• E-mail
• Print
• Comment
• Font Size
• Digg
• del.icio.us
• Discuss article

Psychiatrist Boosts Awareness of Mental Health Issues in Pageants Nationwide

Posted on: Wednesday, 18 April 2007, 18:00 CDT

LAKE CHARLES, La., April 18 /PRNewswire/ -- Vidushi Babber, MD, psychiatrist with the Institute for Neuropsychiatry in Lake Charles, Louisiana, has recently combined her involvement in pageants with her expertise in mental health as a way to promote education and prevention of mental health issues. As the "Pageant Psychiatrist", Dr. Babber provides the contestants education about the importance of emotional wellness, dangers of eating disorders, signs of depression, stress, anxiety, substance abuse and other mental health issues.

(Photo: http://www.newscom.com/cgi-bin/prnh/20070418/DAW044 )

"Pageants are filled with strong, articulate women; many of whom go on to become leaders in society and spokeswomen of worthwhile platforms. Pageant contestants have a drive to succeed. I am thrilled to work with them on achieving their own personal emotional wellness, as well as teach them to teach others," explained Dr. Babber. "These ladies have a tremendous influence on young girls. Wouldn't it be great if we could work together to decrease the number of mental health issues plaguing young girls and women today?"

As a former contestant in seven pageants, Dr. Babber holds the crown to four of them. "Providing mental health education to pageant contestants is a dream I've held close for some time. Now is the time to move forward and promote education and prevention to the ladies involved in pageants, so that they can carry that message with them into their future endeavors," she said.

Dr. Babber cites these statistics of mental health issues: * Depressive illness is the leading cause of disability from age 15 - 44. * Depression is twice as prevalent in women as men. * The mortality rate for a female with an eating disorder is 12 times higher than the annual death rate due to all causes of female deaths between ages 15 - 24.

She points out the efforts society as a whole has made to educate youth about mental illness. Yet, the statistics remain high. She hopes that by combining her knowledge of pageants with her knowledge as a psychiatrist, she can reach women who have the capacity to become spokeswomen for the cause of mental health.

More information can be found by visiting http://www.pageantdoc.com/ .

Photo: NewsCom: http://www.newscom.com/cgi-bin/prnh/20070418/DAW044AP Archive: http://photoarchive.ap.org/PRN Photo Desk, photodesk@prnewswire.com

Vidushi Babber, MD

CONTACT: Christine Fisher, +1-337-485-3980, orcfisher@ehealthyimage.com , for Vidushi Babber, MD

Web site: http://www.pageantdoc.com/

Source: PRNewswire

More News in this Category