The last two years have blown India’s mental health crisis wide open. The Indian National Institute of Mental Health and Neurosciences (NIMHANS) found in its most recent survey that more than 150 million Indians need help with their mental health, but fewer than 30 million are receiving it. There are many reasons for this, including lack of access to mental health resources, lack of awareness, high cost of care, and the stigma associated with seeking mental health help. The need of the hour is a scalable solution that can democratize mental health and resources. THAP does just that.
also known as The Happiness Project, is a one-of-a-kind Indian mental wellness app with a mission to make mental health resources more accessible and user-friendly for the masses.
THANK YOU is the brainchild of Natasha Sagar (CEO and co-founder) and Tintisha Sagar (COO and co-founder). Despite the deteriorating state of mental health among Indians, mental health issues are still considered highly taboo in India. With all the silence around mental health, online therapy has become a boon for many people in India. THAP is a giant repository of mental health resources and mental wellness tools that help people in their fight against all mental health issues.
THAP allows users to schedule therapy sessions online with qualified therapists listed on their platform. Users can choose therapists based on their specific needs and attend therapy sessions discreetly from the comfort of their homes. It also includes daily mental wellness workouts in the form of modules and activities that encourage self-discovery and mindfulness.
“What makes THAP unique is its efforts to improve the quality of therapy sessions on the platform. It gives therapists access to a set of interactive post-therapy tasks that they can assign users through the app to complete between sessions. Additionally, users can securely and conveniently share their journal entries with the therapist prior to their session through the app, allowing them to make better use of their therapy time,” says Natasha Sagar.
He further adds: “THAP is more than just a therapy app. With THAP, we have created a digital mental health management ecosystem where people can privately access mental health resources. It is designed to meet all the wellness needs and goals a person may have, in one place without being subject to any stigma.”
To destigmatize mental health care, THAP has partnered with several universities to raise awareness among youth and has made therapy sessions more accessible. THAP also provides users with the necessary tools for healthy emotional regulation.
As well as being fraught with stigma, India’s mental health workforce is also severely understaffed. This greatly biases the accessibility of mental health professionals to residents of the urban population. India has a long way to go in addressing its mental health crisis. Companies like THAP are helping build the infrastructure needed to make mental health care more accessible.
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