The Understanding Depression and Anxiety workshop organized by Aggie Ng , part-time social worker of Choi Kai Yau College, was held in Room G023 from 16:00-17:00 on October 27th 2021.
The workshop was divided into two parts. The first part was to let the participants have a preliminary understanding of the symptoms and differences between depression and anxiety. The second part was to talk about some relaxation methods. Finally, the participants were also given information on resources for “asking for help”.
This workshop advocates the concept of “self-help and help others”, enabling participants to have a correct understanding of mental health disorders, and to be able to use different methods to reduce depression and anxiety, and not be afraid when experiencing slight symptoms. Participants were invited to do several small exercises during the process, including relaxation exercises, time management exercises (one-week timetable planning) and cognitive trap recognition exercises. Participants gave feedback that the practice of identifying cognitive traps helped them to have a better understanding of the way they think that led to the emergence of negative emotions. There were also participants who said that they had more understanding of their own needs and their sources of stress, and needed to improve their time planning ability to reduce the anxiety caused by mental stress.