Dear Parents, Wake Up Before It's Too Late!

The teenage years are the formative period for any human being. A child experiences an introductory understanding of physical, mental, and social growth. During this phase, a teenager is vulnerable to mental health issues due to various factors like:

·      High family expectations in Academics

·      Strict parenting

·      Societal peer pressure

·      Body shaming

·      Exposure to violence

·      Bullying

·      Sexual Abuse

·      Poverty- family financial problems

·      Puberty- changes in their body and not feeling good about themselves

·      Discrimination in gender behavior and habits- this is a common practice in Indian households and society. Girls and boys are differentiated for their regular lifestyles.

·      Divorce or separation of parents

·      Death of a loved one

Having a deep understanding and empathizing with teenage mental health through socio-emotional care is essential for teenagers to have a fulfilled and successful life as adults. Parents and adults in India must equally acknowledge the mental health of teenagers as to their physical health.

In recent years, mental healthcare for teenagers in India is given importance due to the widespread knowledge and awareness of social media and the nearby surroundings. Indian parents and adults are learning to provide a safe protective and supportive environment to teenagers. Mental illness is very common among teenagers in India than people think. Indian parents and adults must educate themselves with awareness and prevention of poor mental healthcare among teenagers in India. The basic and foremost steppingstone towards helping teenagers is by recognizing their mental issues and Indian parents should have a healthy communication lifestyle with their teenage children.

Mental healthcare awareness in India

The silence around topics like depression and mental healthcare should be broken in the Indian community. Mental health is equally important as physical health. Teenagers should have a safe environment at home where these topics are openly discussed and welcomed just like any other illness. When teenagers know that they can openly discuss their troubles in life, half of the problem is automatically solved and it gets easier for parents to help their teenagers struggling with mental health issues. The approach to the situation is crucial and it should be far away from ignorance and judgment.

Reasons for a decline in teenage mental health are:

·      Anxiety and stress

Emotional disorders are the most common risks to the mental health of a teenager. A teenager develops feelings of panic or excessive thinking about regular matters due to anxiety disorder. This occurs majorly in those who develop major mood swings during their teenage years. These teenagers tend to fall for severe self-consciousness and insecurity when around people i.e., in social gatherings. Anxious teenagers find solace in social withdrawal, isolation, and loneliness which adds fuel to their mental health issues when exceeded leading to depression. There is a constant feeling of emptiness and sadness.

Some common symptoms of anxiety in teenagers in India are:

·      Constant restless feeling or on edge

·      The feeling of fatigue and tiredness too often and quickly

·      Concentration issues

·      Becoming irritated too easily

·      Muscle tension too often

·      Experiencing worry feeling for every minute situations

·      Sleeping disorder

Stress management skills where the relaxation response habit is learned must be taught from the very beginning, for teenage children to keep themselves calm and composed. It is noticed that children adapt to the behaviors of their parents. So, if a parent responds stressfully to situations and gets anxious easily then teenage children tend to behave similarly. Society molds men as the ideal proverb for this circumstance. Indian parents and adults must present a healthy mental status to their teenage children.

·      Depression

As Parents they have to keep an eye on the changes in the behavior of their teenage children:

•        Change in sleeping hours

•        Lost interest in hobbies

•        Lost interest in interacting with their friends and relatives

•        A major change in their energy level for regular activities and especially the ones they used to be excited about

•        Lack of concentration in their tasks and letting them incomplete more often

•        Change in appetite and eating at odd hours than usual

•        Thoughts of suicide

•        Feeling guilt for every minor mistake

If a major of these is noticed for approximately more than three weeks, then the teenager is diagnosed with depression.

Some of the most common signs of depression in Indian teenagers are:

·      Constant feelings of emptiness, sadness, and anxiousness

·      Having a constant and deep feeling of pessimism

·      Irritated reasonably and unreasonably at every tiny situation

·      The feeling of guilt and helplessness

·      Losing interest in the hobbies and activities which were earlier enjoyed and liked

·      Lack of energy and enthusiasm for everything

·      Feeling of restlessness

·      Feeling of worthlessness

·      Talking or moving at a slow pace than before

·      Difficulty in taking decisions even in petty situations

·      Lack of concentration

·      Change in appetite and weight for no specific known reason

·      Suicidal and death thoughts more often

If most of these symptoms stay for more than three weeks, then it’s essential to take help from professionals to have a mental healthcare check-up.

