Stress busters: Over 2 lakh benefit from mental healthcare helpline
Stress busters: Over 2 lakh benefit from mental healthcare helpline
New Delhi
Over the past many decades, mental health has been a taboo subject with people rarely seeking the help of experts or counsellors to tide over the problems being faced by them for fear of being ostracised by society.
Moreover, mental health is not taken seriously by family members with children being repeatedly made to suppress their stress-related issues.
However, given the increase in the number of deaths by suicide and people not being able to cope with mental health issues, the Indian Government took the bold step of addressing this problem by launching the National Tele Mental Health Programme in October 2022.
Those facing stress can call the toll-free helpline numbers 14416 or 1-800-891-4416, which have a multi-language provision to allow callers to select the language of their choice for availing the services.
Through this novel initiative, people can seek support while maintaining anonymity, thereby reducing the stigma generally surrounding mental health issues.
Till date, the Tele-MANAS helpline has received over 2,00,000 calls since its launch in October 2022. Currently, there are over 42 functional cells across 31 States and Union Territories catering to over 1,300 calls every day in 20 languages.
More than 1,900 trained counsellors have been running the first-line services.
Data released by the government showed that there was a spurt in calls related to stress during the exam season.
The number of calls increased exponentially from one lakh to two lakh within just three months (from April 2023 to July 2023).
The most common concerns included sadness, sleep disturbance, stress and anxiety. These callers were helped with supportive counselling and self-help strategies.
Efforts were also made to reach more students in educational institutions. Around 7,000 calls were followed up by the counsellors to complete the loop of care.
Callers who required specialist care were linked to appropriate services, such as District Mental Health Programme, and other nearby healthcare facilities.
While Tele-MANAS would be providing callers with basic counselling and mental health services, plans are afoot to link it with existing vital services and resources, including integration with e-Sanjeevani, in the coming days.
The target of the National Tele Mental Health Programme is to ensure that mental health services reach free of cost to every household and individual, especially the most vulnerable and unreached sections of society who otherwise go unnoticed.
