Srinagar, Feb 15: The distressed calls of mental health patients have witnessed an upward trend after the launch of mental health campaign ‘Let’s Talk Mental Health’ by the Directorate of Health Services Kashmir (DHSK).
Spokesperson DHSK, Dr Mir Mushtaq said the mental health campaign has received a tremendous response of people and distressed calls which the department used to receive earlier have increased over the past 25 days.
While sharing the official figures, he said the Tele Mental Health Assistance and Networking Across States (TMANAS), a mental health helpline received a total of 1014 distressed calls in December 2022 which increased to 1638 calls in January. The calls come from patients across Kashmir valley.
“Notably, in the first ten days of December, the TMANAS received 348 calls. In the first ten days of January, it received 468 calls. Similarly, in the first ten days of February, the helpline received 953 distressed calls,” Dr Mushtaq said.
In view of the huge burden of mental health issues in Kashmir, the DHSK on January 21 launched a two-month mental health awareness campaign and has been speechmaking for the redressal of mental health issues.
“The magnitude of mental health diseases is huge in the valley. We have launched this aggressive campaign throughout the valley which will continue for two months to provide a healing touch to people so that their psychological health is taken care of,” he said.
During the campaign, doctors are conducting various camps and holding counselling sessions for affected people besides that they use social media to reach out to people who seek advice on mental health problems.
“Many people experience mental health problems. There is a social stigma attached to mental health that prevents many from seeking the support they need. It is time to break the silence around mental health and illness,” he said.
It was informed that people can contact Sukoon Mental Health Helpline (18001807202) in case they feel any kind of mental distress, which is run by the Divisional Commissioner Office Kashmir with support from mental health counsellors of DHSK.
The toll-free number of TMANAS Cell J&K is 1-800-891-4416 and it is open for the general public for providing mental health services and drug de-addiction service 24×7.
Let’s Talk Mental Health: Mental health campaign receives positive response as distressed calls go up

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