invite to 'Healing the Pain' prog tues 20th Nov 2012

Survey among CFTI's reveals that over the last two years 12 students committed suicide and 18 others attempted it .

Survey among CFTI's reveals that over the last two years 12 students committed suicide and 18 others attempted it .

CHENNAI: All central government funded technical institutions (CFTIs) in the country, including the IITs, IIMs and NITs, have been advised to set aside Rs 50 lakh a year to provide counselling services and conduct activities to ensure the mental health of their students.

A task force, constituted by the ministry of human resource development to study the increasing occurrences of suicides among students enrolled at the IITs and other such campuses in the country, made the recommendation to Union human resources development minister Pallam Raju and minister of state Shas hi Tharoor earlier this week.

The task force, headed by professor M Anandakrishnan, designed a questionnaire for the CFTIs to assess the existing mental health needs, understand the magnitude of the problem and ascertain the resources. Of the 86 CFTIs asked to fill the questionnaire, only 26 responded. Of this, more than half do not have a full time counsellor and only 10 have scope for students to self-declare mental health problems.

Pallam Raju suggested that the counselling services could be made a component in the accreditation process and that special weightage be given to the provision.

The task force has suggested that the government set up an empowered committee on the lines of the Raghavan committee on ragging "as it cannot be assumed that they will be followed by all CFTIs with the same degree of rigour and seriousness".

The survey revealed that over the last two years 12 students committed suicide and 18 others attempted it. As many as 872 students have been referred for counselling in these institutions. Relationship issues, personal problems, mental stress and family problems were reported as reasons for the suicides.

http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/india/Set-aside-50-lakh-a-year-to-prevent-suicides-IITs-told/articleshow/17261769.cms?

Amazing prescription for Depression

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Many years ago, Dr. A. J. Cronin occasionally prescribed an unusual treatment for some of his patients who were feeling "blue," "down," or generally blah. He would insist that for six weeks the patient say, "Thank you" for every kindness and keep a record of it. According to Dr. Cronin, he had a remarkable cure rate.

If you find yourself depressed, please consult your medical doctor. But everyone gets down at times, and sharpening your sense of gratitude can make an important difference in the way you feel. I have observed again and again that people's day-to-day happiness is not usually found in getting what they want; it comes from appreciating what they have, no matter how little. 

Writer Arthur Gordon* used to tell about asking a physician friend of his for the name of the most effective prescription he knew.

"Well, I'll tell you," his friend said. "A colleague of mine once had a woman patient who suffered from depression. Got to the point where she stayed at home all the time, listless, apathetic, indifferent to just about everything. The usual medications didn't seem to help."

One day this doctor delivered a small pack-age to the woman's home. "I want you to take what's in this package," he said, "and spend ten minutes of every day looking through it at some object in this room."

In the package there was a strong magnifying glass. The woman faithfully took the prescription. She began looking through the lens at the warp and woof of the fabric on her sofa. She was amazed at what she saw. Then she examined the veins in a flower plucked from her garden, the color dots in an old photograph, and even the texture of her own skin. In days before close-up photography, she'd never seen the likes of it before. She was amazed and astounded at the brand new world opening up before her eyes. 

Perhaps the doctor knew what Abraham Heschel put so well: "The beginning of our happiness lies in the understanding that life without wonder is not worth living." As this woman gazed at her world through a magnifying lens, she saw, in a completely different way, what had been around her all along. 

Her sense of wonder gave way to another, more powerful emotion. The physician said that her experience with the lens, more than anything else, was the turning point of her illness. She began to get well because this unusual prescription had aroused within her the most curative of all emotions – gratitude.

Do you practice gratitude? I think you'll discover that it is no less than a powerful prescription for peace.

courtesy :LifeSupport

Invitation for World Mental Health Awareness Program titled Mental Illness, Depression, Suicide-In Search of healthy ways to cope , on 30th Oct 2012, 3.00 to 5.30pm at Vashi

A personal invitation to all our well-wishers, supporters, friends As part of the series of programs commemorating Mental Health Awareness Week, come and join us for a panel discussion cum Public Interaction. Topic: Mental Illness, Depression, Suicide-In search of Healthy ways to Cope this Saturday 20th October from 3 pm to 5.30 pm.

AASRA works in the area of mental health, providing emotional support, unbiased caring through a helpline service and walk-in centre. AASRA mandates crisis intervention as it's primary focus and through our assorted services (workshops, outreach, awareness drives, care-giving visits to hospices etc) designed to alleviate emotional pain and in the process make concerted efforts in preventing suicides, we hope to bring about a change in society As part of our concerted efforts to de-stigmatize Suicide and our ongoing activities for commemorating WHO designated ‘World Suicide Prevention Day/Month’ we plan to organize a public program titled ‘Talking about Suicide- Finding healthy ways to alleviate the pain’ wherein we will invite Mental health professionals, academicians, students and lay public to an involved and interactive discussion that we hope will change the way people view suicide.

