Why We Need to Talk about Mental Health NOW

#MentalHealthNow!

Why We Need to Talk about Mental Health NOW

5 April 2018 5:30 PM

We as a nation have a complicated relationship with mental health. Our narratives, apart from being shrouded in secrecy, exist in a space of either denial or are looked at only from a curative space. We were proud to collaborate with mental health professional Sonali Gupta to explore how we might normalize mental health hygiene and see it as a part of our overall well-being on a day-to-day basis.

The event featured a panel discussion with some of the most interesting projects being done on mental health in the country today. Joining Sonali in conversation were Ratnaboli Ray, founder and managing trustee of Anjali, and a leading advocate for the rights of people with mental health conditions/psychosocial disabilities in India, Meera Damji, the voice behind Heart to Heart with Meera, a radio show on mental health on Ishq 104.8 and Nikhil Taneja, a staunch advocate for everyday mental health, who launched a podcast on mental well-being at the event. 

There is an implicit understanding that only the presence of mental health conditions such as depression and anxiety demand attention, and that too when the condition has deteriorated. This event focused on how we need to co-create an environment where we can all work on our mental health as a basic life skill, and build a culture of sensitivity towards those who need it most.