body works in different ways when it comes to such experiences it works very well with children as they are in most cases unable to articulate well here drama therapy becomes a lightmedium to engage them it is also very helpful for elderly dementia patients people with special needs and the nonverbal population she saysshravanthi who specialises in mental health conditions related to traumatic or stressful events is among a handful of certified practitioners in the cityshe is currently working with hasiru dala an ngo on a project focusing on children from underprivileged sections of society alongside other creativearts therapists cat and practitioners she also collaborates with fellow cats and artistes for workshops or sessionsspeaking about the response shravanthi says there has been an uptick in demand from citybased schools this academic year to conduct workshops and train school counsellors in drama therapyi had been struggling for some time before acknowledging the mental issues that i was facing which were amplified by workrelated stress mental health communities in social media helped me understand issues better and seek timely help says pratibha vijay an edtech professionalconventional narratives around mental health have not been effective in reaching out to the people who require help and in building up a wellinformed discourse about the subject among the general public the advent of art and social media can help in changing the situation