Aasra in Times of India, Nagpur edition(aug 22,2012)

Suicidal instincts behind happy facades http://www.mumbaimirror.com/printarticle.aspx?page=comments&action=translate§id=70&contentid=20120822201208221729481688e7c6e27&subsite=

By Aparna Phadke I TNN Posted On Wednesday, August 22, 2012

As suicides snuff out 14 young lives in the city in August alone, TOI on what lies beneath that super-cool persona of a youngster and what makes their EQs so fragile. It's a sad message no parent would ever want to read. Yet, some parents are forced to read it - in suicide notes and text messages! It rings in their ear when they try and decipher a child's sentiments when he or she is no more. TOI on the fatal trail...

Happy faces, a facade?
It was a rocking school reunion, but students at this party were missing their dear friend Ishan Sathe. A budding cricketer who was chosen for IPL, the young lad had given up on life itself after his love allegedly went sour. Says 21-year-old Ashish Munde, his peer and batch mate, "We don't know what went wrong. After his training at VCA, he said he wanted to concentrate on his CA. But, we didn't even realise when he just stopped communicating with us. Anybody who met him would vouch for his jovial and masti khor nature. Looking back I think that was just a facade for the pain that he was hiding. If we had just chatted more, maybe he'd be here with us today!" If happiness is a facade, then silence it seems is fatal like in the case of young MBA and engineer Shruti Naranje. Seemingly, this bright girl had it all - a good degree, a fine job and an independent lifestyle. "But, one fine day, she decided to end her life and we don't know why," says her distraught friend Neha, adding, "She was a silent girl and we never knew what was going on in her mind. I just wish she had someone to talk to, I am sure she'd be alive. Nothing can be so depressing as to give up your life!"

Dial for help
As the thought of 'if she/he had communicated' runs through the minds of those who knew suicide victims, awareness that help is at hand, is needed, say counsellors. City social worker Dr Seema Sakhare, who runs 'Helpline Lifeline - 8888817666 ,' which is an initiative supported by Nagpur ZP and Nagpur Rural SP Manoj Sharma, says, "We started this service in March 2012 and our phone doesn't stop ringing! It reflects the grim nature of the situation. From March 2012, 71 students have ended their lives and in August alone, 14 students killed themselves! It's a distressing figure. We spread the message that Zindagi Nahin Milegi Dobara." Agrees Johnson Thomas of Mumbai based-NGO Aasra ( 022-27546669 , which he says is a crisis intervention centre for the distressed and suicidal. "The depressed have to know that someone cares for them. Suicide is a momentary feeling, and if that moment is tackled sensitively, we can save so many lives," he says.

Campus capers
While campus is meant to be a fun place, a little sensitivity shown by teachers and students will go a long way in curbing students, feels Dr M P Singh, principal of Priyadarshini College of Engineering. He adds, "We have Art of Living sessions, counsellors on campus and our teachers' numbers are available to our students on our website. So, 24x7 students can get in touch with teachers for academic and emotional problems." Adds Vivek Kapoor, Vice Principal and HOD of Electronics and Telecommunication at Rajiv Gandhi College of Engineering and Research, "I think it's high time that counselling centres in professional colleges are given top priority. Our young generation is bright and intelligent. But, we need to save them from the emotional stress and pressure of expectations."

Aasra in the Mumbai Mirror,Oct 10th , 2012( aasra urban India survey stats)

Four suicides in city within last 48 hours

Apart from Asha Bhosle’s daughter, three other cases of suicide were recorded at different parts of the city on Sunday and Monday Mumbai MIrror Bureau

Posted On Tuesday, October 09, 2012 at 02:23:11 AM Mumbai city witnessed four suicides within 48 hours. While Asha Bhosle’s daughter, Varsha, committed suicide by shooting herself on Monday, three other cases of suicides were recorded in different parts of the city since Sunday. Upset over girlfriend’s suicide, youth hangs self at Goregaon A 24-year-old youth, identified as Abhishek Shetty, committed suicide at his Goregaon (West) residence late on Sunday. According to the police, he was upset over his girlfriend ending her life a few days ago, and had been depressed ever since. Shetty lived in a storeroom behind a Sai Baba temple at Siddharth Nagar. A social worker, he was a BJP party activist and a close aide of corporator Dilip Patel. According to the police, Shetty wasn't keeping well on Sunday. On Monday morning, his father found him hanging from the ceiling fan. On being taken to a hospital, he was declared dead. He left no suicide note, but his father told the police that the news of his girlfriend's suicide could have pushed him over the edge. Shetty’s body was sent for an autopsy and reports are awaited.

