You know exactly where to go when your physical discomfort gets unmanageable. And here’s what can help you when your mental health requires attention. With services such as GoodLives, now you have the right therapist and guidance at the click of a button. From COVID-related anxieties to troubled relationships and queer issues, they offer a wide spectrum of expert counselling.
“Asking for help is never a sign of weakness. It’s one of the bravest things you can do. And it can save your life.”
― Lily Collins, British-American actress and author of Unfiltered: No Shame, No Regrets, Just Me
Manpreet’s journey of dealing with a low phase in his life last year perhaps best exemplifies this act of bravery. It’s indeed a story of internal struggle as the law student in his 20s grappled with his mental disorders. While some of these mental health concerns arose from repeated failure in a series of exams, others stemmed from causes deep-seated since his childhood. However, what’s noteworthy is that Manpreet mustered courage to seek help and with his super supportive sister’s timely intervention, he found the right kind of guidance at GoodLives, a mental health service for one and all. A combination of medication and therapy sessions proved to be a two-pronged recovery process for the young man.
Manpreet’s road to recovery
Pursuing judicial services today, Manpreet is one of the many who found the much-need guidance at GoodLives. He takes a retrospective look at his tryst with “adjustment disorder” a year ago. Speaking out at Mental Blossoms, a mental health podcast by GoodLives, Manpreet recounts his personal experience in a plainly honest tone. “I was struggling with adjustment disorder after a string of failures in exams last year. The initial symptoms were not readily noticeable to me but gradually I became very lethargic and was unable to perform day-to-day activities. My sleep cycles turned upside down. I would sleep for almost 14 – 16 hours a day,” he recalls. Loss of appetite, lack of interest in everyday activities, and withdrawing from family and friends were symptoms that were not obvious to him initially. It’s only when he started feeling a literal “weight” in his chest that made him bedridden did he realize that something was wrong. This is when GoodLives became instrumental in Manpreet’s road to recovery.
The therapy sessions trained him to cope with adjustment disorder and his renewed confidence helped him fare well in his job interviews. It also enabled him identify and address the inherent cause of his so called “extreme shyness” since childhood. Manpreet had a low self-esteem in his growing years because of his thin body type. He had intense anxiety when meeting new people. While he had been suffering from “social anxiety disorder”, the symptoms could be easily confused with timid behaviour.
Mental health therapy now affordable & accessible like never before
GoodLives aims to enable people like Manpreet find accessible expert guidance when they are faced with emotional and mental health issues. In a span of 10 months, the organisation has expanded its user base to 45+ countries and client base to five different countries. Sakshi Shah and Lawrance Lovedeep, Co-founders, GoodLives have seen people going through mental turmoil in the absence of the right kind of counselling from close quarters. Having witnessed people from different walks of life struggle with mental health problems, the IIT Kharagpur-alumni launched the mental health services with an endeavour to make mental health accessible. De-stigmatizing psychotherapy and creating awareness are their primary objectives.
Almost 7.5% of India’s population suffers from mental health issues but the number of experts dealing in the subject is abysmally low at below 4000. Given this scenario, psychotherapy is not only inaccessible but also an expensive affair. However, NGOs such as GoodLives strive to focus on making mental health counselling affordable to people. Spreading awareness through social media, the organisation has been partnering with experts and volunteers and has made an outreach of more than 6 lakh people. They conduct webinars highlighting the significance of stress management in these unprecedented times and also suggest practical ways to cope with it. The organisation helps you connect with the right therapist and also provides free email-assisted therapy.
Their latest campaign is about providing free therapy for relieving COVID-related anxiety. To reach out to as many as possible, they are collaborating with some well-known influencers including Deepika Joshi, Sonal Arora and Jhilmil Saha.
COVID-related Anxieties: Are you or your loved ones going through this?
- Are you having trouble relaxing?
- Do you have racing thoughts?
- Have you lost interest in activities you found enjoyable otherwise?
- Are you easily irritable, angry or frustrated?
- Do you have difficulty sleeping or concentrating?
- Are you feeling disconnected or withdrawn from your family/loved ones?
- Do thoughts of uncertainty, infection and death constantly haunt you?
You can book a free therapy session to get relief from COVID-related anxiety.
Contact details:
Phone: +917478530132
Email: contact@goodlives.in
