IIT-K develops online tool to help people deal with mental-health-issues
The Indian Institute of Technology (IIT), Kanpur, has developed an online tool, TreadWill, to help people cope with issues related to their mental health. TreadWill is a website designed to help people deal with stress, low mood, lethargy, and other depressive symptoms through different online exercises, questionnaires and games, Nitin Gupta, a professor at the Biological Sciences and Bioengineering department of the IIT, said.
TreadWill is based on cognitive behavioral therapy
The tool is based on cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT) that helps people with depressive symptoms, Gupta said. Based on the proven methodology of CBT, TreadWill uses simple language to help users to identify involuntary negative thoughts and behavior, Gupta said, adding that users are subsequently taught techniques to work on modifying their thoughts and actions. The website will help in overcoming depressive symptoms.
Wrestling with thoughts in bed is most common problem: Gupta
Gupta said the most common problem that people face is wrestling with their thoughts while lying on the bed, and they desperately want their minds to calm down so that they can sleep. "But, whatever they try seems to fail," Gupta said, adding that people tell themselves not to worry, but they discover countless new things to worry about.
TreadWill sends personalized SMS alerts to users
TreadWill would further help its users by sending personalized SMS alerts to help them stick to the program until the end. TreadWill uses simple forms (thought record worksheet, core belief worksheet) and games to practice the techniques of CBT in an engaging manner. The game helps people focus on positivity in stressful situations and over time, the exercise helps build self-esteem.
TreadWill will be developed for different language users
TreadWill has planned to scale the tool for different language users and offer cognitive training for other disorders. Gupta said that the user would have to go through six modules over a period of about six weeks. These modules will teach different skills of CBT, he said. The users would be able to complete these modules at their respective places, Gupta asserted.
Who developed TreadWill?
The online tool has been developed by a team with collaborative support from the Computer Science and Engineering and HSS (Psychology) departments, and Dr. Alok Bajpai, a psychiatrist, the professor said. Gupta further added that the research team would send an email to the users just 90 days after completing the program to check the long-term effectiveness of the online program.