Murder accused attempts suicide in Andheri lock-up, dies Monday Suresh Arouthar, an accused who was behind bars at the Andheri Police Station, died at the Cooper Hospital on Monday after attempting suicide on October 3 in the lock-up. Arouthar, 32, a sweeper who lived in the Amboli slums, was behind bars for allegedly killing his wife Meera, 30, on September 25 at their home. On October 3, Arouthar, who was said to be depressed over killing his wife, tied his pants to the lock-up window and attempted hanging himself. Another accused in the lock-up raised an alarm, and the police rushed him to Cooper Hospital. He succumbed on Monday. Arouthar had suspected his wife of having an affair with someone, and the couple regularly fought over this. On September 25, after work Arouthar returned home drunk and fought with his wife. The quarrel took a turn for the worse and in a rage Arouthar strangulated his wife. At the hospital, Arouthar claimed that his wife had fallen down the staircase. But medical reports confirmed that she had been strangulated, following which Arouthar had been arrested. The couple have two children, aged 8 and 4, who are being cared for by relatives.

Woman from Gujarat allegedly commits suicide at Oshiwara A 25-year-old married woman allegedly committed suicide by hanging herself from a ceiling fan at Oshiwara on Sunday morning. The deceased, Nazia Pathan, and her husband Sohbat came to the city from Gujarat on Saturday along with another couple, with the intention of settling here. Nazia and Sohbat are believed to have had an argument on Saturday, and had slept in separate rooms. According to the Oshiwara police, on Sunday morning when Sohbat tried to wake her up he got no response to his knocks on the door. When the door was finally broken open, Nazia was found hanging from the ceiling fan. The police said that Nazia had been married earlier and that Sohbat, whom she married in January this year, was her second husband. She left no suicide note in the room.

‘63 per cent of urban India has considered suicide since 2010’

A year-long survey conducted in eight major Indian cities has revealed that an incredible 70% of urban Indians (age group 15 to 50 years) have suffered from spells of depression in the past two years, and most of them - 90% - have contemplated suicide in the same period. The online survey conducted on residents of Mumbai, Delhi, Chennai, Kolkata, Bangalore, Ahmedabad, Cochin and Hyderabad by Aasra, a suicide helpline, also revealed that a majority of those depressed were women.

“The idea behind the survey was to spread awareness on the rising cases of depression in urban India,” said Aasra’s director Jhonson Thomas. One of the most striking find of the survey was that of the 70% found depressed, only a third were willing to seek professional help.

Article on Aasra Suicide Prevention in Gulf News.com

http://gulfnews.com/ http://gulfnews.com/news/world/india/3-commit-suicide-in-mumbai-every-day-1.1087664 3 commit suicide in Mumbai every day

Centre hopes to tackle depression — major cause of suicide— on World Mental Health Day

By Pamela Raghunath, Correspondent Published: 17:28 October 10, 2012 Gulf News

According to the World Health Organisation, more than 350 million people of all ages, in all communities are affected by depression

Mumbai: As World Mental Health Day with the theme of Depression: A Global Crisis was observed across the world on Wednesday, here in India and particularly Mumbai, depression is a serious problem that has yet to be properly tackled.
While a host of NGOs give a helping hand to depressed people in the city, the health department of Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) is only now planning to set up a helpline, Life is beautiful, in a public-private partnership. A BMC health official said that the plan is still being conceptualised.
Unfortunately, even governments at the state and central level have not taken the issue seriously, says Johnson Thomas, Director of Aasra, an intervention centre, based in Navi Mumbai, for the lonely, distressed and suicidal, and functioning since September 13 1998.
“In an ongoing survey across the main cities of India, 63 per cent of 5,000 respondents have told us that they have experienced depression at some point in their lives. And out of this, 90 per cent have thought of committing suicide,” Thomas told Gulf News.

At least three people commit suicide in Mumbai every day and two every week in Navi Mumbai.
The recent suicide of veteran singer Asha Bhosle’s daughter Varsha Bhosle has brought the issue of depression and suicidal tendencies into the spotlight. In spite of all the help, treatment and counseling, the singer’s fans are wondering “how could Asha’s daughter end her life in this tragic manner.”
According to the World Health Organisation, more than 350 million people of all ages, in all communities are affected by depression, and suicide is among the top leading cause of death globally for all ages. Every year, nearly one million people kill themselves. Although there are known effective treatments for depression, access to treatment is a problem in most countries and in some countries fewer than ten per cent of those who need it receive such treatment.
Relationship break-ups, illnesses, unemployment, exam pressure, poverty, family problems and dowry disputes are just some of the factors that lead to depression and the risk of suicide.
“The problem is that families in India don’t take it seriously if someone has attempted suicide or threatens to do so. This is because of lack of knowledge,” says Thomas.
Aasra’s 24-hour helpline answers at least 35 calls per day, he says. There are others, too, doing their bit. But what would bring about a significant change is the way the government and health authorities take up this grave problem. Currently, there are only around 4,500 psychiatrists in the country. A sustained campaign across the country is essential, he adds.