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Mental Health Awareness In School

Sabina Ghale

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Background

Education

School: Nepal Mega College

Grade: 12

Faculty: Science (Bio)

Location

Hometown : Bahundanda, Lamjung

Current location: New Baneshwor, Kathmandu

Hobbies & Interest

Listening Music and Dancing

Travelling alone and with friends

Sports (Volleyball, Football, Running etc.)

Why Aakar?

Interest in Community Work

Interest in learning new things

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Problem Statement

The objective of this project is to increase students' awareness so that they can identify early warning signs of mental health problems and proactively seek assistance before these issues worsen.

By having open dialogues on mental health, teaching effective stress management techniques, promoting healthy relationships, and improving attitudes surrounding mental illness, we seek to create a more supportive and inclusive environment.

Relevance

Mental health issues impact various aspects of students' overall quality of life:

Personal: energy levels, focus, dependability, physical well-being, and satisfaction with life.
Relationships with friends and family members is negatively impacted.
Academic performance and social activity declines.

We have observed a growing number of students who are grappling with serious anxiety, depression, and other mental health difficulties, largely due to increased competition, pressure, and constant comparisons.

There is increasing mental health awareness globally; however, there are gaps. In the context of Nepal, mental health is rarely talked about. Many students at the school level lack knowledge about mental health conditions and frequently struggle to identify and address them.

To effectively bridge this gap, it is important to have open dialogues, promote understanding, and destigmatize mental health illnesses and conditions.

Context

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Baseline Data: Adolescent mental health globally

According to WHO, Globally, it is estimated that 1 in 7 (14%) 10–19 year-olds experience mental health conditions, yet these remain largely unrecognized and untreated:

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Baseline data: High school students in Tokha, Kathmandu

According to a research published in PubMed Central, the overall prevalence of depression, anxiety and stress (DAS) was found to be 56.5% among high schools in Tokha Municipality of Kathmandu.

Variables with high correlation with DAS:

Sex: Higher in Female
Nuclear family type
Having mother with no formal education
Students from science or humanities faculty
Presence of perceived academic stress
Being electronically bullied

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Approach

Interactive activities for students

For the project, I conducted interactive sessions with the students. This involved:

Conducted a pre-session measurement assessment to gaze their understanding of the topic
Delivered a presentation with information about mental health,
Engaged participants through question and answer sessions, and
Organized fun educational games.

Additionally, I sought feedback from the students through a post-session feedback to ensure that their needs were met.

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Challenges

Session Time Management

The allocated time for my session at schools is just one hour. However, I experienced some technical difficulties due to the electricity being cut off at the beginning which led to an incomplete session and less impact than I had planned.

I have learnt about how to design sessions and adapt to technical difficulties and time constraints.

Honesty in Data (Taboo topic)

During my recent attempt to conduct an online survey at my college, I encountered difficulties in collecting truthful data. Surprisingly, even close friends displayed hesitance in completing the survey form, while a number of individuals provided false information. This has shown me the importance of having open conversations and decreasing stigma around mental health.

Personal: Health

I had previously planned to conduct two sessions and distribute a survey. However, I have been experiencing health issues for the past three weeks. I reached out to the schools involved, but due to time limitations, I had to cancel the session. I focused my time on the survey to adapt to this challenge.

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July

August

Final Activities and Impact Measurement Plan Update

Survey data collection,

Data analysis,

Final slide submission

September

Final Presentations

Sept 9th

Project milestones

Idea submission

Brain-storming, Topic finalization and Research

June

Project kick off

Learning Google Forms and preparing presentation

Visited site School, and submitted proposal

10th July

28^th July Project Implementation session

21^st June

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Impact - Increased awareness about mental health

Conducted school based awareness session for students grade nine at Bhassara Secondary school and online survey at Nepal Mega College:

Helped students identify mental health issues
Started conversations to share struggles
Increased knowledge about main causes of mental health issues and coping mechanism.

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Impact 1: Online Survey (Nepal Mega College)

50 high school students provided diverse perspectives through my online survey.

28/47 students said that mental health issues were not treated seriously

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Impact 2: Awareness Session at Bhassara Secondary School

The session was attended by 28 students from Grade 9 and Vice Principal.
The session included

pre-measurement activities
comprehensive presentation, interactive question-and-answer session, and valuable feedback from the participants.

The feedback received indicated that my session had a significant impact on the attendees.

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Impact 2: continued

Major Takeaways from the students:

“I learned how we can avoid and decrease stigma around mental health”

“Sending the person to professional care if we see someone suffering from mental health issues”

“Depression and anxiety is there in every age group”

“Self-care is very important for both our mental and physical health.”

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What I learned?

Learning through practical experience is often more impactful than learning through the theory alone.
In the professional setting, It is crucial to possess strong communication skills, including active listening and effective problem identifying and solving abilities.
I became more proficient in using technology tools like Gmail, Zoom, and power points.
Furthermore, displaying a genuine passion and dedication for one’s work can greatly continue to overall success and job satisfaction.

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If I had more time, I would

I would visit additional schools in order to facilitate interactive sessions.
Additionally, I would actively seek out students who are currently experiencing similar situations and extend my assistance to them.
I would conduct more activities even among my friends, based on survey learnings.

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Thank You!