MIND MANTRA PROJECT- 9th September 2020

 " MIND MANTRA" project, a join venture of East West Center for counselling & training (EWC) and Creations Charitable Trust for the Tamil Nadu Fire and Rescue department. The ingratiation ceremony of the project took place on the 9th of September 2020. The chief guest of the ceremony was the DGP, Dr. Sylendra Babu.IPS who was also the project mentor, the Deputy Director with Tamil Nadu fire and rescue services Priya Ravichandran is the Deputy Director with Tamil Nadu fire and rescue services, Ms. Asha Marina S and Prithivi K joint trustees of Creations Charitable Trust along with Ms. Magdalene Jeyarathinam the director of EWC were present to grace the occasion.

The Mind Mantra Project was initiated to enhance the mind and emotional well-being of the service men who have been constantly contributing to the betterment of the society, risking their own lives in the process of saving lives in danger. The inauguration was also followed by a Mental health awareness session conducted by Ms. Magdalene about the need for therapy and the self-care for people who work in workplaces which are as stressful as the Rescue Department the session was very interactive and made them realize the need for Counselling and Stress management.

Art from Heart - 26th January 2019

The Art from Heart session on 26th January, 2019 had 8 participants. 

Directive: What would you like to carry with you in your heart? 

Group Counselling Sessions using Art from 13th to 15th December 2010

Venue: Kellys Girls Home 

 We conducted three consecutive days of group counselling sessions using Art for the children of kellys girls home . It was organized by World vision.Various art techniques were used as therapeutic tools.The tools applied are given below along with the objectives and a brief description of the activity.

Date- 13/12/2010
Objective- The goal was to create awareness  of what they feel at the moment.The children were asked to stick together their own choices of magazine cut outs that best described their feelings.
Tool-  Collage

Date-14/12/2010
Objectives
 1) The goal was to help the children define their social atom
 2)The theme of a tree was used to bring clarity into their future aims and objectives and what was needed to achieve it.
Tools
1)Clay 
2)Collage

Date- 15/12/2010
Objective- The main objective for the day was to help group members see that they could draw support from one another.
Tools
1) The theme of a garden was used to achieve the above objective
2) An interconnected map of the group was created, which was used to make them feel deeply connected to one another using drawing and collage.

The three day session using Art therapy was  successful in making each child feel more connected with oneself and the others around.

Group Counselling session using Art -November 12th

Venue: Kellys Girls Home

Center for Counselling conducted a half day Counselling session, for the young women of reception unit in Kellys Girls Home using Art therapy. It was  organized and funded by World Vision.

Parents workshops at Alpha School

Venue: Alpha Matriculation Hr Sec School, November 10th, 2010

Center for Counselling organized an interactive session  with the parents of 10^th and 12^th students of Alpha Matriculation Hr Sec School.

The issues that were discussed surrounded the problems and anxieties commonly faced by parents of 10th and 12th children.

Objectives
1)Both, parents and children face Exam fear due to the pressure of Expectations.This is a common problem for children who are struggling hard to perform well.Brilliant children who are anxious to keep up the expectations also face intense Exam Fear.This can have a negative impact on their performance. In order to tackle Exam fever, breathing techniques to be practiced before writing the exam were taught; this would help the child calm down and focus.

2)The program stressed the importance of physical and Emotional health of children and its crucial role in their academic performance.

3)Most of the parents stop the children from participating in any extra curricular activity, they also stop the child from continuing his/her hobby. The session stressed the negative impact of withholding the child from doing such activities. It stressed the positive impacts of hobbies and extra curricular activities that would help the child perform better in all aspects of life.



5)Motivation is a very important factor in any performance therefore we discussed  the different ways to increase a child s motivation.

Parents of 10th and 12 students


Parents Workshop for Parents of Pre schoolers on 3rd December 2010

Venue: Alpha School

An Interactive session with the parents of Preschoolers(3 to 4 ear olds) of Alpha Matriculation School was conducted by us. Some of the important issues discussed were

Nutrition

The essential nutrition required  for the particular age group [3-4] was discussed

Developmental Milestone

Physical,Cognitive and Emotional development of the children belonging to this age group were discussed.

Effective ways of parenting pre-schoolers was also one of the main objectives of the session.

