India’s home to many taboos and mental illness is one of the foremost of them. In fact, most times individuals ignore their mentally distressed states and thus, many cases go undiagnosed. Societal pressure, professional competition and coming terms with harsh reality can get hard for anyone in our country and hence, mental illnesses like depression are rampant in the country.
Like any sensitive subject, mental illness too is not discussed openly in India. It is often associated with emotional distress and people usually do not open up, fearing mockery and embarrassment. Founded by Shipra Dawar, ePsyClinic has emerged as the country’s leading online platform that provides mental health care and is now aiming to eradicate the stigma that is often related to emotional and mental wellness. In an exclusive interview with MyBigPlunge, Dawar reveals the loopholes in the country’s perception of mental health and how ePsyClinic can help change it towards the better.
Dawar is an alumnus of the Australian National University and started her career as a teacher of corporate strategy to undergraduate students. However, it was consulting where she found her interest due to its potential of tapping many different kinds of industries. Her next achievement was working as a senior associate for a year in the Boston Consulting Group.
While she was working there, Dawar went across a personal experience that finally led to her founding her mental wellness start-up ePsyClinic. She claims that one of her friends was going through a tough period at that time and hence, she recommended her friend to consult a psychologist. She further claims that her friend stated that finding a psychologist and getting the right treatment was difficult. That is when Dawar realized how important a business model was necessary in the mental wellness industry space.
“ I started researching and I saw many gaps in both the supply and demand side. So I thought an online integrated model to solve this issue that so many young and talented face today. All these statistics, my research and my personal experiences with people around my pushed me towards this side of entrepreneurship,” says Dawar.
She recalls her university days where she had already started picturing herself as an entrepreneur. Her constant scouting for the next big idea ensured that entrepreneurship was always present in her radar.
During her researching days, Dawar found out that one of the reasons why people shun away mental wellness apart from its stigma is the fact that there is a lack of structure in the industry.
“If I have a cough or any other issue, there is a clarity of what process and which area of wellness can help me. In the mental wellness arena, people are totally blank. Movies confuse you. People being put into shock treatment after one angry outburst – that never really happens. So the first step was to remove this stigma for the end person who is actually facing a mental health issue, Dawar adds.
Today, more than 50% of India’s private sector employees face some sort of mental illness. But almost all of them do not seek any kind of help. Dawar’s biggest challenge was to reach out to them and this is where ePsyClinic’s online wellness model was set up.
She went ahead to build a core team for her firm that included her along with some of the best psychologists in India and started working with depression patients online. During this process, ePsyClinic developed its own unique specialized one-of-its-kind training module that provided effective psychological therapy and counseling sessions via chat, audio and text. Meanwhile, Dawar put together a technology team that worked on the portal that could support all the mediums as well as construct user-friendly proprietary tools like thought-diaries to ensure transparent communication.
Today, ePsyClinic offers a plethora of mental wellness services that cater to problems like relationship issues, addiction, professional wellness along with core psychological conditions like depression, OCD, anxiety etc. It also offers a pregnancy wellness program as well.
When asked about the attitude of the public towards mental illness in India, Dawar replies by saying that there are multiple reasons behind it.
“People give a lot of emphasis on their minds. They see it as something superior. Realizing that your mind is giving you problems – that’s something that not many people would want to accept. People would not want to discuss that. Secondly, there is an extreme supply shortage of mental healthcare. That means that this provider-base was overseeing the more serious issues which could be things like mental retardation, autism and people experiencing delusions. Hence, people follow a notion that one visits a psychologist only when he or she has completely lost it. This is what causes the maximum harm. There are many cases where even family members do not help as they too, come from the same societal mindset. So going to a psychologist is associated with an imagery of madness. The movies and media further spice things up. “ says Dawar
Since its inception, ePsyClinic has garnered substantial traction – something which Dawar did not expect. Her aim to internalize the stigma has helped countless patients to approach the firm and seek mental wellness. In the past 3 and a half months, the company has recorded more than 3000 counseling sessions on the portal itself. The web portal has more than 16-17 million hits and also publishes various articles. Dawar claims that the presence of ePsyClinic’s brand has been achieved by minimal advertising and basic awareness. The company has also launched the world’s first virtual clinic where people can just walk in and seek medical help from a desktop rather than facing a physical setup. The company now wishes to expand further and continue adding more value to its services so the entire taboo of mental health in India is slowly wiped out.
On an ending note, Dawar spoke about her journey as an entrepreneur.
“ This is an area where there is a need for a lot of creative ideas and energies. You need to have a very high supply as well. All of these things combined – it has been quite a stimulating experience. I have a team that I’m absolutely proud of. We’re now associating with leading though-leaders and psychologist experts that are willing to work with us. That is very satisfying. My ultimate aim is that – every person who needs mental help shouldn’t be ashamed of its treatment. My idea is to destigmatise seeking mental health care. “ says Dawar.
