Mental Health and Wellness Initiative
World has become a rat race of unending competition. Youth is qualified, well-placed; yet in burnout condition and unhappy from within. DME emphasizes on creating professionals who aim to be professionally qualified, skilled, physically strong & mentally well, and radiate happiness around them. In this regard DME created a Society for Mental Health – Meraki
Objectives:
- To sensitize students about Mental Health and Wellness.
- To conduct provide easy and accessible mental health support to students
- To equip students to manage stress and life challenges.
- To spread community awareness by events, workshops about Mental Health and Wellness.
What were the contextual features or challenging issues that needed to be addressed in designing and implementing this practice (in about 150 words)?
Mental Health is a stigmatized subject in India. Conversing it like common ailment and seeking help in this regard is considered a taboo. Owing to the social judgement, youth with mental health issues do not pursue mental wellness counselling. Due to dearth of parental understanding, teenagers and graduate students entomb their sentiments making them feel helpless, turmoiled, and miserable. Devoid of access to neighbouring counselling centres, students fall prey to grave mental health problems leading to depression, addiction, and suicide.
College is a place where students spend considerable amount of time in a day. Society for Mental Health – Meraki at was established at DME with the objective to spread awareness and make it easier for students to get help within reach. Name Meraki signifies to do tasks with soul, love, and compassion. The team members work with lot of passion and soul in spreading awareness about mental health and wellness.
Describe the practice and its uniqueness in the context of Indian higher education. What were the constraints/limitations, if any, faced (in about 400 words)?
The school system is fixated on syllabus completion and board exam results adding burden on young minds. This anxious youth joins the higher education system post a grilling competitive exam. Indian higher education ecosystem largely focuses on academic excellence, placements and extra-curricular [Cultural, Sports]. This ecosystem mass produces professionally qualified workforce, entering the corporate rat race where packages, appraisals and rising in social status is focused. Current youth has forgotten to be good human but have been trained to be a skilled professional. The Higher Education system is neglecting the need of Mental Wellness in youth at the cost of professional growth.
The vision of DME is, “To nurture an inspirational setting and a global standard of learning for students that enables their intellectual, social and personal transformation into future leaders for the benefit of the nation.” Hence focus on students’ mental health and wellness by DME is a unique initiative as it forms a balanced youth personality for good leadership and development of a happy nation.
Challenge 1: Motivating faculty members to take up the cause was the immediate hurdle to cross since faculty already have assigned classes, ongoing research work and events to manage
Challenge 2: Creating student team for the said work at DME by inspiring students to join the cause also training them to understand and contribute in right way.
Challenge 3: Choice of location and setup for the above work at college was an initial challenge as students in need of counselling look for a place which is less crowded and away from public eye due to stated social stigma.
Challenge 4: Requirement of counsellor for professional help was raised at Director’s office since faculty members and student team can help in initial identification of those who need help but cannot provide professional counselling.
Challenge 5: Hospital involvement as and when required in teams of doctor led workshops and referencing cases for treatment which are beyond therapy.
Challenge 6: Reluctance of Parents to support in the cause as parents live in constant denial about the mental health situation of their ward.
Challenge 7: School leadership involvement to join the cause as we realized that the youth entering college in the first semester is coming with baggage of unaddressed feelings and anxiety. Hence the problem is deep rooted and it became a collective responsibility to jointly work towards this cause.
Provide evidence of success such as performance against targets and benchmarks, review/results. What do these results indicate? Describe in about 200 words.
Positive Impact of Meraki – Mental Health and Wellness Initiative | |
Teenagers: School Students |
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Youth: DME Students |
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Adults: DME Employees |
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Corporates: Professionals |
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Please identify the problems encountered and resources required to implement the practice (In about 150 words).
Problems Encountered and Resources Required | Solutions and Resources Arranged |
Location Resource | A cabin was identified and allocated to Create a dedicated counseling room on campus, where only one-to-one interaction will be done with confidentiality. |
Time Resource | Faculty members associated with Meraki were given less workload and training sessions were held post-classes. |
Team Resource | Faculty and Students have explained the cause and are motivated to join the team. This created the joining of self-motivated team members working wholeheartedly for a good cause. |
Training and Development Resource | Worked towards collaborations with hospitals for the training of the Meraki Team to help in such issues. |
Financial Resource | Adequate financial support by the college is with the Meraki team for the salary of the Psychotherapist and hiring of other professionals for workshops |
Professional Guidance Resource | Dr. Ragini Singh, Psychotherapist & Counsellor in DME is now available to help on campus and has a regular seating |
About E-magazine
Meraki came up with this initiative of its e-magazine, संतुलन: The Mental Health Bulletin, with two issues per year. The idea is to promote and raise awareness about general and specific mental health issues through life-inspiring stories, factual and well-researched articles, movies and book reviews, etc. contributed by the students, faculty members, and guests to bring the conversations around mental health in all candour.
