident where one of the mental health patients had the habit of scratching herself. Her peers often called it as an attention seeking activity. “My conversation with the child made me understand that she used to scrape herself to forget the pain about the incident that had caused her mental trauma,” said Dr. Modi.
Presentations were also made on the theme by Ms. Sargun Bedi, Counselling Psychologist, Founder, Lucid Minds Counselling Services, Ghaziabad discussing the various aspects of mental health and the measures that can be taken to prevent subsequent suicides. To mark the occasion of World mental Health Day, students of Amity University also prepared slogans, posters and collages on the theme “Together we can prevent suicide". ‘#Illbethereforyou’ Online Hashtag Awareness Campaign among the Youth in AUUP Campus was also initiated. A report on ‘Community Mental
Health Initiatives 2019’ by AIPS Students was also shared by Dr. Kakul Hai, Faculty Coordinator, CMHI AIPS.