‘Importance of Emotional Well-being’ — by Institute for Career Studies experts Dr Monika Dass, Mrs Anuja Kumar and Ms Pooja Ahuja

Event Report By: Ms Sanchita Dwivedi

A shift in perspective — learning how to replace the negative with the positive — is the key to overcoming all troubles. This was the key message that senior career counsellors and psychologists Dr Monika Dass (CPsychol CSci AFBPsS), Mrs Anuja Kumar and Ms Pooja Ahuja gave the Kasiga School fraternity and guests during a webinar organised recently.

ICS experts — Dr Monika Dass (second row, right), Mrs Anuja Kumar (first row, extreme left), Ms Pooja Ahuja (second row, left) addressing the students of Kasiga School, Dehradun, their parents and teachers, on July 3rd, 2020, as Dr Amrita Dass, Founder-Director, ICS (first row, extreme right) and Mrs Sonali Sinha, school principal, look on.

Here’s a look at the simple, fun tips they shared with the participants for improving their emotional well-being and staying happy & productive in these turbulent times:

Holistic Well-Being

Physical, mental and emotional fitness — all were required for a person to be positive, productive and successful, said ICS experts. Laying stress on having a daily routine and a purpose in life, they suggested:

Rest and recharge — “Get adequate sleep. Go to bed early because the four hours you get past midnight are very important for your body and mind.”

Eat Well — “What you eat helps build your immunity. It’s important to eat healthy and eat well. Dieting may lead you to missing out on essential nutrients.”

Exercise — “Some form of physical exercise, be it walking, yoga or any other indoor workout, is essential to stay fit, especially when movement is limited due to lockdown.”

Towards Happiness & Positivity

At a time when kids are in physical confinement — spending hours together on the internet — and parents are constantly multitasking — working from home, managing house chores and often taking on the teacher’s role — the panelists suggested:

Using time for skill-building: Guiding students on using the current time to strengthen their social and academic skills, Ms Ahuja said, “Even though we are physically distanced, we can always work to better our social skills. An empathetic way to do so is to reach out to the needy and offer help.”

“Students can also use this time to improve their academic skills. Read, recall and write, and make diagrams and flowcharts to improve your learning and retention abilities,” she said.

Practise Calming Techniques: Dr Monika Dass demonstrated a simple breathing technique that could be used to calm oneself. “Find out constructive ways to channelise your pent-up energy. If you are feeling bogged down by anger or anxiety, vent it by screaming out of a window. Just make sure that you don’t direct it at your parents or anyone in the family,” she said.

Create a Gratitude Jar: Write down thank you notes, appreciation messages for your loves ones — family, friends and teachers. “Open this jar once a week and count your numerous blessings,” said Ms Ahuja.

Role Play: Family members could pick up different roles every week — e.g. ‘Green Champion’ to take care of the garden, ‘Sanitization Expert’ for cleaning up the house, suggested Mrs Kumar, adding, “Share chores while enjoying your relationship with your family.”

Be Unstoppable!

Urging participants to be solution-oriented, Mrs Kumar said, “Back in the days when we could go out whenever we wanted, we still encountered hurdles and conquered them. Similarly, even today, we must do what we have to.”

Citing an inspiring example from a remote part of Jharkhand, where loudspeakers were used to take lessons to children during lockdown, she said, “We can’t take education away from some kids just because they don’t have an internet connection. This example from Jharkhand inspires us to be ‘unstoppable’ in the face of all challenges.”

A slide showing children of a Jharkhand village getting their lessons through loudspeakers during the lockdown.

Fuel your Imagination

The panelists reiterated that no matter what happened, it was important to enjoy every moment. “You prepare for an earthquake and a tsunami comes, you prepare for the tsunami and something else happens. Instead of worrying endlessly, fuel your imagination and use your time to learn something new,” said Mrs Kumar, adding that she had started learning theatre via Zoom.

Maintain a Lockdown Diary

The panelists highlighted that the current times were extremely unique and that something like this may not occur for decades. They urged the audience to maintain a lockdown diary of their special experiences during ‘Covid Times’ — good or bad — and publish it.

Be Loving, Practise Gratitude

At a time when many are reeling under stress and angry outbursts are not uncommon, ICS experts encouraged students and parents to be patient and loving with each other.

“Take part in household chores, help your mother, appreciate your family for the little things that they do for you,” Ms Ahuja told students.

Mrs Kumar asked them to be especially grateful towards their teachers. “They are working over time. Express gratitude to your teachers for making education possible even in such a trying situation,” she said.

Underscoring the fact that fear could never help a person build a happy and successful life, Dr Monika Dass asked students to appreciate their blessings. “Remember, there are people standing behind you, encouraging you…your parents, teachers and friends,” she said.

Tips for Parents

Empathising with parents, who were donning multiple hats, the panelists shared some tips that could help them enhance the quality of time spent with their children.

Group Activities: “Play board games and take part in creative activities together. For instance, if you like sowing, do it with your children. Such activities will help strengthen family bonding and also ensure that children spend quality time with parents and siblings.”

Work from Home Holiday / ‘Staycation’: Reinventing the concept of holidays, panelists advised parents to view this time as a ‘staycation’ or a working holiday where they were getting to be with family even as they fulfilled official commitments.

Participant Queries: Other Tips

Taking up live queries from the audience, Dr Monika Dass made the following recommendations:

If there is family close by or neighbours whom you trust, let your children connect with them. Kids need to socialise and play.
Teachers can establish an emotional connect with students while taking lessons online. “Personalise your conversation. Use children’s names, pay them compliments…this will make them feel good and stay connected with you.”
Mothers don’t have to be super moms. “This is a difficult time. Earlier, the teacher was spending 8 hours with your child, everyday. Now, she is not there. Just ensure that you are there for your child but don’t be too hard on yourself.”
To parents, who voiced difficulty in being able to motivate their children towards healthy habits, Dr Monika Dass suggested getting in touch with ICS experts. “If any parent needs professional help, experts at ICS are ever ready to guide you. Please get in touch with us,” she said.

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