Introduction to Activities
We at Meraki Society for Mental Health work towards the well-being of our students. We design, construct and manage a platform that is secure and beneficial to their well-being. Our interactions have been quite helpful in reaching our goals; we have witnessed people approaching us to communicate their feelings and thoughts that were detrimental to their mental health. We constantly work to improve our understanding of and relationships with everyone we come into contact with, both within and outside of institutions. Through events and conversations, we have heightened public awareness of mental health.
1. International Day of Happiness 2024
Meraki: The Society for Mental Health at Delhi Metropolitan Education, Noida organized an Interactive, activity-oriented session on the account of International Day of Happiness which falls on 20th March every year. The theme for the International Day of Happiness 2024 is ‘Happier Together’. This theme serves as a poignant reminder that enduring happiness stems from our connections with others and our involvement in something greater than ourselves. We took this opportunity to celebrate this day with our DME family and endeavour to promote happiness in our own lives and communities. The resource persons for the session were Dr. Ragini Singh, Counselling Psychotherapist, and Ms. Gulina Singh, Counselling Psychologist. The coordinators for the workshop were Ms. Shanu Jain, Faculty Convener of Meraki, and the student volunteers. The event started with an ice-breaking session with everyone dancing on the beats of the song ‘If You’re Happy and You Know It’. It was followed by a video that showed how laughter is contagious and all the people sitting in one place spread happiness even through just laughing by themselves. Ms. Gulina shared some inspiring anecdotes. Another activity started with reliving the happy moments in our lives. A music video was played about Emotional Catharsis. Another activity was conducted in which some teachers blew balloons and some made paper airplanes which just kept the happiness in the auditorium alive. The event concluded with all smiles and spreading the joy of life, by spreading Happiness.
1. Training Programme of Mental Health Ambassadors By Community Connect Cell, Media School & Meraki: Society For Mental Health In Collaboration With Richmond Fellowship Society (India) Delhi Branch
We organized a Mental Health Workshop in collaboration with the Richmond Fellowship Society on 11th April 2023 in Seminar Hall. This workshop has been a collective effort of Media School and two institutional societies of DME, Community Connect Cell and Meraki: Society for Mental Health.
DME has come forth as harbingers and facilitators of Mental Health and to further strengthen this institute-level initiative, the institute has signed an MOU with The Richmond Fellowship Society and the training workshop has been conducted as a first step towards this initiative. The guest of honour was Dr Mridula Seth, Vice-President, The Richmond Fellowship Society (India) Delhi Branch, and Dr Aparna Khanna, Professor at the Lady Irwin College, DU. The workshop involved student interaction by way of playing various games like Mental Health Varnmala, Mental Health Snake and Ladders, and many more activities.
2. Session on Personal Agility and Resilience in an Ambiguous World
On June 1, 2023, THRIVE: DME Mentoring Cell and MERAKI: Society for Mental Health at DME in coordination with DME Management School organised a session on- Personal Agility and Resilience in an Ambiguous World under the Parent Mentor Knowledge series.
The event was graced by the benign presence of our guest speaker Dr Tazyn, MD at IARA Research Solutions Pvt Ltd. Curators of the event were Dr Swati Jain (Head Mentoring Cell) and Ms Priyanshi Jain (Head of Mental Health Society). The resource person stressed the importance of having a support system behind you during highs and lows. Instances shared by her showed how she tried to enjoy the smallest moments in life despite the impending danger that surrounded her.
3. Student Visit at NGO Vishwas
The students of DME visited The NGO called Vishwas, Richmond Fellowship Society, India on the 8th of June 2023. The students who had volunteered for an internship after the workshop conducted on the 11th of April in the premises of the college attended an orientation program for the same. Students understand the scope of their work related to the specific areas of their course for preparing Action Plans within the constraints of their time and resources. The various activities are conducted throughout the day like painting, poster making, bag making, greeting cards, candle making, etc. The NGO conducts an open house day, wherein people who visit the NGO can purchase the same. They shared various ideas on what can be done to raise awareness of mental health disabilities and let the people know that a place like ‘Vishwas’ exists where loved ones can send the people suffering from disabilities and receive help. Every student contributed to the ideas and gave their input which was much needed and helpful.
