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• 49.5% of India's youth face stress alone
• Only 9.2% seek professional help
• Alarming statistics emerged from the survey

According to a new survey by Mpower, a social enterprise and mental health services provider under the Aditya Birla Education Trust, despite growing awareness of mental health, young people in India still face emotional challenges. The survey, titled “Unpack Your Emotional Baggage: A Call to Action for Young Indians to Seek Help During Emotional Distress,” collected responses from 18 to 25-year-olds in ten major regions of India: Mumbai, Pune, Delhi NCR, Bengaluru, Kolkata, Ahmedabad, Goa, Hyderabad, Chennai and Jaipur. This research explores emotional stress in youth, coping techniques, and social responses to distress. This illustrates a wide gap between awareness of mental health and their willingness or ability to seek help.

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Although public discussion about mental health has increased, findings from an MPower survey revealed that 49.5 percent of India's youth still hide their feelings of stress and try to cope entirely on their own, while only 9.2 percent have sought professional help.

This reluctance to seek help also seems to extend to the way young people deal with their own distress, where they mainly try to hide their feelings. 40.9 percent of respondents said they tell others 'I'm fine' even when they're not fine. Many reported avoiding discussions about their feelings altogether or keeping themselves busy to distract them from the experiences they were going through.

Commenting on World Suicide Prevention Day, Mrs. Neerja Birla, Founder President, Aditya Birla Education Trust, Mpower, said, “Forty percent of the youth we interacted with were told to just 'be strong'. Only nine percent of the youth were able to seek professional help. Somewhere between these two numbers, we are failing to understand them. We are waiting for a crisis to happen before we take action. The solution is to instill this in schools from the beginning.” must be recognized, so that silence will not be the only coping mechanism known to young people.”

The survey shows that when young people do express their feelings, it is common to encounter dismissive reactions. Apart from the top response of 'stay strong' (40.4 per cent), young people are frequently advised that they are 'overthinking' or told to 'focus on work or studies'. In contrast, only 13.6 percent of respondents said that someone listened and supported them without prejudice.

“Mental health is not just a clinical diagnosis like depression or anxiety, but a way of living, which is reflected in how we deal with our inner thoughts, maintain relationships, and navigate emotional pain,” says Dr. Zirak Marker said. “When young people are constantly told to 'stay strong', 'focus on work' or 'stop overthinking', their pain is ignored. Hiding distress and repressing emotions creates dangerous stress, which in severe cases can lead to severe depression and even suicide. The real preventive measure is to go beyond superficial advice and include mental health education in the school curriculum for all grades. At an early age, empathy and By building acceptance, we can give young people the safe space, dignity and professional care they need to stay healthy.”

The survey also revealed a sharp gender difference in how mental stress is generated

Internal emotional stressors are more common among women, with persistent overthinking (60 percent of women), self-doubt (56 percent), and body image concerns (69 percent). Among men, external stressors are more common, including work- stress (57 percent of men) and financial insecurity (54 percent). Interestingly, 60 percent of respondents who don't realize something is off until another person points it out were men, highlighting the dire need for emotional self-awareness among young men.

In addition, the survey also sheds light on how emotional distress manifests itself in everyday life. Forty-seven percent of individuals reported getting angry or irritable more easily, followed by difficulty concentrating or enjoying things (36.7 percent) and affecting daily tasks or routines (31.3 percent).

This survey makes one thing clear

Just raising awareness is no longer enough. On this World Suicide Prevention Day, our focus should shift from just talking about mental health to creating an environment where young people feel safe to take action. Suicide prevention begins long before a crisis occurs. This starts with breaking down the stigma, prejudice and dismissive reactions that force young people to suffer in silence. Community can bridge the gap between awareness and help-seeking by providing active, non-judgmental support rather than superficial advice, so that no young person feels that coping with stress alone is the only option.

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