Managing Self-Harm Using Psychological Treatment Atman: A Guide for Counsellors

The book presents the session wise details of ATMAN psychological treatment for managing self-harm in youth in low- and middle- income countries. Based on global evidence, ATMAN treatment has been designed using a systematic, sequential approach and has been co-designed by the self-harm patients and mental health professionals in Mumbai, India. The word ATMAN in Sanskrit refers to the "eternal self' that functions in harmony with the Universe.

Suicide is a leading cause of premature mortality across the world. Three quarters of global suicides occur in low- and middle-income countries. Most of the psychotherapies available to reduce the recurrence of self-harm have been developed and tested in high-income countries. Far less attention has been given to develop and evaluate context specific psychotherapeutic programmes for self-harm in low- and middle income countries.

The book includes contextually appropriate treatment elements; age appropriate and culturally relevant case vignettes and scripts; and is easy to understand for non-specialist providers. It is based on problem solving therapy integrated with emotion regulation and social network strengthening skills. Available treatments for self-harm are sub-optimal globally and this book might become an extremely useful resource for mental health professionals in high-income countries due to its easy to use format, brief structure, and utility for culturally diverse populations.

From the systems perspective, the possibility of scaling it up and training non-specialist counsellors to deliver this treatment in the community setting makes Managing Self-Harm Using Psychological Treatment ATMAN a very useful addition to the limited resources available to address the global health challenge of self-harm.