Celebrating a Milestone: 1000 Likes

Yesterday was a very exciting day for us. We held our first event at HELP University to promote HELP World Mental Health Day to students and boy, we sure did promoted it! ;)

The Facebook page was only launched in May 10, but in under 2 months, our Facebook page has passed the first 1000 likes milestone! Hooray!

We hit 1013 likes at 5pm!

All smiles for the marketing team :)


The best part of it is that the numbers are still increasing! As of this moment, we are looking at 1092 likes on our Facebook page. That means, 1092 people (and hopefully their friends and family too) are aware of the upcoming Help WMHD event this October and are supporting our cause! Another hooray!

We would like to thank everyone that have helped us made this happened. We could not have done it without any of you guys :)

If you have yet to like our Facebook page, do not miss out on the fun, do so right away! ;)

That's it for this entry. Have a good day everyone, and remember to Choose life, Hold on, And Never Give up on Everything - CHANGE! ...because  it's worth it ! :)

The Hours (2002): The Film Review

A film review by Kunaal Doshi.


Depression is portrayed to its most terrifying core in the 2002 movie, The Hours. The film, which won Nicole Kidman the Academy Award for Best Actress, also stars Meryl Streep and Julianne Moore. Based on the novel by Michael Cunningham, the film concerns Virgina Woolf's (Kidman) efforts to write a novel titled 'Mrs. Dalloway' which links up three different women from three different points in time. Kidman portrays Virginia Woolf who is writing the novel in 1941 while another woman; Laura Brown (Moore) is reading it in the 1950s, while Clarissa Vaughan (Streep) is living the story in the modern day. All three women live parallel lives of depression and suicide.  

Woolf’s novel, 'Mrs Dalloway' is an important feature in the book. The story affects all the three women either directly or indirectly. Woolf, because it is a representation of her thoughts and feelings, Brown who reads it and realizes the book is a reflection of her own thoughts and feelings and Vaughan who in a way is living the same life as the character of Mrs. Dalloway.  
This movie is a frighteningly accurate depiction of the loneliness and hopelessness of depression. How it can destroy a brilliant and loving individual as well as entire families. The Hours goes beyond simply showing depression, it invites viewers to understand and empathize with the characters as well as educating them about the true nature of depression. Showing them, that it may develop out of nothing, to people who seemingly have everything, leaving them naked and vulnerable.  

Reading about in a textbook, knowing every single symptom, effect, cause I thought I knew what Depression was. Before hitting the “Play” button I braced myself to watch two hours of three ladies, crying, wailing and moaning, thinking that there would be nothing for me to enjoy and I was only watching it for the sake of writing this review.  

How wrong I was.  

I sat in my chair for two hours straight, spellbound. I controlled the urge to go the bathroom simply because I didn’t want to disrupt the flow. The movie is not fast paced and exciting nor does it try to be. It portrays depression at its darkest and how that darkness envelops everything around it. The acting all round was brilliant. The three central characters gave deeply moving performances and it is impossible not to empathize with them.  

The Hours is also deeply thought provoking through the use of countless symbolism, imagery and double meanings. The movie challenges the audience to think about the movie and more importantly about depression.  

To anyone who wants to learn about depression, the true face of depression; do watch this movie.  It shows us what makes us human. Books and lectures do not prepare you for real life. Nothing can, not even this movie. But it comes realistically close to.

About HelpWMHD

Hi everyone!

HELP World Mental Health Day has officially gone live on Saturday. As you would have already known, we debuted our new blog with a book review on Room. We highly recommend our readers to grab a copy of the book and be amazed by Emma Donoghue's style of writing.

Although we will certainly post more book reviews in the future, surely it will not be the only thing that we post on the blog. We hope to keep our readers updated with anything related to HELP World Mental Health Day (HelpWMHD) and share some inspiring stories on the topic of depression and suicide. As there will be lots of events and activities over the next few months prior to the event, do visit this space often for new information and updates as we countdown to the biggest event of the year in October. We will also post updates on our Facebook page. Be sure that you have already 'liked' our page ;)

If you are wondering what exactly HelpWMHD is, allow us to tell you a bit more about the event for the rest of this post.

HELP World Mental Health Day (HelpWMHD) is an event organized by a group of HELP University Psychology students to raise public awareness on mental health issues and it's importance. We dedicate ourselves to accomplish the one and only ultimate mission: To Advocate Mental Health Awareness with Education.

On October 10, more than 100 other countries will be observing World Mental Health Day (WMHD) though local, regional and national commemorative events and programs. While we do not want Malaysia to be left out, we are proud to say that we will be organizing Malaysia's first nationwide WMHD event that will run from October 10 to 13 that will go by the name HelpWMHD. It will be a four day event filled with talks, exhibitions, and other inspirational activities for all walks of life. (Remember to mark your calendars!)

In conjunction with the theme for this years WMHD, we chose Depression: Suicide for the theme of our project. We are determined to create a better understanding about depression and suicide through four different goals this year:


1/ Describe the symptoms of depression and suicidal behaviors.


2/ Explain why depression may link to suicide.


3/ Predict possibilities of one to commit suicide (Sign spotting).


4/ Control and change depressive behavior with suicidal elements through healthy channels.

We also believe in C.H.A.N.G.E which stands for "Choose life, Hold on, And Never Give up on Everything". Now you know more about it, help us spread the word! A small effort goes a long way, let's C.H.A.N.G.E.!

Room by Emma Donoghue: A Book Review

A book review by Neville.

Have you ever thought when you were younger “I can’t wait till I’m all grown up!” then when you finally got there you thought “what was I thinking…”? While scientists have yet to create a workable and practical time machine, the book Room by Emma Donoghue is the next best thing as it takes you through the world of a five year old boy, Jack. The twist here is that Jack’s world measures only at 11 feet by 11 feet. Guessed it yet? The story is about Jack who has pretty much grown up in a small room for his entire life!

Taking you through the everyday life of Jack in his small compact room, to his brave escape and finally his life in the outside world, Jack is a character that a lot of us can relate to as he has to face the terrors of stepping out of his comfort zone and opening up to a new and unknown world. But wait! You’re probably wondering by now how in the world could he have survived on his own for five years?

Well, he didn't.

The second most important character in the book, the most important person to Jack and the character I personally felt the most attached to was his mother who goes unnamed throughout the whole book other than Ma. Having been kidnapped seven years ago when she was just 19 years old, Jack’s mother was raped and imprisoned by her kidnapper for all those years. During the seven years she was pregnant twice with the first time ending in a miscarriage. Having to go through all this you would have to think she has every reason to contemplate suicide which she almost managed to pull off after a mental breakdown. However, it was the thought that Jack needed her to be around that kept her going despite her world and freedom being robbed from her.

From a metaphorical standpoint, we’re all at some point trapped in our own sad, dark and morbid room. But even so, there can be a reason for us to keep going. So no matter how bad things get, how much is taken from you and how much you feel like giving up, just hold on to what little you have left and hope that things will change because some good will come out of the things that went wrong. As for what Jack’s mother got, it was Jack.