Manobal Study

Manobal Study

( Registered under Societies Act XX1, 1860, Registration No: 1490, Established in 1984)

Non-Governmental Voluntary Organisations (NGOs) today have evolved into professional bodies and are viewed as important agencies providing a link between governmental welfare activities and the people. Despite the welfare state efforts, framing by-laws, apex national institutes, and several dedicated NGOs in welfare activities, the mentally and physically challenged individuals are considered as burden on society. There are nearly 500 million disabled people in the world and 60 percent are living in developing countries. In India, several of these are vocationally rehabilitated out of sympathy or acts of charity, although many work more efficiently than their abled counterparts. Public awareness and participation is as critical need of the hour.

All of us are living in an age where survival and identity challenges are to be overcome. Who is not caught between the vortex of conflicts like traditional and modern, personal and professional, family and friends, materialistic and spirituality, urgent and important? The tempo of modern age creates stresses and strains, which could get manifested in mental maladies. These can specially cripple the vulnerably people who have little or no support to help them cop. Most people have an inherent capacity of self-help and so deal with the pressures of life. Some people  can live at a plane of superficiality, the ups and downs of life leaves little or no impact. But there are also those whose natural capacities have worn thin, and on the verge of nervous collapse. To rebuild the reservoir of mental health or Manobal, these people need not just compassion but skilled professional help, viz. psychotherapy.

In the West, what means relaxation, Yoga, psychoanalysis or any other such curative method. But in India when one consults the doctor, later offers a quick remedy by prescribing strong drugs. Psychiatrists in India are largely trained in biological psychiatry which creates  little time for listening to patients. Some may well known the healing powers of psychoanalysis, yoga, relaxation therapies, and the ancient wisdom of Know thyself,  but they seldom advise the patients which suggests the later are ignorant about the psychological methods of remedy. This has led to rapid demands of drugs. They public is gradually realizing the menace of misuse of addiction as well as side effects of psychotropic drugs. To augment and support the holistic  needs of mental health care a board of  founder members consisting of eminent professionals like Dr H S Asthana, Dr S Dube, Dr Ms  V Dube, Mr M. R Gupta ,Mr Dinesh Mehta, Dr D Mohan, Dr Lotika Sarkar and  Dr A. K Suheela got together in 1984 to the creation of a Society called MANOBAL STUDY. Christening the name of the Society – one in Hindi and other in English is not a product of hasty choice, rather it epitomizes the aspiration for healing where the best of the Western and the Eastern psychological approaches could blend and be studied for the welfare of distressed. Anchoring the core objectives of this Society is its constitution, which has laid equal importance to preventive, curative and rehabilitation approaches for promoting mental health. For reaching the curative obligation Dr S Dube along with Dr Vinay Kapur started a clinic in year 1994 housed at the 238, MUNIRKA VIHAR, NEW DELHI. After Dr Vinay Kapur left for higher studies to the USA, Dr V. S. Rastogi (Senior Consultant Psychiatry) served as psychiatrist for several years followed by Dr (Mrs) S Bodhi who took her professional training as a physician from the Department of Psychiatry A.I.I.M.S, After her departure in 2011, consultation services are being carried out by referral to AI.I.M.S centre. The psychiatric consultations and psychological services like psycho-diagnostics, individual, group or family therapies are provided twice a week. Clients who can afford to pay the consultation fees and those who cannot are treated equally. In the last 25 years, Manobal study has strictly followed its ethos of functioning as a non government organization in the service of providing holistic mental health. Not only are audits an annual feature, but meetings and selection of suitable Presidents has ensured that the spirit and purpose of the Society is sustained. At present there are 12 members of the board of trustee including a part time legal consultant Mr Sunil Mittal ( Delhi High Court)

A panel of experts in different branches provides the art and science of modern psychiatric consultative practices. These consist of psycho-diagnostic testing (Clinical Psychologist), mental status examination and drug therapy (Psychiatrist), case work, relaxation and biofeed-back, psychoanalysis and allied forms of psychotherapies by trained mental health workers. Visits are pre-fixed and timing schedule is an hour duration for individual session and one and half hour for group sessions. The doctor plans the appointments in such a way that fixed timings are followed.

