Anxious students keep helplines in Mumbai busy with calls

Anxious students keep helplines in Mumbai busy with calls


Mumbai: Not any other day, but the day when results of any board exam are declared, is the busiest of the year, claim psychiatrists and counsellors. In fact, calls to helplines from students start increasing two to three weeks prior to the date of declaration of results.
Wednesday was no different with helplines in the city getting an
unusually high number of calls. “We have been getting calls from students for the past three weeks. But this is a regular phenomenon. The number of calls was quite high on Tuesday and Wednesday. We received 20 calls on Tuesday and 30 on Wednesday,” said a counsellor at Aasra Helpline.
“What should I tell my parents? This is the question that most students ask,” said psychiatrist Harish Shetty, who is affiliated to a 24/7 mental helpline.While the helpline receives about 30 to 40 calls per day, on the day of results the calls triple in number, he said.
“My son, who received his ICSE results on Wednesday, passed with flying colours. But in the morning I made it a point to joke with him to ease his tension. I even asked him if he would resort to any foolish step,” said Dr Shetty.
Parents, said psychiatrists, should watch out for signs. “The cry for help could be anything — the child could become silent and withdrawn all of a sudden, lose interest in studies, speak about dying or running away from home and even make unreasonable demands like asking for an expensive toy or gadget. Sometimes the child may even become extra talkative,” said psychiatrist Dr Seema Seth, who calls such acts “cries for attention”.
Even on ordinary days, Shetty receives eight to 10 calls per day, out of which 40% are calls from children under the age of 16. “The issues are mostly related to exam, love and parents,” he said.
According to psychiatrists, five top concerns of students are inability to cope with studies, parental pressure, low self esteem, relationship problems and issues relating to delinquency.

Source Link: http://www.dnaindia.com/academy/report_anxious-students-keep-helplines-in-mumbai-busy-with-calls_1385189