Nishtha Shrestha

The coronavirus pandemic has served as a wake-up call for everyone to be aware of their mental health. In the initial stages of the lockdown, the confinement made citizens experience symptoms such as sleep disturbances, over thinking, restlessness, etc. The police reports revealed that the suicide rates in Nepal increased during the lockdown. The increasing mental health challenges showed wide developmental gaps in this sector. To capitalise on these needs, there was a rise in the number of pseudo-counsellors.
The term ‘counsellor’ represents a person trained to provide guidance. As per mental health requirements, counsellors undergo years of training and supervision before they handle any client independently. Yet, in the absence of clear legal mechanisms, counselling services are offered by anyone. The activities that a counsellor performs include listening, creating a safe space for sharing, offering positive regard to name a few. These activities appear simple to a common man and seems to be no different from what we do in our daily lives. We listen and share our problems with family and friends. So, what is the difference?
Imagine a scenario where your friend has broken his/her leg. There are two choices: to offer first aid or perform the surgery oneself. The rational choice would be the former considering the lack of expertise. Applying the same logic to mental health issues, one can offer basic help to the person sharing the problems, but healing takes place only by taking the person to a professional. Taking the same example of the injured friend, there are a plenty of pain killers available in the medicine shops, but we buy the one prescribed by the doctor. Similarly, there are a lot of solutions for mental health issues that one can read online. But understanding which solution is to be adapted to the client requires expertise.
Everyone responds to the situation differently. We have witnessed it ourselves with the pandemic. For some, it was a relaxation period while others reacted with extreme stress. An attempt to cure oneself using suggestions offered in articles is like performing surgery on oneself. There may be instances when reading has helped people understand their issue but one needs to take the advice offered by pseudo-therapists with caution. An example that comes to the mind is an article on depression. The article suggested adopting a mantra for depression which will help the person to overcome the condition. Depression is a serious mental health condition that requires a therapy to deal with the thoughts of helplessness, hopelessness and worthlessness. Such articles tend to trivialise mental health problems and prevent people from seeking and referring to trained professionals.
Therapists need the help of the society to assist clients effectively. Without the support of family or friends, the client is not able to apply the new learning to real life. Everyone has a role to play in the healing process and it is important to understand what role one needs to perform. Not everyone needs to be a therapist to listen to a friend or family but awareness of one's abilities is essential. Being aware of the mental health of people is a preventive measure. This should be encouraged by the society. The boundary, however, needs to be drawn when the people start assuming that they are qualified to offer therapy based on posting mental health advice in virtual platforms.