UP Diliman is offering free mental health services and they're only a text away

The University of the Philippines Diliman Psychosocial Services (UPD PsycServ) is offering free counseling or psychotherapy services for those affected by the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) situation in the country.

According to its website, UPD PsycServ is temporarily offering telepsychotherapy sessions or consultations for free to:

• frontline workers (e.g. health care workers, service providers, etc.)
• COVID-19 patients, PUMs & PUIs
• relatives of frontliners, patients, and PUMs & PUIs, and
• anyone who is affected/disturbed by the COVID-19 pandemic

To avail of this, just send a text or Viber message to 09063743466 or 09167573157 with your name and concern.

You can also accomplish a form on the link http://bit.ly/PsycServPH to receive a call from a PsycServ volunteer from Monday to Friday,  9 a.m. to 5 p.m.

According to Globe, which has partnered with the PyschServ, it is providing the organization with free unlimited calls and texts to allow volunteers to reach out to those who send them messages via text or Viber message.

"Indeed physical distancing is hard but we can still enable people to connect for encouragement and comfort. Text man o tawag sa phone, maipapadama ang pagsama," Dr. Violeta Bautista, PsycServ Director and Clinical Psychology Program Chair of the UP Diliman Department of Psychology, was quoted as saying.

UPD PsychServ is composed of licensed psychologists and psychosocial support specialists trained to give psychological first aid, counseling, and psychotherapy.

As the COVID-19 pandemic continues to cause various concerns among the population, Globe said it also provides New Good Feelings (NGF) Mindstrong with free Amazon Connect Private Automatic Branch eXchange (PABX) service so that its responders can continue to receive and process calls from the 2919 HOPELINE even while they are at home.

The hotline 2919 is toll-free for Globe and TM customers.  Other HOPELINE numbers are (02) 804-HOPE (4673) and 0917 558 HOPE (4673).

—Margaret Claire Layug/JCB, GMA News