October 10, 2022

By Anagha C.
Technical Coordinator – Community Well-being

In light of the worrying trend of increased suicide rates and mental health challenges reported by our CHWs, we initiated a project on mental health interventions on an immediate basis in May 2022. These were planned with a focus on both curative and preventive measures, as well as keeping in mind the inclusivity of socio-cultural-economic factors.

The first step was to conduct a training of CHWs followed by an exercise to generate awareness. Our seven CHWs visited 22 villages in three Panchayats (Pothukallu, Chaliyar, and Karulai) to spark conversations about mental health among residents, at household visits and village meetings. Soon enough, we noticed that mental health had become a significant topic of discussion in the villages, with people slowly making connections between their lived experiences and mental health topics. It was a huge milestone for us in our mission to get communities open to addressing mental health concerns without shame or prejudice as a society.

Perhaps expected or unexpectedly, when we began treatment, the idea of traditional healing techniques emerged, blocking the exploration of other treatment modalities. Taking inspiration from the famous Dava and Dua (translating to medicine and prayer) approach, which promotes both modern scientific mental health services along with traditional healing, we were able to tackle the dilemma. CHWs began to encourage people to continue their consultations with traditional healers, while simultaneously opting for psychiatric and psychological treatments, with the ultimate aim being improved health.

In collaboration with the District Mental Health Program (DMHP), Malappuram, we were able to execute mental health camps at two Panchayats (Pothukallu and Chaliyar) twice with the support of respective PHCs and three field-level camps in Appankappu, Chembra and Thandankallu exclusively for tribal communities, reaching more than 50 people.

Now our CHWs are involved in a regular follow-up of treatment who are diagnosed and enabling economic support through disability certifications. ‘Mad is not the one word that defines the entire mental health spectrum, there are a lot of other aspects which seem pretty small but cause the variation from one condition to another to make it a spectrum rather than a single definitive point,’ stated Lakshmi, a community health worker (CHW) at a mental health camp in Appankappu.