Helpline for post breakup blues

NEW DELHI: Few are spared from the agony of a bad breakup. For most, the road to recovery involves, with all its cliches, tubs of ice-cream, bottles of wine, and the oldest, baggiest clothes in one's cupboard. Now, things may be slightly different. Ankit, a 25-year-old Mumbai-based entrepreneur, has recently launched a national break-up helpline.
Not surprisingly, the idea came to him after his relationship ended last year, when he says he went into a shell.Slowly he began pursuing his interests - art, marathon running, gardening - and went for a book reading as well. "I flipped through the pages of the book, where the protagonist who had a broken relationship says it would have been had there been a breakup helpline," says Ankit, who prefers to go only by his first name. The words stuck with him, and led to the Break-Up Helpline, run by a team of four "side effect managers".
It's a simple process - people first register on their website, and somebody from the team will get back to them within 24 hours. "We ask them about their interests and hobbies, and simply get to know them. The idea is to make them comfortable before delving into details of their break-up," says Ankit, adding that their intention is to be friends with their clients. From there on, there are two tracks - free, or paid. The former includes two Skype sessions, and email support, but the paid track, customized according to the client, gives unlimited access to the side effect manager.
He's no relationship expert, neither is anybody on the team. The only technical knowledge they have is from the fact that two have degrees in psychology. But Ankit insists that's where their advantage is. "There's no rocket science in dealing with a break-up. People want to talk to 'regular' people, and the tag 'therapy' carries a lot of stigma. We're here to listen and be friends," says Ankit. If that includes sending emails to remind their clients to have their daily medicine, they do it, too.
Most people do have a support system, but he says friends rarely stick by till the end of the healing process. "Your friends will be there initially, but everybody gets busy in their own lives. Also, with strangers there's no fear of being judges," says Ankit, adding that they have one dedicated manager for each client.
Within just a month of operations, they have already got 124 registration, divided 60-40 between metros and tier-2 cities. "Our target group was those between the ages of 18 and 25, but our oldest client is a 67-year-old gentleman, while our youngest is a boy in class 7. Our approach, therefore, differs with each client," he says.