·      Relationship issues

Toxic relationships affect the mental well-being of teenagers in India. These toxic relationships must be discarded away. The most common symptoms among teenagers when struggling with social anxiety are:

·      Getting bugged up by the thought of interacting with people

·      Struggling to manage and interact with people in social gatherings

·      Worrying about being judged when around people

·      Scared of judgemental people

·      The upcoming social gathering gives a chill down their spine

·      Sweating and trembling around people

The Indian community has proven to be toxic towards their teenage children in a sugar-coated manner. The habits of relatives which are harmful to teenage mental health are:

·      Body-shaming- Indian society is judgemental when it comes to physical appearance. there are prime topics of discussion for females to be fair, a male to be tall and well built, making teenage feel insecure if they use a pair of glasses, etc

·       Making female teenagers feel guilty for being career-oriented,

·      Shifting the focus of the female to household chores and judging them for these activities rather than their academic grades

·       Demoralizing male teenagers if they take active participation in household chores or possess a hobby for culinary arts.

Hence there is a great probability that teenagers feel insecure in public gatherings. This dampens their mental health.

·      Grief and loss

Indian teenagers are since the very beginning taught about building sustainable relations. Bonding with the right set of people who bring out the best in the developing ages of a teenager is crucial. Sometimes due to unfortunate incidents, there’s a loss of that special backbone personality in life and it brings a fall in the confidence of the teenage child because that special cheerleader is lost. This affects the mental healthcare of teenagers, and it is seen that there’s a fall in academic grades. As well as feeling lost in building new relationships. There’s never a substitute for that special person but it is observed that maintaining a journal has helped a teenager in coping with this phase in life.

·      LGBTQIA+

There are twice the chances of mental health issues for LGBTQIA+ individuals. The Indian community is judgmental and still hasn’t opened its arms to its LGBTQIA+ teenage children. Accepting an individual as they are is important. When these teenage children are unable to embrace their identity and preferences in society then they feel suffocated in themselves. Life seems difficult to be handled. A maximum of bullying is observed in these teenage children. Not being able to live freely causes a great deal of suffering in the mental health care of teenagers in India. Being accepted by parents at home gives the maximum courage to teenage children and half the battle is won. Parents and adults must use sentences like “I accept you for who you are.”, “my love for you will not change in any situation.”, “I accept your life choices wholeheartedly.” Etc. this behavior of Indian parents has to be practiced widely for the mental wellness of teenage children.

·      Sexual issues

The teenage phase is the one where individuals develop both physically and mentally. This exploring phase of their identity is highly at risk because they are unaware of the intentions of their close relatives and friends. In Indian households the risk of sexual abuse is high. Parents must teach their kids from the very beginning to not sit on the laps of their uncles and aunts because no gender is safe from sexual abuse. Sex education is needed to be imparted in schools and Indian parents must discuss openly with their teenage children the change in their bodies and the need to tame the feelings. The victims of sexual abuse must be accepted with dignity in the house and the community, and the culprit must be punished socially. The silent treatment around sexual abuse and depression of the victims must be brought to an end. Journaling and nature have proven to have helped the mental health of the survivors of sexual abuse.

· (ADHD) attention deficit hyperactivity disorder

Teenagers have a behavioral disorder when they act excessively in situations without understanding the seriousness of the task and have no regard for the consequences. These teenagers have difficulty paying attention to their surroundings and actions. If ADHD is unattended carefully then it can lead teenagers to destructive behavior which may turn to criminal behavior.

If as a parent, you come across a couple of these problems then you must politely talk to your teenage children. You can start the conversation “it worries me looking at these changes in you, let us discuss your new lifestyle over your favorite food item.” Parents and their teenage children must together get back on track to mental wellness. The journey isn’t for individual suffering but for the entire family and community.

Activities that help in taking good mental healthcare and boost the stress management skills in Indian teenagers are:

•        Regular exercise: abdominal deep breathing and muscle relaxation helps instantly

•        Healthy and routine eating habits

•        Good sleep routine

•        It is noticed that excess caffeine increases anxiety and frustration feeling among teenagers. So it must be avoided

•        Practice affirmations regularly to feel positive about oneself: “I am good.”, “I am enough.”, I have the capability to overcome any obstacles.”, “I say no to body shaming, and I love my body.” Etc.

•        Develop polite and humble talking gestures. Make more use of words like “please”, “thank you” etc.

•        For to develop deep concentration habits and overcome procrastination, the task ahead must be broken into steps which makes it easier for the individual to complete without feeling anxious about it.

•        Avoid negative talk and surroundings.

•        Learn the art of being satisfied with yourself for every task completed. Learn to let go of the guilt feeling.

·      Be happy at whatever stage you are and stop judging yourself.