4. Mental Health Workshop of Faculty & Non-teaching Staff on Work-Life Balance
Meraki: The Society for Mental Health organized a session on 11th Oct 2023 Wednesday 2:30 pm onwards to help the participants focus on relevant life, and work matters and setting practical goals. It also aimed at helping the participants develop better communication and management skills. The resource persons for the workshop were Dr. Ragini Singh (Psychotherapist) and Ms. Gulina Singh (Counselling Psychologist). The discussion of the issues faced by the faculty in managing a healthy work-life balance took place. Various points were covered, like time management, me time, self-care, work commitment, managing and understanding leadership roles, and respecting each other. The faculty members were given guidance and strategies on how to prioritize their tasks, organize their days, stop morning craziness, and more.
5. Mental Health and Wellness Session
The students of Meraki under the able guidance of Dr Shalini Gautam, Assistant Professor of Management School and Counselling Psychologist Ms Gulina Singh conducted a mental health outreach session in collaboration with SOCH (Outreach Cell) at BGS Vijanatham School (Greater Noida) on 7 November 2023 for students of classes 8th to 10th.The session began with Mrs. Gulina briefing the students on some key aspects of mental health:
- What is Mental Health?
- Importance of Mental health
- How mental health plays a vital role in a student’s life
- Peer pressure and mental health
- Role of family and school in helping students cope with stress and other related issues
The session was further continued by student members of Meraki with an interactive session on daily life mental health problems, issues of peer pressure, stage fright and academic stress.Students have enthusiastically participated in the group discussion round and have asked various questions related to the importance of mental health, how to cope with exam stress etc. The session was concluded with a fun Ice-breaker session taken by Mrs. Gulina Singh.
6. Orientation cum Workshop of Batch 2023 [1st Year Students] on the theme – Transition from School to College (Developing Positive Coping Mechanism)
The purpose of the workshop is to help students mentally and emotionally prepare for the transition from school to college. Being emotionally prepared for college life is a key contributor to success and happiness. In the workshop, various topics were covered about some ways and techniques that will ease the transition and help set you up for success in college and beyond. Students shared their experiences and also were able to relate to each other’s experiences from school life. This interaction builds a connection among students. After interacting about the school life which was indeed a beautiful phase of everyone’s life. Now we moved into the next phase of life i.e., college life. The sessions took place on 26th Sept 2023, 03rd Oct 2023, 06th Oct 2023 across all the three schools by Ms. Gulina Singh (Counselling Psychologist)
7. Mental Health Workshop of 2nd & 3rd Year Students on the Theme – Handling Stress and Anxiety
Students are a unique group of people who are passing through the most critical period of life, during which they experience many stressful events. Stress and anxiety among students are widespread. As education progresses to a higher level, the students are used to facing more stressful events like a tougher syllabus, challenging work assignments and projects, residing in hostels, etc. Such challenges need to be dealt with effectively. Most of the time, this stress is negative, and they are unable to deal with it. The students were asked to share their understanding of the terms stress and anxiety. Students shared their thoughts about stress and anxiety. The discussion of the definition of stress and anxiety with students took place for a better understanding of the term, which is used very casually these days. In the end, we discussed gratitude. For this, they were asked to write down the 3 most loved things or people in their lives (most students do not count themselves in the top 3), and that is the idea behind this activity: to not take oneself for granted and to love yourself first. This will be followed by asking the students to take a moment to imagine what life would be like without that one good thing. The sessions took place on 25th Sept 2023, 4th Oct 2023, 5th Oct 2023, 12th Oct 2023, 19th Oct 2023 with Students of 3rd, 4th & 5th year of Management, Law & Media School by Ms. Gulina Singh (Counselling Psychologist)
8. Mental Health Workshop of 3rd, 4th & 5th Year Students on the Theme Dealing with Pressure and Expectations
The session started with the general question from the students, i.e., was there a decision about your life you made because of people’s expectations? Many students shared their experiences about decisions which were influenced by other people and had an impact on their lives. Interaction regarding the same was taken further. Next was a discussion about everyone’s current stressors in life, followed by another activity where students write anonymously on a piece of paper one thing that worries them or has caused emotional wounds that they find difficult to share. Once they have written it, it will be placed in a bowl. (After shuffling the bowl, each participant will pick up a chit and read out loud what is written on the chit. Then students shared their approach to dealing with the situation which was mentioned in the chit. This activity helped them find a new perspective on their problems which caused them trouble. The workshop was conducted on 13th Oct 23 & and 16th Oct 23 by Ms. Gulina Singh for the 3rd, 4th and 5th-year students of law, media and management.
