An expert psychologist has urged people dealing with people with mental illnesses with empathy and not sympathy. The latter will not be of any help, said Dr Bindhu Salim, a prominent psychologist from India, at a seminar to mark the World Mental Health Day.
Speaking at seminar jointly organised by Friends Cultural Centre (FCC) and Mediaplus in connection with the day, she said that in spite of technological advancements and scientific development, the world we live in is full of tension, anxiety and various other pressures.
“For any physical ailments we have trained people to give first aid, unfortunately we don’t have trained personnel to give psychological first aid. This increases the gravity of the situation,” said Dr Bindhu.
“Self-confidence, meditation and faith can all make wonderful changes in the mental equilibrium. We need to look at the life with rays of hopes and success. The attitude of the society towards mentally sick people is not healthy,” the psychologist observed.
Unless this is changed, she said, there cannot be any positive change in the life of mentally affected people. Dr Bindhu observed that “unwanted anxieties and unnecessary botherations are making life miserable.” In order to enjoy life, one needs to be happy and happiness comes only with progress, she said.
“Always inculcate good values and virtues in our words and deeds, which turn our whole life positive and peaceful. Life is full of opportunities and problems. If we look at the problems as challenges and equip our mind to tackle it with positive thoughts we can overcome all issues of life,” she told the audience at FCC.
It is proven that affirmation can boost confidence and make wonderful changes in life, said Dr Bindhu, who is a member of the American Psychological Association and is an experienced psychologist with expertise in psychotherapy, counselling and psycho metric tests.
As a psychology expert, Dr Bindhu facilitates personal and interpersonal functions with a focus on emotional, social, vocational, educational, health related, developmental and organisational concerns.
Mediaplus CEO Amanulla Vadakkangara conducted the event. Quoting the World Health Organisation (WHO) statement on the occasion, he said that “when terrible things happen in our communities, we can reach out a helping hand to those who are affected.”
“Perhaps you find yourself at the scene of an accident where people are hurt. Perhaps you are a healthcare worker or teacher talking with someone from your community who has just witnessed the violent death of a loved one.
“Perhaps you are called upon as a staff member in a disaster or volunteer to help asylum seekers who have recently arrived in your community. Learning the basic principles of psychological first aid will help you to provide support to people who are very distressed, and, importantly, to know what not to say,” Vadakkangara quoted WHO.
World Mental Health Day is observed on October 10 every year, with the overall objective of raising awareness of mental health issues around the world and mobilising efforts in support of mental health.
The day provides an opportunity for all stakeholders working on mental health issues to talk about their work, and what more needs to be done to make mental health care a reality for people worldwide.
The theme of this year’s World Mental Health Day is “psychological first aid”. Efforts in support of the day focused on basic pragmatic psychological support by people who find themselves in a helping role whether they be health staff, teachers, firemen, community workers, or police officers.
Despite its name, psychological first aid covers both psychological and social support. Just like general healthcare never consists of physical first aid alone, similarly no mental healthcare system should consist of psychological first aid alone.
The investment in psychological first aid is part of a longer-term effort to ensure that anyone in acute distress due to a crisis is able to receive basic support, and that those who need more than psychological first aid will receive additional advanced support from health, mental health and social services.
FCC Executive Director Habeeburahman Kizhisseri chaired the function. Muhammedunni OLakara, Dr MP Hassan Kunhi, Anas Abdul Kader, Basheer Vadakara and Rafeeq Mecheri also spoke.

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