•        Involve in activities that soothe your nerves like playing or listening to music, practicing some dance moves over your favorite songs, reading feel-good books, talking to those people who make you feel good about yourself and bring out the best in you, or getting yourself a pet and speak your heart out to them.

•        Start journalling and doodling

Mental health care programs for teenagers in India

Educationists and parents in India are enthusiastic about the programs that help to educate people about teenage mental health status, steps to identify the issues, and giving methods to cope with it. These mental health care programs help in encouraging positive emotional behaviors varying to different life situations as well as reducing the risk-taking behaviors of teenagers. These programs spread awareness about the unaddressed issues related to mental healthcare and about how Indian parents and adults should promote a positive supportive social environment for teenagers around them who are at a vulnerable stage of their lives. These mental health care programs are held at various levels of platforms like digital platforms: WhatsApp groups, Facebook communities, telegram communities, schools, and coaching centers.

Emotional well-being is crucial for a balanced life with the confidence and self-esteem of a teenager. The national mental healthcare program by the Indian government has taken initiative for spreading awareness about mental healthcare and there’s a 24*7 support system just a call away.

How to understand and improve the mental health of teenagers in India?

Indian parents and adults must come out of their comfort zones and understand the seriousness of the mental health of teenagers. Indian parents and adults must let go of their conventional parenting style and age-old traditional way of normalizing the behavior of teenagers. It is crucial to understand the change in behavior and pattern of daily life activities of teenagers.

Parents must put a full stop to their judgemental language when interacting with their teenage children. Mental healthcare negatively festers in such a surrounding.

Steps needed to follow to have good mental health as a teenager and prevent mental health conditions:

·      Journal

writing in a journal is a slow and gradual process in overcoming the decline in mental health problems. Regularly writing about one’s feelings and circumstances in life brings to the surface the awareness of one’s mood swings. with journaling it is easier to find out the reasons that have been troubling you so the further process of overcoming them gets easier, this is known as expressive journaling. Stress, anxiety, and depression are all interrelated, and improving them gets easier when there is a segregated step-by-step method to overcome them all. Expressive journaling helps to overcome the issues of post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) and all the symptoms of depression.

It is important that after penning down the things that have been troubling one must further write a gratitude journal. It brings out a positive attitude toward life.

A mood journal should be maintained to know what triggers one’s mood and what soothes it.

Improved cognitive development and higher concentration levels have been noticed in teenagers who dwell in regular journaling. Journaling is a self-help technique for the mental healthcare of teenagers in India.

Journaling can be done in various ways like doodling, painting, carving, getting creative with clay, composing songs and poems, or writing a letter to oneself or any other person, it is a choice to post it though, daily writing affirmations and speaking to them out loud, etc. whatever interests you and brings your thoughts out of your mind.

·      Mental Wellness content blogs

These mental healthcare blogs give insight into this vast topic and most importantly provide a supportive online community.  These are inspirational helping blog posts creating awareness and sharing similar life stories hence “you are not the only one” going through declining mental healthcare. Some of the well-known Indian and international mental wellness content blogs:

1-   Sonali Gupta- a clinical psychologist is one of the leading doctors in the nation who has a YouTube channel and blogs spreading awareness about various issues of mental healthcare and how to deal with them while living in the stereotypical surroundings of the Indian mindset. The USP of her blogs and videos is guidance on parenting and teenagers’ mental healthcare in India.

2-   Healing Hideaway by Bindiya Murgai- this is an exceptional and innovative method of dealing with mental health issues. This blogger organizes retreat programs at beautiful hill stations for people suffering from declining mental health. During her therapy procedure, nature plays an important role.

3-   The Moving Quill by Shailaja Vishwanath is a blog about the personal journey of the author how she recognized her issues and how creatively she overcame all the obstacles in her path of fitness of the mind. Journaling and reading have proven to be her constant support throughout the journey of nurturing herself to be a stronger mindset person.

4-   Put that cheeseburger down by Neha Ghosh is critically appreciated by millions of teenagers and adults in India for creating detailed blogs for the fitness of the mind.

5-   The Bioscoped Life by Arpita Nayak is one of the most famous blogs for mental healthcare. The hilarious content is merged with graphics which is an ideal way of acknowledging this deep topic and eventually finding ways to overcome the decline in mental health. The author shares her experiences with low self-confidence, bullying, and depression most creatively and humorously of the Indian surrounding.

6-   Love Health Family by Darshana Sarmah is the most optimistic blog with content that helps in stress management skills like meditation and having the most positive outlook towards life. The author of this blog is a philosopher, mother, and student pursuing a Ph.D. in the same field.

