Samarthya, the student body of XLRI which help school students realise their potential by focusing on social and emotional learning, successfully conducted the annual event ‘Reflections -2020’ virtually on Thursday.

The event was organised on the topic ‘Mental Health and the Pandemic: Its implications and how to cope’.

‘Reflections - 2020’ emphasised the importance of mental health, especially during these challenging times, and initiated discussions amongst students, teachers, and parents on various issues that affect school children, like their social connections, physical health, and performance in studies.

It is imperative to help students and their families deal with the anxiety and confusion that the current pandemic has brought about.

The event saw participation of over 150 students from three different city schools - Dayanand Public School, DAV Public School, and Tarapore School.

To fight the negative impacts of this pandemic and ensure mental well-being, school students were engaged in various fun-filled interactive activities. The activities helped to better understand emotions and cultivate good mental health practices.

Even the school teachers and parents who participated in the event got valuable insights on identifying difficult emotions and their impact on the kids.

Some of the common questions the school children asked during sessions were, “I'm always worried about doing well in school”; “How do I cope with the academic pressure?”,” How do I identify and work on my emotions and feelings”.

To debunk the myths about mental health, an interactive quiz session was conducted.

Participants were asked to assess how they felt during a particular situation with the help of a thought record worksheet; they could easily pinpoint emotions and work upon alternative thought processes they can adopt.

It helped the students understand various existing misconceptions about mental health and the stigma attached to a person suffering from these issues.

Several engaging activities were conducted to make the children comfortable in sharing their thoughts about the topic.

A video explaining mental health issues amongst students and what they can do to get support from each other was shown and discussed with the students to help break the stigma.

XLRI campus at Circuit House Area in Jamshedpur. File Picture

The students could relate well to the instances shown and even cited examples of some of their favourite celebrities who have talked about their mental health.

The guest speaker of the event, Pooja Mohanty, a psychotherapist associated with the B-school commented, “The unfortunate pandemic which the world suffers from today has shifted our mental make-up to complexity and confusions. Yet, borrowing from the spiritual teachings and even from modern science today, we understand that there basic interconnectivity in everything, and nothing happens without our participation. Therefore, it is wise to keep our sanity at the deepest inner level with peace and harmony even though the outer world may seem sinking and a total mess. That is exactly how one feels in the awakened state. To feel this wonderful sense of peace, there is a requirement for our transformation. This revolution happens neither in our perceived futures or in our memorised pasts; it finds you peace only here and now in your being in the present moment.”

Notably, Samarthya is an initiative taken by the students of XLRI to help school students realise their full potential by focusing on their social and emotional development.

It is the youth wing of the Centre for Education Management, Leadership and Research (CEMLR) at XLRI. Since its inception in 2012, Samarthya has conducted various activities to aid students in unravelling their intrinsic capabilities.