World Mental Health Day

A special time (2:00-4:00pm) was culled out of the busy schedule of the boys at Bosco Boys Home to address Mental Health. The theme revolved around EMOTIONS: “Expressing Emotions and Growing with it”.

 

Ms. Vamakshi Painter, a Clinical Psychologist by profession and our in-house therapist organized this session with the boys along with the staff of the institute. Very briefly the children were asked to express the plethora of emotions they go through in the day and ways and means in which they respond to and express these emotions. During the session, the children came to understand how some emotions can be positively and negatively expressed; how some emotions expressed can be healthy/unhealthy. Ms. Painter went on to show how humans tend to naturally express their emotions and some emotions are the result of learnt/acquired behavior patterns as a result of exposure to media or varied circumstances. Some of the staff members of the institute courageously shared their personal experiences of the past and how they dealt with certain emotions.

 

As part of the follow-up activity, the children were divided into groups and one emotion was handed to each group: FEAR, HURT, ANGER, JEALOUSY. They were asked to draw a symbol that represents these emotions and present how these emotions could be expressed in a healthy way. Group discussions and presentations were made under the direction and supervision of the staff.

 

“Feeling Emotions is Natural and there are healthy ways in which it is expressed. All we need to do is trust yourself and be kind with yourself”, said Ms. Vamakshi in her concluding note to the assembly.