7-   Positive Provocations by Zeenat Merchant Syal is a blog where the author is a writer, counselor, blogger, motivational speaker, and optimist in life. The guidance for mental healthcare is motivating and leaves the person with the utmost positive energy.

8-   As the Mind Wanders is a blog by TEDx speaker Ashwini CN known for her motivational talks. Her blogs are a personal growth journey, and she has presented the solutions to problems in the quirkiest way that suits the mindset of teenagers in India and the theories that prevail in Indian society.

9-   The Mighty Mental Health- is a platform where the authors have gone through a similar phase and share their personal success stories. Hence, it’s a great blog website supporting, sharing, and guiding on how to overcome various mental health issues.

10-        Mahevash Muses is a blog by Mahevash Shaikh where she authors poems and articles on mental health issues like anxiety, depression, PTSD, ADHD, and BPD. She has a firm belief that mental illness happens due to the society and culture of our Indian community. Her endearing articles related to feminism, optimism, and toxic positivity that prevails in our society have been highly appreciated by various prominent websites and included on their pages too like HuffPost, HealthyPlace, and Metro.

11-        The OCD stories- this is a platform with a podcast that helps the community and individual as a whole in overcoming the dark phase of mental health issues.

12-        A splintered mind is a platform where the author shares his path of recovery from mental health decline and spices it up with humor for helping people suffering from ADHD and depression.

13-        Wing of madness depression guide- is a platform where there is a detailed explanation about the recognition of depression issues and how to deal with them.

14-        The love and life toolbox- is a platform that provides articles and blogs in addition to courses and consultations by renowned psychiatrists and therapists. The complete guide for taking mental healthcare for teenagers in India and sustaining healthy relationships.

These prominent and promising blogs for impactful mental healthcare for teenagers in India and abroad have proven to be a significant change in society and most importantly lets individual feel confident and happy about themselves. Knowing that there are a lot more people traveling on the same journey of mental wellness is overwhelming and encouraging at the same time. Hence “we are all in this together.”

·      Breathing exercises and meditation

Declining mental health has numerous reasons like stress, hormonal imbalance, traumatic life incidents, anxiety, loss, grief, etc. Ayurveda and yoga are one age-old solution to it by our ancient mentors, Yoga and deep breathing exercises. Inculcation yoga into the regular life routine gives balance and overcomes depression. Deep breathing exercises as per yoga increase the life-force energy thus eliminating symptoms of depression from the mind and soul. Some of the breathing exercises for the mental healthcare of teenagers in India are:

Humming bee exercise (bhramari pranayama)

Alternate nostril breathing exercise (Nadi shodhan pranayama)

Sudarshan kriya

Chanting of OM

·      Podcasts

These podcasts have been spreading awareness in the teenage community for mental healthcare and self-care in our Indian system without increasing screen time.

1.   Marbles lost and found by zain calcuttawala and Avanti Malhotra

2.   The SOS Show with Suchitra

3.   Unlocking us by Brend Brown

4.   Mental illness happy hour by Paul Gilmartin

5.   The Happiness Lab by Dr. Lauri Santos

6.   Mad World by Bryony Gordon

7.   Terrible, thanks for asking by Nora McInerny (ttfapodcast)

·      A community for like-minded people

Joining a community for like-minded people and participating in society’s welfare is good for mental healthcare. It gives a bigger perspective that life is beyond oneself. Helping others in need be it human beings or animals secretes calming hormones in the body which soothe the mind and nerves. Hence improving the mental health of teenagers.

1.   What is the first step Indian parents should take for the mental healthcare of their teenage children?

The help isn’t a short time procedure to cure a disease. Indian parents must have an embracing gesture if and when their teenage child approaches them for a conversation concerning their mental well-being. Parents must avoid blaming the situation, people around them, friends of their teenage child, the child’s procrastination habit, etc. the excuses should be completely avoided to enable their teenage child to have a deep meaningful conversation with their loved ones. Indian parents must learn that their behavior and warmth shouldn’t alter after knowing the struggles of their children.

Conclusion

It is time Indian parents and adults must take mental healthcare seriously rather than turning a blind eye to the situation and breaking the stigma related to it. There is a need to be sensitive to mental healthcare for teenagers in India. Indian parents and adults must overcome the thought process of being shameful if their teenage children are falling into the trap of poor mental health. Just as physical issues are given preference for treatment the same must be given to mental health issues too. We as an Indian community must thrive to shift the topic of mental healthcare from being taboo to a public health approach.

NOTE: This article is for the informational purpose for Indian parents and adults, to understand the importance of mental healthcare for teenagers in India and the stepping stones guidelines to overcome it when needed.