What Bangladeshis Bring to Therapy: 355 Requests (2026)

Clinically reviewed byMst. SwampaSenior Clinical Psychologist · MS & M.Phil in Clinical Psychology (University of Dhaka) · BCPS memberLast reviewed October 2026

What do people in Bangladesh actually bring to a psychologist? We looked at every counselling request Chum Wellness received from July to September 2026, about 355 of them, and grouped the reasons people gave in their own words. Anxiety, overthinking and low mood dominate, more men than women asked for help, and the picture changes sharply with age, gender, marital status and whether someone is a student.

This is first-party data that no survey can replicate: it reflects the reasons people gave in a booking form at the moment they decided to ask for help. (Method notes are at the end.)

The headline numbers

The single most common combination was anxiety and depression together: roughly one request in ten mentioned both. That matches what clinicians see in the room, where the two very often travel together.

1. More men are asking for help, but women name the pain more precisely

58% of people who stated a gender were men. That surprises many people, given the stigma men in Bangladesh face around mental health. Online booking seems to help: it lets men ask privately, without anyone else knowing.

But the words differ. Women were far more likely to name a specific concern:

• Depression or low mood: about 49% of women vs 31% of men.
• Anxiety or overthinking: about 43% of women vs 29% of men.
• Trauma or abuse: about 11% of women vs 4% of men, almost three times as often.

Men more often described their problem in general terms. In our clinicians’ experience, many men only find words for what they are feeling once they are in the session.

2. Age changes everything

In other words, the young come with worry, and people in their mid-thirties and beyond come with their marriages. Nearly half of adults who booked (47%) were between 25 and 34, the core of the workforce, which is why workplace mental health matters so much here.

3. Students are carrying more than they show

Students mentioned depression (about 43%) and anxiety (about 40%) far more often than non-students (about 28% and 26%). Exams, admissions, career uncertainty and money worries pile up at the same age when many people first experience serious anxiety. Student sessions at Chum are ৳1,000.

4. Marriage is where relationship pain shows up

Married people raised a relationship or marriage problem in about 25% of requests, against about 9% of single people. Trust, communication and feeling unheard come up again and again. People who chose in-person sessions mentioned relationships more often than those booking online (about 21% vs 13%), perhaps because couples prefer to sit in the same room with a counsellor.

5. Parents are worried about different things

When parents booked for a child or teenager, the picture changed. Alongside anxiety and low mood, parents mentioned anger and behaviour, phone and screen habits, self-esteem and studies much more than adults did for themselves. These requests are a reminder that children often show distress through behaviour rather than words.

What this means

• For families: anxiety and low mood are the most common reasons people reach out. If someone says “I can’t stop overthinking” or “I can’t sleep”, listen first. See our guide to anxiety support and depression counselling.
• For men: you are not the exception. Most people who booked were men, and you can start privately, online.
• For couples over 35: relationship problems are among the most common reasons people your age seek help. Couple counselling works best when started early.
• For employers: nearly half of the people asking for help are 25 to 34. See our workplace mental health programmes.
• For parents: behaviour, screens and anger are often how children show stress. A child psychologist can help you read the signs.

Method notes

• Source: counselling requests submitted through chumwellness.com booking forms (individual, couple, child and family) from July to September 2026, about 355 after removing duplicates.
• Grouping: concerns were grouped from the reason each person wrote in their own words. One request can mention more than one concern, so percentages do not add up to 100. These are reasons for asking for help, not diagnoses, and not national prevalence figures.
• Breakdowns: gender shares are of those who stated a gender; age figures are of adults booking for themselves (requests for a child are excluded); figures marked “about” are rounded from smaller sub-groups.
• Privacy: only aggregated percentages of large groups are reported. No quotes, names, messages or personal details are published, in line with our privacy policy.
• Citing this data: please cite “Chum Wellness counselling requests, July to September 2026” and link to this page.

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