Mental Health volunteering in Sri Lanka

Melissa Langridge Start Date: Feb 20, 2018 - End Date: Feb 19, 2019
  • Educational/Research Trip
  • Leadership/Training Program
  • Volunteer Trip
  • Sri Lanka

My Travel Story

by: Melissa Langridge Start Date: Feb 20, 2018 - End Date: Feb 19, 2019
  • Educational/Research Trip
  • Leadership/Training Program
  • Volunteer Trip
In July 2019 I will be spending a month in Sri Lanke working with mental health patients. While there I will be staying with a local family, intergrating myself into their culture. I will spend around 60% of my time working in mental hospitals as part of a team planning and leading sessions with the patients to improve thier cognitive functioning anf general wellbeing. Sri Lanke has a good reputation for their mental health treatments however despite this they're severely underfunded with only one psychiatrist per 500,000 of the population. This trip will help provide the hospitals with the hands they need and ensure the patients recieve the attention they need to improve. While this is an amazing opportunity it is unpaid and has a high cost so any donations would be greatly appreciated! My time there will also be spent teaching English to the locals to help improve thier future opportunities as well as my own. The field of mental health treatment requires extensive experience for even an entry level position, however in the UK it is incredbly hard to get experience without personal connections or prior experience. By volunteering in Sri Lanke I will gain a month of full-time hands on experience, as well as the priveledge of working in the field that I'm passionate about and helping those without the resources of wealthier countries. Additionally, Sri Lanke is known for using alternative methods of treatment such as excersise classes, meditation and alternative therapies, this will teach me methods of treatment I won't learn on my degree and may enable me to better understand alternative treatments in my future career.


  • Sri Lanka

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