Mission & Vision
I am Rekha, and I am trying to raise awareness in our community about psychosocial problems similar to physical health problems. We don't think about how daily life becomes so stressful for all; we are just living our lives, but we do not think about how this busy and mechanical life will impact our lives. On top of that, when we are not aware of the issues which we have in our daily routine, then psychosocial issues and our wellbeing become challenging in daily life. Anyone seeking freedom from such issues needs an acknowledgement of self-worth and confidence to tackle them and reduce the stigma of inequalities in our community.
I am okay sharing one of my valuable experiences, highlighting the negative consequences and rapid changes that could occur in anyone's daily life.. A young girl suddenly lost a significant amount of weight and underwent various tests. The results were curious, except for finding lower potassium levels than the actual value in her blood. She was referred to a hospital for a mental health assessment. During the initial evaluation by the multidisciplinary team, even without a consultant present, the team diagnosed her with a severe mental disorder. She was fortunate, as her parents were aware of the area and had relevant knowledge and experience about mental health. They were convinced it was not a mental issue. They requested a meeting with the consultant to discuss and challenge the diagnosis. After discussion and consultation, the consultant acknowledged the parent's concerns and agreed to re-evaluate the diagnosis with the condition that she needs to stay in the hospital for two weeks for further investigations.
During those two weeks, the girl recovered quickly, gaining significant weight and very positively prepared for her yearly exams in the hospital. After two weeks of further thorough investigation, the consultant informed her parents that people with mental disorders do not recover so quickly in such a short-term manner. The consultant rechecked the child’s diagnosis, noting her potassium levels had normalized, her weight loss came into perspective, and she was discharged from the multidisciplinary team.
Currently, she is pursuing a highly professional degree. It is surprising to think about where she might be if her parents had not been aware of the misdiagnosis of mental illness. She could have spent her entire life within the mental health system, treated with antipsychotic drugs, which could easily have led to an actual mental disorder, which she did not have, and never even considered pursuing a highly reputed professional degree in her life.
This anonymous experience is just one. We do not know how many people suffer from unawareness and live their lives with it, which is not recorded or challenged due to lack of insight. It makes us think twice because it has led us to believe that awareness is the key to changing the consequences of lives. I hope you understand the vision of the power of awareness and how a dark sky can turn into a shining one.
