Newsletter (April-June 2022)
Dear Friends,
“Mental health problems don’t define who you are. They are something you experience. You walk in the rain and you feel the rain, but, importantly, YOU ARE NOT THE RAIN.” — Matt Haig
Sisters Living Works (SLW) mission is defined by four overarching goals: 1) to educate individuals that suicide is a preventable public health problem; 2) to raise awareness about the warning signs of suicidal behavior and the action-oriented steps to take to respond in a supportive manner; 3) to encourage help-seeking behavior among people by breaking the stigma surrounding suicide, mental health, and therapy; 4) to create a safe space for individuals to freely and comfortably talk about suicide and mental health in order to find hope in the knowledge that each person is a crucial part of the community and should never feel alone in their struggle.
LAST 3 MONTHS AT SLW:
1) WORKSHOPS:
The First Responders Workshop trains participants about the prevalence of suicide in India, the warning signs of suicidal behavior, and the strategies that they can use to respond effectively to a person expressing suicidal thoughts. In last three months, we have conducted workshops with below given organisations:- AIESEC- De Addiction Centre, Jabalpur Madhya Pradesh- NIT TRICHY- Kotak Foundation, PAN India- Udayan Shalini Fellowship, PAN India- Smt. Maniben M.P. Shah Women’s College, Mumbai- Sahara Charitable Trust
2) SUPPORT GROUPS:Our Support Group aims at providing healing support for people who are coping with a devastating loss to suicide and also to those who are suffering from mental distress. Our Support Group with 27 members is conducted three times every month for caregivers, friends, and others who are experiencing emotional distress of suicide loss and other mental health issues. We conducted a suicide prevention and awareness workshop in Mumbai’s Aarey slum and held a support group for single mothers. We have recently initiated one on one counseling sessions for our members. The feedbacks for all these programs were encouraging.
3) COUNSELOR’S TRAINING PROGRAM FOR SCHOOL COUNSELORS AND EDUCATORS
In the month of May, we conducted two batches of training in Suicide Prevention and Awareness Training for teachers coming from under privileged background in Mumbai. This training program helped teachers how to identify and communicate with at-risk students, implement strategies to help students who are suicidal, work with parents in the context of suicide, and the follow the protocols in the aftermath of a suicide in a school.
Some of the schools that we associated with for conducting training program are:
1. Gurunanak School
2. St.Xaviers School
3. R.C.Maruti High School
4. S.C.D. Barfivala High School.
5. Anjuman-I-Islam’s A.A Khatkhatay English Secondary School
6. Sir Sayyad English High School.
7. Vasantdada Patil Pratishthan’s College of Engineering & Visual Arts.
8. Gurukul English High School
9. Yuva Parivartan (NGO)
4) SPECIAL EVENTS- INSTAGRAM LIVESLW initiated a session with an expert on Instagram:
Understanding Depression and Anxiety: Suman Khanna, Psychotherapist and founder of MindUnwind discussed what depression and anxiety can look like. She pointed out some triggers for mental health condition. She discussed various factors that are playing important role in making these mental health conditions so common. Towards the end of the session, she provided with various tips to for mental wellbeing.
5) FIRST RESPONDER TRAINING PROGRAM
We trained our First Batch of First Responder at M.P.Shah Maniben College, Matunga. There were 18 volunteers who are trained to identify persons at risk of suicide and refer them for treatment or supporting services as appropriate. We will be meeting this group twice a month to take regular updates to help people at risk.
1. Workshops: 15th July ,17th July, 24th July 7th August,14th August, 17th September,24th September 2022.
2. Online Support Group: 16th July, 23rd July and 30th July, 2022.
3. Support Group for Slum Area: 8th July, 23rd July and August’22.
4. Positive Mental Health Workshop with Matt Perelstein: 30th July, 2022
6. Training Program For School
Counselors and Educators: 12th August-16th August, 2022.
7. 8th World Suicide Prevention Day Conference: 10th September, 2022
In India, SLW is one of the few registered NGOs, involved in educating the general population— the students, the mothers, the teachers, the corporate workers—on ways to identify and prevent suicides. We have many such stories of positive change that many experienced through our outreach and training programs. In 2021, we reached over 5,500 people (trained them to identify those who are suicidal, provide early intervention, and refer to a mental health professional). Please click on below link for a few feedback videos:https://drive.google.com/drive/folders/1i1nQTDnJuGjrdh5nwzyDVuAym6CvIVyj?usp=sharing
In the year 2022, our goal is to reach over 10,000 people across India!. You can also volunteer with our organisation by participating in our events. Please visit our website or click on below link:https://sisterslivingworks.org/support/volunteer/If your situation allows you to make a small donation in support of our work at this time, please know your contribution will make an incredible impact on our efforts to save lives and bring hope to those impacted by suicide. We are, and continue to be, grateful for your support.
You can also donate through our website sisterslivingworks.org using our secure PayPal or Credit Card system.
INTERNATIONAL SistersLivingWorks, 10132 Ashburton Lane, Bethesda, MD 20817
INDIA Bank: Axis Bank Account No:921020027649477 IFSC Code: UTIB0003773
You can scan the QR code and donate to us through UPI in INDIA. Our details are as given below:
