Aryani Sahay’s own journey with mental health began when she was a little girl of eight when a close relative died of suicide. Back then, she did not understand what suicide meant and she had to be told what was happening. Later in life, she realised that with little awareness, the crisis could have been averted.
In Class 8, Aryani experienced panic attacks and it was only through therapy that within a year she felt better. Aryani realised the stigma around mental health and how she too had difficulty initially in reaching out to her family or understanding what was happening to her.
Drawing from her own mental health journey, Aryani realised that coming from a privileged background she did have access but children from low-income communities may not have the information or access.
Seeking inspiration from her own mental health journey, Aryani Sahay, along with her friend Kashish Singh, initiated Project Let’s Talk a youth-led mental health awareness organization started in 2018 that conducts interactive awareness sessions on mental health with adolescents across socio-economic backgrounds, especially in government schools.
Aryani felt that with a lack of awareness on mental health issues when students faced emotional problems or bullying, they had a little support system in place. “ Some of the causes of their mental health issues are domestic violence, academic pressure, uncertainty about the future and financial issues. “There’s no support system and they don’t know how to express themselves. We give them pamphlets with contact details of counsellors but it depends on whether the schools give us permission or not to hand them out,” says Aaryani in an interview to EDEX live.
“We want to create a space where no one feels judged and they have the space to talk about it. We have a replicable model, we have the insight so we will provide mentorship to chapter heads. Our focus now is to empower more young people,” she says in a conversation with EDEX live.
With content created in collaboration with experts and professionals, the organization consists of a global team of 35 passionate advocates that collaborate with leading mental health organizations. During the pandemic, the team pioneered a nationwide webinar, chapter, and mental health brochure initiatives to promote mental well-being in both rural and urban areas.
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