Source: THE HINDU-31st October,2019
A 44-year-old management consultant from Hosur in Tamil Nadu attends
back-to-back meetings through the week, helping firms cut costs, improve
services and
better their performance. In spite of his busy schedule, he finds time on
the weekends to serve as an ‘anonymous listener’.
A mobile chat with him comes as a much-needed relief for individuals
grappling with anxiety, sadness, loneliness and suicidal thoughts. “The moment
you confide in someone, half of the burden is reduced. Having access to a
patient ear is crucial when one is dealing with mental stress,” said the
consultant, who is one of the 200 trained listeners volunteering with Moodcafe,
a mental health startup.
Started in October 2018 by Mikul Patel (25) and Rahul Mirdha (23), alumni
of IIM Ahmedabad and IIT Roorkee respectively, Moodcafe enables people to chat
with trained listeners. The listeners provide active, empathetic and
non-judgemental listening. Based on the severity of the conversation, the
listeners suggest mental health counselling or intervention through a suicide
helpline.
The founders of Moodcafe said the app has saved nine lives in the past
six months. Mr. Patel said, “The listeners go through a screening test, which
covers various aspects of communication and confidentiality. Over 800 people
took the test, but only 200 cleared it and were able to participate in the
online training module to become a listener.” Mr. Patel said the app now has
over 10,000 users.
Spreading positivity
A 34-year-old counselling psychologist from Shimla, who has been a
listener with Moodcafe for the past two months, said, “By simply chatting, we
may not be able to change a person’s mental health status. But it definitely
helps in stopping them from spiralling downwards into negativity. I have
noticed so many users starting off the conversation in distress and ending it
positively.”
The psychologist dedicates two to three hours every day to handle 10 to
15 chat requests. She said, “A chat may last just for a few minutes or extend
even to a few days. It is the user’s call to end it.” She said one of the main
concerns of users is whether their confidentiality would be maintained. Also,
at times, some users download the app mistaking it to be a dating or a
companionship platform, but the listeners explain the concept to them and end
the chat.
A 39-year-old homemaker from Thane has a fixed time slot — 12 p.m. to 1
p.m. — to listen in every day. “Loneliness and depression are the most common
complaints,” she said. In the past 11 months as a listener, she has managed to
save one life. “An IIT student who was on the verge of ending his life started
a chat with me. He wanted to pursue arts, but his parents pushed him into IIT
because he was a bright student,” she said. The chat went on for an entire day
and she managed to calm him down and convinced him to dial the helpline. “I
could not sleep that night. I kept chatting with him for two days, but he
assured me that he had sought help,” she said.
The listeners describe their contribution as an enriching experience. The
management consultant from Hosur said, “At the end of the day, I feel happy to
have helped someone. It boosts my self-esteem too.”
