Counselling for cops to tackle stress begins on a one-one basis following rising suicide cases

Thiruvananthapuram: Looking to bring changes in the lives of policemen who are combating with severe stress and challenges – both on professional and family fronts, the Thiruvananthapuram city police has come up with an initiative with the assistance of counsellors reaching out to those policemen who are facing troubles that affect their profession.

The bold initiative by Thiruvananthapuram city police with the help of HATS (Help and Assistance to Tackle Stress) have begun counselling classes concentrating on each police station wherein counsellors from the health department will begin interacting with policemen to understand the issues that are plaguing them.

The initiative comes after a series of death by suicide in the state where police officials have taken the extreme step following various issues ranging from work pressure, to family issues that has taken a toll over them mentally and physically.

However, the initiative has begun with a positive note that more policeman is coming forwards to address their issues. In most cases, the policemen do not want to reveal their identity as many believes that it could affect his moral and thus affecting his profession.

Policemen prefer anonymity while raising the matter

Most policeman who are looking to take up their issues with the counselling sessions have been requesting the higher-ups that they do not want to reveal their identity. According to police officials who are coordinating with such cases say that they require the anonymity as it could create further mental pressure and thus affecting their work in total.

Nithin Raj, Thiruvananthapuram City Police Commissioner who spoke to TV9 said that there is a good response from the policeman after the initiative has started. He said that a large section of officials requires an anonymity in these cases and hence the policeman was given the option to reach out to the counsellors directly.

“There are three kind of approach we usually come up with. One is to identify those who are facing issues and hence requiring a counselling. In the second approach we reach out to each station where the SHO will directly engage with the policemen and with the help of counsellors a session is conducted. However, there are a section of our forces who don’t want to reveal their identity. For them we give them the option to reach out to a counsellor directly where they will be given relaxations in their work timings. The approach has now started giving positive results with many coming forward”, said Nithin Raj.

The DCP further added that it is only a small section of policemen who are struggling with such issues where they find difficulties in maintaining a work-life balance.

With June being observed as Men’s mental health awareness month, the number of policemen dying by suicide has become a major point of discussion within the police and in the public sphere. In the last two years, 82 policemen died by suicide prompting the district police chiefs of the concerned districts to begin counselling to its members.

“The suicides are often triggered by work related stress, family issues, usage of alcohol that finally leads them to take the extreme step. Proper counselling can help them to overcome the issue”. Said Ratheesh Kumar, a psychologist based in Trivandrum who has been dealing with cases related to police.