Our support to the open minds campaign

The NDTV Hindu show which had Sunil Menon, Rev Winnie Verghese, Shobhna, Gabriel, Elizabeth and me. It is in 4 segments.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Iq6TGEm1gN4&feature=related

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MHkbakzvag0

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NQUHrFifPOI

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fdEQFc7FAok

There is so much discrimination at the health setting. Doctors, particularly psychiatrists, social workers and counsellors pretending or cheating people that they can "cure" or "treat" gay people. Treatment usually means "aversion" or "conversion" therapy which includes ECT often. (Electro conversion therapy or shock treatment)

An example of a psychiatrist's bias rather than her professionalism is here on the links below:

http://tinyurl.com/ndtvhindu-cfom1

http://tinyurl.com/ndtvhindu-cfom2

Please look up this website for further information  orinam.net

If you are gay, lesbian, bisexual or transgender and for whatever reason you have to visit a psychiatrist these are some doctors names in Chennai:

1. Dr Suresh kumar - clinic 044- 24332285/ mobile 98400 31559/ email msuresh@vsnl.com
2. Dr Shalini - 28514741(clinic) - 55 Triplicane High road,
3. Dr Mohan Raj - Please call us and we could give you the number
4. Dr Anbudurai - Please call us and we could give you the number

If you wish to go through some counselling or personal work mainly because of the trauma you have experienced or you are in a particularly stressful situation or if you wish information regarding other health services which are LGBT friendly please call us at the Center for Counselling office (9884100135). 

Call our Counselling helplines( 9 AM to 6 PM):

+91 98847 00104 (English)

+91 98847 00174 (Tamil)

If you are in a crisis, (police, rowdy harassment etc )

You could call Sangama helpline (24 hr) 98406 99776

Playback Theatre Workshop

A brief background to Playback Theatre

Playback Theatre, in which audience members tell personal stories and watch as a team of actors re-enact the stories, was developed by Jonathan Fox and the original Playback theatre troupe in the mid seventies as one way of integrating the personal aspect of a person’s life story and the public aspect of performance. Playback theatre is now done by over 300 companies in over 50 countries and growing. This form of theatre is both healing and empowering and is used in a variety of clinical and non-clinical settings including prisons, schools, mental health settings, corporations, and is performed in open audience performance to bear witness to personal stories of the audience. It is used for conflict resolution and to give voice to those who have experienced natural disasters and trauma.

Playback theatre allows both the teller of a story and the audiences the opportunity to relive memories be they happy, sad, or funny. The result is often a deeper sense of community, and a sense that “My” story is really “Our” story. The vision of Playback Theatre is to enable communities of all kinds to come together in a way that creates community.

The process of Playback is deceivingly simple. At one level, we are playing back a persons story from his/her life. Yet, the act of creating the safety that allows anyone to tell the story is important, as well as the ability to listen deeply, not so much with our ears, but from our heart to the tellers story, and bear witness to it through the enactment as a way of giving them a gift. As an actor, we receive these stories as a gift, and it is important then to hand back to the individual as well as to the audience as a whole.

Dates 

November 9 & 10 - Monday and Tuesday at the Madras University(English department) Contact Magdalene Jeyarathnam 9884100135 if you wish to join this workshop and you are not from Madras University.

November 11 & 12 - Wednesday and Thursday at Karur for a theatre group organised by Christi Swamy.

November 14 & 15 - Saturday and Sunday at AICUF, students have a discount if you show your ID card and if you are not a student you can pay a registration fee of Rs 750/ - A simple lunch and tea is organised. Register with Center for Counselling 9884700135.

S.No	Names	E.mail IDs and phone numbers
1	R.Naveen	naveen andrew@ymail.com andrewnaveen@ymail.com
2	D.Maria Edward Raj	9962895467 mariaedward.edwin@gmail.com
3	P.K.Vinoth	kumarnathan@yahoo.com vinothdeva@ymail.com
4	John F Romeo	John,explorer@gmail.com
5	E.K.Narasimman	narasimmanek@ymail.com
6	Gejoy.K	gejoy.k@gmail.com 9884032435
7	M.Gasper Vincent	9952525966 v.ajay_2007@yahoo.com
8	Saral V
9	A.Glory	9941005977
10	G.Kavitha	gp_kavi@yahoo.com
11	Alicia Prarthana	alicia. stephen@gmail.com
12	Dhanalakshmi.R
13	V.Kamatchi	994192999
14	Lapdiang Artimai Syiem	lapdiang@yahoo.co.in 9043753490
15	DR.Aubudurai	dr_anbudurai@yahoo.com 9884062620
16	M.K. Joseph James	9444472353 joejamesmk@yahoo.co.in jjamesmk@gmail.com
17	Sabastian	9444825765 sebastin01@yahoo.com sebastinsathish@ymail.com
18	Jennie kristal
19	Magdalene Jeyerathinam

Profile of Jennie Kristel

Jen Kristel, M.A. has a Masters in Expressive Arts Therapy. She is certified as an Expressive Therapist. She is a Master/Teacher of the Usui Method of Reiki and Karuna Reiki. She is certified as a trainer of the Playback Theatre Method, and teaches this as well as Art Therapy both in the States and internationally. She is a lead foreign adviser for the Bangladesh Therapeutic Theatre Institute and supervises students and on going projects there. Based in Vermont USA, Jen teaches the expressive therapies at Burlington College and has a private practice.Jen's background includes training in Jungian Dreamwork and Dream Theatre (with Jeremy Taylor) and comes from a Jungian/Humanist perspective. Over the years, she has worked in clinical and non-clinical settings bringing the arts to people as a way to support them in healing. She is looking forward to bringing this very important work to Chennai.