The clinic has facilities of parking, waiting room, and quite green surroundings. It is the ambience that enables frankness, privacy, confidentiality and development of proper rapport. The non-directive psycho-therapy prepares the patient to learn the lesson of his pain managemt  and thereby works through-process of leaving mal-adaptive habits and makes newer adjustments.

From the beginning of the treatment, attention is paid towards not only the details of the symptoms but emphasis is also laid in searching the root cause. This is achieved through studying inner feelings, thoughts, memories and recall of past, present and future stresses, dreams, fantasies. The pace is unhurried, the length of treating could continue from a few weeks to several years depending on the speed of recovery and gaining of insight.

The motive of the Society is not to add numbers, but quality of service provided is the prime focus. In an emotionally corrective therapeutic relationship where the therapist merely becomes a good catalyst and the client walks out of the therapy with determination of self-actualization.

Qualified psychotherapists are few in India but the demand for them is manifold. Yet provision has not been made for proper training and  develop this specialty in the country. Even the dynamism of this young society was restrained for permission and support to obtain land in New Delhi for the construction of a setup with all facilities for psychological cum crisis intervention was not given by the Union Health Ministry. Some breakthrough was achieved with the creation of the Lucknow Chapter. It rented a newly constructed building at the Plot No. 7-8, Madhupuram, Bhitauli Village, Lucknow-Sitapur Road. Later, this building along with the infrastructure have been gifted to the Director, Swamijee, Institute of Medical Sciences, Ram Krishan Mission Sevashram, Lucknow (Oct 2012)

The professional members of the Lucknow Chapter conducted a survey on disabled children in the rural setting and provided free consultation to them. (refer to theoretical cum literary writings for psycheducation, see appendix). They have been active in networking with other NGOs, governmental agencies and academic institutions. As the motto of this Society is ‘PROMOTION OF MENTAL HEALTH’ equal emphasis is being laid on preventive and psycho-educative activities like career melas, panel discussions, lecturers and tele-counselling. This Society has been actively participating in extending professional consultation on critical issues of school drop-outs, martial problems, suicide and coping with stress and strain with the like minded societies.

This Society conducted Psychiatric cum Neurological check-up of elderly persons attending day-care center in the village Chakrapur and surveyed the type of social- support available to them at home in collaboration with Lok Kalyan Samiti. A project entitled “Prevention of Heart Diseases by Yoga” was prepared in collaboration with Sita Ram Bhartia Research Institute. Participation in the Core Committee meetings on Special Education by Ministry of Social Welfare, Curriculum Planning and Manpower development by the Rehabilitation Council of India were additional agendas. Several scientist papers as well as talks have been delivered on tropics like life-events and stress, well-being, coping with stress and psycho-social aspects of rehabilitation at national and international conferences. An invited research paper was presented at the workshop organized by Defense institute of Psychological Research. The Society has also become a Corporate Member of Indian Chapter of Rehabilitation International.

Manobal Study could only make advances due to the self-less dedication from its professional  members as well as the bond unstinted support of the community members who have laid down its foundation. But the process is like a drop in the ocean in terms of services needed in our country for promotion of Manobal studies. It is for us to add and raise the stratum of Manobal Study which is a non-profiting and small professional NGO. All money collected by way of fees, sales and donations are duly deposited in the savings account of this Society and marked for the furtherance of its aims and objectives. Manobal after all is to promote overall liberation from suffering and pain.

Manobal Study

Office : 238, ( SFS, opposite  JNU) Munirka Vihar, Delhi  110067

Telephone no: Residence : 26100837  ( O) 26192274

Email : manobal.study@gmail.com