- Orientation Cum Workshop by Meraki Society for Mental Health
Theme: Transition from School to College
On 4 February 2022, Meraki conducted a workshop on basic areas like Academic, Psychological and Social Competence among the students during their college and everything takes a step ahead transforming their goals from school to college lives, which was attended by110 Students from all three schools at Delhi Metropolitan Education.
- Coping with Traumatic Stress: Together with Peers and Mentors
An enlightening session on, ‘Coping with Traumatic Stress: Together with Peers and Mentors’ was organized by Meraki, Society for Mental Health at Delhi Metropolitan Education in collaboration with Thrive, DME Mentoring Cell. The event held on 25th April 2022 was graced by the benign presence of our guest speaker, Ms. Anjali Mahalke – a leading Counselling Psychologist.
Interactive session ‘You Are Enough’ (A Kaleidoscopic view on Mental Health) at The Berry Coworks, Jhandewalan, New Delhi
An activity-oriented session (29 June 2022) emphasising the need for emotional catharsis, spending time with self and loved ones, pause, think and reflect which witnessed 50+ gathering of professionals present at the TBC, a leading co-working space in New Delhi.Session on ‘Adapting to changing times’
Meraki: Society for Mental Health & Mentoring Cell, DME conducted a session on ‘Adapting to Changing Times’ on 25 August 2022 at 11:30 am in the Seminar Hall, DME. The keynote speaker of the session was Dr. Ragini Singh (A renowned Psychologist and Counsellor). This interactive session aimed to facilitate deliberations around the issues faced by students in their personal and professional lives in the dynamic times. Dr. Ragini apprised the students about accepting the changes in lives gracefully as, ‘Change is the only constant’.
- Regular Class Sessions with Dr Ragini Singh
Dr Ragini Singh, the visiting Counsellor at the institute takes regular sessions for students of all the batches every Thursday. She interacts with students and addresses their concerns and prepares them to face myriad kinds of challenges in their professional and personal lives.
- Orientation Batch 2022
On December 22, 2022, students and Faculty Conveners of Meraki visited all the first-year classrooms of Batch 2022 to apprise the students about society, its aims, and its objectives. They briefed about the initiatives taken by the society and also welcomed the first-year students from all the courses to be a part of the society. The students showed great interest and enthusiasm to be a part of the initiative.
- Exam Support and Counselling
Examination Time can be stressful and affect your academic achievement. The signs of stress before and during examination are, having irregular sleep, the feeling of tiredness, being isolated or sad, feeling ache all over, suffering from a stomach upset, feeling of restlessness or leading a condition where you are not able to recall whatever you studied. Getting panic, when you see a question and you cannot answer and your mind goes blank. It is experienced by many normal students and it is not very mysterious or difficult to understand the ways to manage it. It can be managed easily by following a plan of helpful suggestions.
Meraki: The society for Mental Health at DME is there to support you throughout this journey. Don’t suffer or feel anxious; communication is the key. Our endeavour is to create a safe space where all the students can freely discuss their apprehensions. At Meraki, the society members, mentors and even professional counsellors work together to extend the requisite psycho-emotional support to all the students.
- Academic Challenges: Managing Burnout through motivation
Conducted on 15th February 2021, it was a virtual session organized to help the students and teachers at DME cope with the stress and mental exhaustion induced by the pandemic. Dr. Sandeep Vohra (India’s leading psychiatrist, psychotherapist, and digital emotional & mental wellness entrepreneur) with his team graced the participants with their presence as guest speakers.
- Tasveer-A Photograph: Pause, Click, Reflect
On March 15th 2021, Meraki: Society for Mental Health at Delhi Metropolitan Education organized a virtual event, Tasveer-A Photograph via Zoom platform (3pm onwards). The objective of the event was to give our students an opportunity to communicate, capture and reflect their state of mind with a photograph.
- Mental Health Summit 2021 – Drafting Policies for Change
On the occasion of World Mental Health Day, Meraki: Society for Mental Health at Delhi Metropolitan Education, Noida organized Mental Health Summit 2021-Drafting Policies for Change on October 10th & 11th, 2021. We witnessed policy presentations by students and scholars from various universities across India in three technical sessions.
Orientation Session for BBA Batch 2021
Ms. Tanisha Sharma, the Student Convener, Ms. Megha Mishra, student co-convener, Ms. Ambika and Ms. Tejaswini, student members addressed the new batch (2021-24) during the Orientation programme for the BBA students of Batch 2021 on the theme “Transition from School to College” was organised on 25 November 2021 attended by 150+ students of BBA batch 2021.
