Buhey Baarivan - open vour mind to wellness

Ludhiana, October 10, 2016: For World Mental Health Day (October 10th), a music concert "Buhey Baarian" was organized in Sarabhha Nagar market by Mind Plus healthcare, a leading mental health organization. The theme of the event was ,open your mind to wellness' and popular young bands Shivoham and Manraj Patar played a variety of music. The show was co-hosted with Radio Jockey Sandy from Big FM who engaged the audience. A photo booth was arranged where individuals got pictures taken to show their support for the cause. The objective of the event was to raise awareness about mental health conditions which are common, poorly understood, misdiagnosed and undertreated. Professionals from Mind Plus interacted with the public and responded to queries and disseminate educational materials busting common myths about mental health.
Speaking on the event, Dr Kunal Kala said that mental health conditions impact one's mood (the way we feel), perceptions (the way we perceive the world around us) and our behavior (something that we are typically keen to defend, and attribute to external events). Since these experiences are so closely linked to one's personal identity, the first instinct of the individual is to look into the environment for a reason that they can ascribe their feelings to. As an example if I feel stressed about an upcoming interview and am unable to sleep because of this, although it is possible that this may be a one off instance, on Sreater reflection I might identify similar symptoms (worrying excessively, racing heart, insomnia) occurring during other stressful situations. This might be 'normal anxiety' or an 'anxiety disorder' but usually any changes in one's mood, behavior and perceptions that interfere in day to day functioning such as education or work usually warrant detailed assessment by professionals.
Dr Kunal explained that mental health conditions can affect anyone, and often do impact intelligent, successful people. These conditions can result in personal, social and occupational dysfunction and with treatment most individuals make a full recovery and are able to have normal lives.
With lndia having one of the highest rates of depression in the world, he explained that mental health conditions have a significant lifetime prevalence of almost 1 in 4. lndividuals often suffer for long periods, because of lack of awareness about the conditions and lack of a correct diagnosis which may be followed by ineffective treatment. Mental health assessment and treatment requires a team approach with various . members of the multidisciplinary team such as psychiatrists, psychologlsts, and occupational therapists -' who collaboratively work with each patient to provide comprehensive treatments by involving the families and carers.