Workshops on Psychodrama and profile of Trainer

Experience Compassion …Connection … Creativity…

Celebrations of the Soul and The Center for Counselling

Present a unique training experience through spontaneous action methods of Psychodrama, for the first time in Chennai, this training will offer opportunities for professional development and personal growth for counsellors, social workers and practicing therapists at all levels of experience.

Reserve your place and register as limited seats are available! Program details follow:

The training will include:

1. introduction to psychodrama methodology

2. practical explorations of the role theory of personality and applications to therapeutic situations

3. introduction to the methods of Sociometry for promoting group cooperation, reducing conflicts and achieving common goals

When: 22 to 26 September 2009(Mon to Fri)

Time: 10 AM to 5 PM

General outline of the training:

Day 1: introduction: working contract, sociometric group-building for trust, safety and spontaneity; introduction to doubling, role reversal and simple role-taking;

psychodramatic action: presentation of a meaningful place.

Day 2: continue sociometric group-building; action warmups; doubling practice; introduction to Role Theory: role presentations; simple role inventory;

psychodramatic action: encounter with interpersonal role.

Day 3: continue sociometric group-building; doubling practice; role reversal practice; exploring sociometry: the social atom;

psychodramatic action: 1-scene psychodrama or multi-scene psychodrama.

Day 4: continue sociometric group-building; exploring sociodrama: presenting social roles; ' Empty Chair' (single role) sociodrama; multi-role sociodrama on issue/problem of group choice

Day 5: morning - warmup & sociometry; psychodrama or sociodrama of group choice; afternoon - closure: sociodrama on the life of the group.

What is Psychodrama?

Psychodrama was conceived and developed by Jacob L. Moreno, MD, first in Vienna beginning in 1921 and later in the United States. Since then it has spread around the world and is now practiced extensively in the US and Canada, the UK and Europe, Brazil, Australia, Israel, Taiwan, Japan and South Korea.

Rooted in the twin foundations of spontaneity/creativity and the role theory of personality, it has found very effective application not only as a group therapy modality in hospitals, clinics and prviate practice, but also in education, the arts, organization development and community action. Psychodrama uses our innate capacity for role-playing to investigate our lives in a mutually supportive environment, to re experience and change the past, to affirm our strengths, to try out future alternatives and to change what we choose. It requires no experience or training in formal theater.

Herb Propper, Ph.D., T.E.P.

Herb Propper, Ph.D., T.E.P. is a Trainer Educator Practitioner of Psychodrama, Sociometry and Group Psychotherapy, certified by the American Board of Examiners. He has 30 years of experience in the field. He is Director of Celebrations of the Soul Center for Psychodrama, Sociodrama and Sociometry in Vermont, USA, in private practice as therapist, trainer and consultant.

Herb has been selected by the Bureau of Educational Affairs, US Department of State, as a 2009 Fulbright scholar to teach psychodrama and sociometry in Bangladesh. He is hosted by the Dhaka University Department of Clinical Psychology and the Jahangirnagar University Department of Drama and Dramatics.

He is a lifetime member and fellow of the American Societry of Group Psychotherapy and Psychodrama (ASGPP). He has presented numerous workshops at conferences of the ASGPP and its affiliated New England chapter.

Since 2003 he has been a lead trainer for the National Therapeutic Theatre Workshops of Bangladesh, and is also a member of the Bangladesh Therapeutic Theatre Institute.

He has published articles on sociodrama, psychodrama in theater work and role-playing in education in The British Journal of Psychodrama and Sociodrama, The Journal of Group Psychotherapy, Psychodrama and Sociometry,and The Internaional Journal of Action Methods. He has also contributed a chapter on uses of psychodrama in education to Psychodrama in the 21st Century.

Participants who attended the workshop Nov 22 to 26, 2009

Name	Email id	Phone number	Occupation
S.Suneetha	Suneethadebe@yahoo.co.in	9282424181	H.R Professional
Kalyani	kalyani.r41980@gmail.com	9884608097	Writer
Subashini	kuttly80@gmail.com	9710080747	Counsellor
Dhanalakshmi	dana.rsamy@gmail.com	9884700104	Counsellor
Aruna	arunaa.aj@gmail.com	9347774237 9000784213	Counsellor
Shravanthi	sravu.carpediem@gmail.com	9884848762	Student
Sarah	sarahk33@gmail.com	9840853653	Corporate trainer
Beatrice	bvanaja@gmail.com	9443151651	Social worker
Mrinalini	mermirna@gmail.com	9444022904	Dancer
Sharanya	sharanya.manivannan@gmail.com		Writer
Lakshmi	Luxor3004@yahoo.com	9840942909	Counsellor &psychotherapist
Magdalene	Magdalene.jeyarathnam@gmail.com	9884100135	Counsellor