- Inaugural session of Meraki
On 11th October, 2020 Meraki conducted its inaugural and orientation programme in the light of Mental Health day celebrated on 10th October every year. Honourable Justice Swatanter Kumar (Former Chairperson, National Green Tribunal and Former Judge, Supreme Court of India) and eminent counsellor and psychologist Ms. Shivani Misri Sadhoo (Founder & Director, Saarthi counselling services) were the keynote speakers. Many students shared the anxiety issues they faced due to Covid-isolation, home restrictions, and majorly the shift to Online Classes.
Webinar with Ms. Jigyasa Tandon
On 17th October, 2020 Meraki: society for Mental Health at Delhi Metropolitan Education, Noida in collaboration with Outreach DME-The CSR club conducted a workshop on Socio – Emotional Health of Students in Pandemic. They keynote speaker at the event was Ms. Jigyasa Tandon. 70 students from all three schools at DME plus 40 students from schools across Delhi NCR attended it.
UNCAGE
An open mic session in collaboration with Radio Intersect was organized on 30 November 2020.
Transition from School to College- Challenges and Uncertainties
Addressing the new batch 2020 on 30th December, 2020, it was a virtual event organized for audiences of different fields of study. The day saw the gracious presence of Dr. Shwetank Bansal (Eminent Psychiatrist and Psychotherapist), attended by 120 plus students from DME and DTC first year.
- Covid/Lockdown Counselling Support
- Interactive session ‘You Are Enough’ (A Kaleidoscopic view on Mental Health) at The Berry Coworks, Jhandewalan, New Delhi
An activity-oriented session (29 June 2022) emphasising the need for emotional catharsis, spending time with self and loved ones, pause, thinking and reflecting which witnessed 50+ gathering of professionals present at the TBC, a leading co-working space in New Delhi.
On-campus full-time counsellors enable students in crises/distress to solve their problems and move ahead in life in a healthy and resilient way that in turn enhances their well-being and quality of life. Dr. Ragini Singh and Ms. Gulina Singh are available at the DME campus for mental well-being counselling. They conduct individual and group sessions for students and employees. The group sessions are conducted in the classrooms wherein they address a particular section to discuss some common issues faced by the youth in their personal and professional lives. They also hold one-to-one counselling sessions to understand the individual case requirements and counsel the concerned student/faculty. Together these counsellors offer a continuum of care for people with mental, emotional and behavioural health needs and support.
Inauguration of "MERAKI" Society for Mental Health on 11 October 2020
Webinar on Socio-Emotional Health of students during a pandemicSpeaker: Ms. Jigyasa Tandon, Mental Health Professional, Educationist & Advocate. Date: 17-10-20
Webinar on Academic Challenges: Managing Burnout through MotivationGuest: Dr. Sandeep Vohra, India's leading Delhi-based Psychiatrist, physiotherapist and Digital Emotional & mental Awareness Entrepreneur. Date: 15-2-21
The Members of the Meraki-Mental Health Cell:
S.No | Name | Position | Mobile no. | Email id |
1 | Ms. Shanu Jain | Convenor | 9971346735 | |
2 | Dr. Ragini Singh | Counseling Psychologist | 9311616509 | |
3 | Ms. Gulina Singh | Counseling Psychologist | 9810786964 | |
7 | Mr. Gunjan Agrahari | Faculty | 9369156090 | |
8 | Mr. Gunjan | BBA Student | 9354783729 | |
9 | Mr. Kunal Atri | BBA Student | 9311771405 | |
10 | Ms. Mansi Srivastav | BBA Student | 9205083181 | |
11 | Mr. Arjun Tiwary | BBA Student | 9650088883 | |
12 | Ms. Ambika | Law Student | 9851101327 | |
13 | Ms. Prachi Kushwaha | Law Student | 9354882320 | |
14 | Ms. Krishna Kant Gautam | Law Student | 93545 72358 | |
15 | Mr. Arjun Tiwary | Law Student | 96500 88883 | |
16 | Ms. Khushi Srivastava | BAJMC Student | 6202479476 | |
17 | Ms. Krishna Goswami | BAJMC Student | 9528007428 | |
18 | Mr. Nikhil Gupta | BAJMC Student | 9170165570 | |
19 | Mr. Aryan Gulati | BAJMC Student | 9457648804 | |
20 | Mental Health Service, Noida | 9311036028, 9818901685 | ||
21 | Meraki-Mental Health Cell DME helpline email id | |||
