Silent hero speaks loudly about mental health – Tamil Murasu

12th September 2024  •  4 mins read

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Neyati Umamaheswar receiving her award from Minister for Health Ong Ye Kung; with them is Mr M.P. Sellvem, chairman of the Singapore Silent Heroes Award. Photo: The Straits Times

She was surrounded by peers who weren’t just dealing with academic stress but distress.

As the vice-head peer support leader at Cedar Girls’ Secondary School two years ago, Neyati Umamaheswar, 17, saw first-hand how mental health issues among students were often brushed aside, hidden beneath a veneer of academic focus.

Suicide remains a major concern in Singapore. According to data from the Samaritans of Singapore (SOS), 322 suicides were reported in 2023, a 32.4 per cent drop from 2022 when the highest number of suicides (476) was recorded since SOS began tracking data in 2000.

Although the number of suicides among those aged 10 to 29 fell in 2023, it remained the leading cause of death in this group for the fifth consecutive year, accounting for 29.2 per cent of all deaths.

Noticing the trend, Neyati felt there weren’t enough discussions on the subject of mental health.

“I was lucky enough to have my parents as my support system when times were tough. But not everyone is aware of what young people and students are going through, and many don’t have that same support,” she told tabla!

“When you’re deep in a mental illness, you may not even realise you have it and it’s not until the situation worsens that you even recognise something might be wrong.”

It was this realisation that spurred her into action. In 2022, at just 15 years old, Neyati founded Minds Untangled – a student-led initiative aimed at educating students in identifying the warning signs of mental health issues and encouraging them to seek professional help.

Two years on, Neyati’s vision for Minds Untangled has grown beyond her secondary school. The initiative now seeks to create more open dialogues about mental health challenges faced by those aged 13 to 20, and is even expanding its reach globally.

For her efforts, she received two awards this year. In July, Neyati was one of 53 students awarded the Singapore Silent Heroes (SSH) Student Award by the Civilians Association Singapore (CAS) in recognition of their contributions to the community.

Last week, she also received the APEX Student Award at the SSH Awards 2024, presented by Minister for Health Ong Ye Kung. This award was given to six students who demonstrated exceptional leadership and empathy among the 53 SSH award recipients.

Neyati shared that Minds Untangled began as a small group of like-minded students at Cedar Girls’, where she and 11 other schoolmates formed the core team.

“Our target is youths aged 13 to 20 because that’s such a crucial period where many are transitioning into adolescence or from adolescence to adulthood, and it’s when mental health struggles often begin to emerge,” she said.

“We want to foster a community where youths can find solace, express themselves and navigate the often-overlooked challenges of mental health.”

What started as a modest effort to raise awareness has since grown into a larger organisation with 60 members, including students from her current school, Victoria Junior College, and international volunteers from countries such as Brazil, Taiwan and India.

The volunteers help to research, curate and create content for their website and social media platforms, which help provide youth with access to reliable mental health resources, said Dharnitha Aravindhan, 17, vice-president of Minds Untangled.

“I think right now, people rely on social media and easily accessible platforms for mental health advice, but there’s a lot of false information out there,” Dharnitha added.

“By no means does Minds Untangled claim to be a perfectly reliable alternative, but we try our best to ensure we share accurate research from trusted sources.”

One of the first things Neyati and her team did as a part of their outreach efforts was organise informal events where youth could come together, talk openly and find support among each other.

As these small-scale events gained traction, the team explored other approaches. In November 2023, they hosted an art therapy session attended by 30 youths who shared and discussed their paintings and clay models. For Neyati, the success of the event was more than just the turnout – it was the impact.

“Two students came up to me after the session and told me how much the event had helped them calm down during a particularly stressful time,” Neyati said. “They were about to get their exam results, and the art therapy session gave them a much-needed break.”

“Moments like those that made me feel we were truly making a difference.”

Building on this momentum, Minds Untangled expanded its initiatives to include partnerships with other organisations. This year, it partnered with Pat-A-Cat, a cafe that fosters cats.

“We believe that spending time with animals can bring a lot of joy, and we wanted to offer that experience to help reduce stress and promote well-being,” Neyati said.

As Minds Untangled continues to grow in numbers, so do its ambitions. The organisation has already expanded its volunteer base internationally.

“The aim now is to establish regional teams in different countries that can tailor their efforts to address specific local mental health challenges,” she said.

Publication

Published originally from: Tamil Murasu

https://www.8world.com/singapore/five-winners-singapore-silent-heroes-award-2024-2563066

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