Psychosocial Counseling Helped me Pursue My Passion
Anup Sunar, 24, of Madi, Chitwan, was six years old when his mother abandoned the family and his father remarried. His stepmother treated him poorly and frequently abused him physically and verbally. After noticing the abuse his stepmother was giving him, his aunt took him along, took care of him, and supported his education.
Even though Anup was now in the care of his aunt, the traumatic events he had gone through impacted his mental health severely. When he reached grade 11, he started to get anxious about the whereabouts of his biological mother. He started to feel restless, distracted, and have negative thoughts. He struggled to concentrate on his daily tasks and even began to contemplate suicide. As the situation worsened, Anup made several attempts to commit suicide.
Concerned about Anup’s mental health, his aunt sought advice from the ward chairperson. The ward chairperson contacted KOSHISH to arrange for Anup to receive psychosocial support and the KOSHISH team visited him for observation. Following the observation, the KOSHISH team started their intervention. Anup started receiving psychosocial counseling from KOSHISH, where the KOSHISH team built up a rapport and provided him with a safe space to vent his distress. Throughout several counseling sessions, Anup started to open up and share his emotions. The KOSHISH team listened to him with empathy and also explored relaxation techniques to help him calm down whenever he felt distressed. Anup began to share his hobbies and interests during the counseling sessions. He mentioned that he had learned public speaking skills and that he enjoyed creating artwork, singing, and composing short poetry. Throughout several counseling sessions, Anup’s mental well-being significantly improved. He stopped having suicidal thoughts and began using his free time to do things that made him happy. He even applied for the radio host position at Radio Madi, where he was eventually hired. These days, he hosts a radio show called “Dui Line” once a week.
Anup is grateful to KOSHISH for guiding him to a new life. “Through counseling, I have not only received a new life but have also been able to pursue my passions. I’ll be attending counseling sessions regularly and will also be supporting others who have psychosocial issues like mine, ” Anup said during one of the follow-ups. In light of Anup’s improved mental health, the ward chairperson has also shown his interest in allocating funds for education and counseling aimed at promoting the psychosocial well-being of the community members.
