Young Blood, Sri Lanka was commenced on 14th March 2021 as an Instagram page. This is  conducted and maintained by two youth schoolers with the high intentions of making a  revolution in Sri Lanka. We believe that there are certain visions, opinions and some strong  ideas within Sri Lanka that should be put into an end. With the start of Young Blood, we are  working hard to achieve our ultimate goal. As our first project we have chosen the topic “Mental  health and mental illnesses” which is always being a topic that is pushed under the carpet by  society.  

“Mental health is the foundation for the well-being and effective functioning of individuals. It is  more than the absence of a mental disorder; it is the ability to think, learn, and understand one’s  emotions and the reactions of others. Mental health is a state of balance, both within and with  the environment.”, this is the definition for mental health according to WHO (World Health  Organization) but this doesn’t take into account the social norms, opinions and other cultural  concepts or either the systemic and personal stigma that runs around in the Sri Lankan context. 

Let’s take this topic into consideration with some basic Sri Lankan views / stigma; 

There are negative attitudes and stereotypes about people living with mental health difficulties.  This systematic stigma is mainly influenced by different beliefs or myths about causation and  other misconceptions on mental illnesses spread by the narrow-minded society.  

• What is the picture drawn in our minds about the people who suffer from mental  illnesses? Basically we picture a dark ward, with poor lighting conditions, heavily  drugged service users, peeling paint walls and some innocents who suffer from mental  illness and they are called ‘Pisso’.  
• The National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH), previously known as the Angoda Mental Hospital- The previous administration had to take measures to change the name in order to make it less stigmatising because in Sri Lanka, the motto was ‘Angoda nam Pisso’ 
• Legitimate concerns of families- Parents usually hide their child behind the walls if they discover that their child is suffering from mental illnesses. The main reason is the way society looks at that child. Due to this, many children are isolated and connections with  the outer world will be disconnected. This dehumanized stigma leads parents to build a  shield for their child without reaching for proper and necessary medications. On the 

other hand, the popular medication for mental illnesses prescribed by parents for their  kids would be the combo of a Panadol and a nap.  

• Lack of recommendations on counseling- People who are in need of help rarely reach out to a counselor or a psychologist. It’s again because of the propagating link to cultural taboos. Parents rarely take their children to a psychiatrist to get mediations because  after a visit to such a place, they are afraid to face the opinions of the society.  

Stigma and discrimination takes many shapes and sizes, and it is one of the key  factors that prevent people from recovering from mental health problems and  often leads to poor outcomes in health and well-being. Thereby, the objective of our  project would be to break the stigma and to make the heads turn towards these  problems and make them talk about these. 

Our social media campaign will commence in April through Instagram. We are willing to  enhance the awareness of the importance of Mental health, types of mental illness and  how to reach for proper medications. We will also be promoting some trust worthy  counselors / psychologists, counseling organisations where people who are in need of  help can reach out securely.  

It’s convenient for us to blame ‘society’ for these stereotypes without taking any actions  to eliminate these. It’s our responsibility to work on this together. We know this can be  hard, but we can make a change if we take steps to start and by giving tries without  giving up.  

In order to get further more details on this project, please contact us through Instagram. (  @_young.blood.___) Supportive volunteers, counseling organisations or counselors’  help and support will be highly appreciated throughout this project.