Introduction
In the event of a mental health crisis it becomes very difficult to get assistance. Even without a crisis, accessing appropriate care of mental health is difficult. Concerns associated with where to get help, who is the appropriate professional, and so on come up. Also, how can you better leverage smartphones for support in times of crisis?
The SOS button in smartphones is designed to connect you with the nearest possible help.
Through this article, acquire relevant information regarding professional mental health help and emergency services.
Where to Find Help for Mental Illness
Currently, there are several sources available locally and internationally. However, it can be difficult to locate one in times of need.
Below is a categorization of where you can reach out for mental illness.
Online Help for Mental Illness
Since the Pandemic, several online portals have opened up. These portals cater to a range of mental health services. There are several apps, websites and social media pages catering to a diverse set of issues universally. To reach out to them, all that you require is an internet connection.
In person
Personally, finding appropriate healthcare services can be a challenge. Locally available services vary significantly and are difficult to access. To locate local services, reach out to hospitals, private consultants and NGO for guidance and services.
Helpline services
Finally, if you are in need of emergency services, reach out to one of several 24 X 7 hotlines available in India. Some of the common ones include Tele MANAS, icall by TISS, and the Vandrevala foundation helpline.
How to Find Help for Mental Illness
Particularly, during a crisis episode like a panic attack or a long term issue like insomnia, you don’t know what to do. And, it can be difficult to understand how to find appropriate help. This can make mental health issues linger and develop in terms of severity. To find timely help is neccesary.
One of the best ways to get accurate guidance for your mental health struggles is by reaching out to a professional. Mental health professionals include trained and licensed psychologists, psychiatrists, nurses and social workers. Always reach out after confirming credentials of the professional.
Similarly, you might wonder where to find said professionals. For this, you can reach out to the United We Care. They have a huge team of professionals, resources and guides on all things mental health. By downloading the app and subscribing you can access their team of experts.
Ultimately, the most important aspect of how to get help is by reaching out and being open to services. Whenever a health related conflict arises within you , don’t shy away from booking a consultation with an appropriate consultant. By reaching out when needed, you prevent crisis and severity.
How to Call the SOS Button When You Need Help for Mental Illness
Primarily, the SOS button is designed to be simple and easy to access on your smartphone. But, since smartphones have varying user designs, finding and using the SOS button can be confusing.
Following are SOS button features on differing types of smartphones.
SOS Button in Android Phone
Foremost, the SOS button feature is just simply pressing the power button multiple times on your smartphone. This means that it’s simple, efficient and does not require you to unlock the phone in case of emergencies.
The SOS power button feature can be enabled in the Settings app of your android smartphone.
SOS Button in Pixel
Similarly, in Pixel there are two ways to activate the emergency SOS setup. You can initiate the emergency button directly by tap, touch and holding for 5 seconds. In one variation you can keep a confirmation message after holding touch or direct activation.
The SOS touch button feature can be enabled by Safety and emergency setting of your pixel smartphone.
SOS in Apple
While in other smartphones the SOS button gets activated from the device, in Apple you have a different process. You have to first press the side button and volume down button simultaneously. Emergency slider will appear on the screen that you swipe to initiate emergency services.
The SOS feature on apple is automatically enabled and does not require to be activated manually.
SOS Tips for Utilising Your Smartphone in an Emergency To Help for Mental Illness
On one hand, everyone has a smartphone with a diverse set of features. On the other hand, the diverse features make it difficult to choose the appropriate SOS feature during emergencies.
Mentioned below is a set of emergency features that you can use through your smartphones.
Activating Emergency Feature
As discussed above, one of the best ways to utilise your smartphones is by activating emergency features. You can activate your smartphone’s designed emergency services by accessing the safety feature in settings app. These emergency settings include SOS alerts to your loved ones, calling 911 and activating sound alerts on the device.
Different smartphone models have different sets of emergency features depending on the software and the make of the device.
Emergency Contacts
Practically, all of us have a set of friends and family, who we reach out to for emergencies. Unfortunately, during times of crisis it becomes difficult to think whom to contact. For this, your smartphones offer features like emergency speed dial and numbers of local emergency services (ambulance, fire truck, police, etc).
By utilising the speed dial feature and the phonebook feature on your smartphone, you can have a ready repository of emergency contacts.
United We Care App
Without a doubt, having a set of experts at your fingertips is surely the best way to address crisis situations. Which is why, UWC’s application can take care of all the professional help that you might need during a mental health crisis. By downloading the app and having a subscription you can access a storehouse of resources.
The app offers a range of services from professionals to AI chatbot that can figure out your concerns.
Conclusion
To conclude, you can find mental health based services in person, online and through helplines. The SOS button and emergency features on your smartphone can help you during a crisis. If you’re looking for a one stop solution for all of your mental health needs, consider a mental health centre.
Here’s a guide to mental health centres and what they offer.
References
[1] “United we care | A SuperApp for Mental Wellness,” United we care, https://www.unitedwecare.com/ (accessed Oct. 19, 2023).
[2] “Use emergency SOS on your iPhone,” Apple Support, https://support.apple.com/en-hk/HT208076 (accessed Oct. 19, 2023).
[3] “Emergency SOS,” Google, https://guidebooks.google.com/pixel/prepare-for-an-emergency/how-to-turn-on-emergency-sos?hl=en (accessed Oct. 19, 2023).
[4] “Get help during an emergency with your Android phone – android help,” Google, https://support.google.com/android/answer/9319337?hl=en (accessed Oct. 19, 2023).
[5] C. Henderson, S. Evans-Lacko, and G. Thornicroft, “Mental illness stigma, help seeking, and public health programs,” American journal of public health, https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3698814/ (accessed Oct. 19, 2023).
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