Your Mental Health Matters
Do you feel depressed, anxious, worried about relationship issues or suicidal? Do you have a question related to your own or someone else's mental health?
Contact Us 24/7 For Free Support
We're still here to help
Our trained multilingual counsellors are all qualified and are available day and night. We are here to help answer any questions you might have about mental health. Reach out to us now
Please choose the number as mentioned above and call. You can also mail on help@vandrevalafoundation.com and expect a reply within 48 hrs of receipt of mail.
We do not disclose the exact location due to security concerns. However, the counsellors will help you with any issue.
This is an All India number and can be accessed from any state or region in India.
Yes, the helpline works round the clock.
Counseling is done free of cost. However, the call rates are as per the telecom service provider.
Psychiatrists are trained medical doctors, they can prescribe medications, and they spend much of their time with patients on medication management as a course of treatment.
Psychologists focus extensively on psychotherapy and treating emotional and mental suffering in patients with behavioural intervention.
No, you are not likely to speak to the same person. To protect caller identity, the Helpline operates anonymously and there is no fixed pattern to staffing.
The helpline works on a principle of maintaining strict confidentiality of the call content, hence no one other than the counsellor will know about what you called the helpline. If you choose not to reveal your identity, you can remain anonymous.
- Sleep or appetite changes — Dramatic sleep and appetite changes or decline in personal care.
- Mood changes — Rapid or dramatic shifts in emotions or depressed feelings.
- Withdrawal — Recent social withdrawal and loss of interest in activities previously enjoyed.
- Drop in functioning — An unusual drop in functioning, at school, work or social activities, such as quitting sports, failing in school or difficulty performing familiar tasks.
- Problems thinking — Problems with concentration, memory or logical thought and speech that are hard to explain.
- Increased sensitivity — Heightened sensitivity to sights, sounds, smells or touch; avoidance of over-stimulating situations.
- Apathy — Loss of initiative or desire to participate in any activity.
- Feeling disconnected — A vague feeling of being disconnected from oneself or one’s surroundings; a sense of unreality.
- Illogical thinking — Unusual or exaggerated beliefs about personal powers to understand meanings or influence events; illogical or “magical” thinking typical of childhood in an adult.
- Nervousness — Fear or suspiciousness of others or a strong nervous feeling.
- Unusual behavior – Odd, uncharacteristic, peculiar behavior.
Yes, clinical depression is a serious medical condition, but can be treated; It is not a nor should be seen as a personal weakness.
Those who have experienced an episode of major depression can put a person at higher risk for future episodes. This is not to say that everyone with experiences of depression will experience it again.
Access to the right treatment is vital to recovery and will help identify and prevent future episodes of depression.
If left untreated, types of depressive disorders can last for months or sometimes years. A major depressive episode is characterised by a set of symptoms that typically lasts for a few months.. Bipolar disorder is characterised as “ups” (periods of mania) and “downs” (periods of extreme depression).
Though these phases may change rapidly or slowly, bipolar depression can last until an effective treatment is found. Dysthymia is mild and more difficult to identify and may last for years if left untreated.
Alternative therapy describes any treatment or technique that has not been scientifically documented or identified as safe or effective for a specific condition. Alternative therapy involves a variety of disciplines that include everything from diet and exercise to mental conditioning and lifestyle changes.
Examples of alternative therapies include yoga, acupuncture, guided imagery, chiropractic care, hypnosis, biofeedback, aromatherapy, relaxation, herbal remedies, massage and many others. If you are interested in trying any of these options, talk to your doctor.
- Expect your mood to improve gradually not immediately.
- Seek out professional help.
- Avoid negative influences.
- Try to be active.
- Set realistic goals, break larger goals into smaller ones.
- Set some priorities.
- Remind them it is possible to overcome depression.
- Spend time with other people even if it seems irritable, confide in a trusted friend or relative and try not to isolate yourself.
- When your sleep and appetite improve, respond positively to such developments. Postpone important decisions like getting married or divorced or changing jobs.
- Continue to learn more about depression.
Our mission to achieve our vision
We want to improve the mental health of all people in India. We want to promote understanding, reduce stigma and to give a voice to those who have none. We aim to help individuals lift themselves out of the impacts of poor mental health, we seek to ensure that all people especially those with the fewest resources hold a good state of mental health to secure opportunities to succeed in life.
Awareness
Mental health affects us all
Mental health is equal to physical health. Effecting rich, poor, young and old.
Access
We strive to ensure access to:
Treatment options, support groups, knowledge of mental health and inclusion in society.
Advocacy
We work with governments, educational institutions, businesses, civil society and media to:
Build support, build best practice, create partnerships and reduce stigma in Indian Society.
Anticipation
We realise mental health issues are growing.
We recognise the need for ranges of treatment to anticipate mental health issues.
We will use community support options
to develop effective methods of support.
Awareness
Mental health
affects us all
Mental health
is as important as physical health,effecting rich, poor, young and old
Access
We strive
to ensure access
to support groups,
treatment
options,
knowledge
and inclusion
in society
Advocacy
We work with government, businesses, educational institutions, civil society and media
Bring support,
build best
practice,
create partnerships
and reduce stigma
in Indian
Society
Anticipation
Mental health issues
are growing
We recognises
the need for an expanded range of treatment and community support
options for people
who have experienced
mental illness.
Satyamev Jayate makes an impact
Hyacinth Pereira, Senior Vice President of the Vandrevala Foundation, reports on the volume and range of calls received after the Foundation's mental health helpline number was shared on the popular Indian television talk show Satyamev Jayate (English: Truth Alone Prevails) hosted by popular Bollywood actor and filmmaker Aamir Khan.
Vandrevala Foundation improving mental health care in Maharashtra
Cyrus & Priya Vandrevala Foundation, whose charitable activities include mental health care, has submitted a plan to the Maharashtra government to improve services in mental health institutions in the state. This move follows the publication of a World Health Organisation (WHO) reporting India with the highest rate of major depression in the world. India is going through social and economic change, industrialisation and urbanisation are changing traditional support systems.
Saif Ali Khan
With the support of Saif Ali Khan, the Indian film actor and producer, the Vandrevala Foundation leveraged its sponsorship of the India Turf Invitation Cup 2010. The media attention aimed to raise awareness about mental health issues, influence public opinion about mental health and mental illness, and generate action to address mental health in India.
Get Involved with The Vandrevala Foundation
We focus on setting up and building programs to show local authorities that mental health programs positively impact society. We invest in smart mental health projects in the early stages of development and build them until the government can scale projects to a larger audience.
For any of the above, please write to Dr Arun John, Executive Vice President Vandrevala Foundation at help@vandrevalafoundation.com
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