The Little Book of Calm, a compendium of wisdom beloved by self-proclaimed lifestyle gurus in the West, needs a Mandarin translation.

Many of the diminutive volume's truisms may originate from East Asia, but China's new breed of business people are themselves struggling to hold things together under the stresses and strains of modern life.

"We are seeing more and more patients all the time," Zhang Haiyin, the doctor in charge of the Shanghai Mental Health Centre, told China Daily.

"The fast pace of change in society is a crucial cause of psychological problems people have to make hundreds and hundreds of decisions everyday. They have to endure pressure at work, from the changing way jobs are handled and viewed, and changes at home as relationships between family members evolve."

In response to growing demand, as well as seeing around 260 regular out-patients every day, Zhang's hospital runs a 40-bed mental health 'hotel,' the only one of its kind in the country.

Patients in this unit stay overnight but are free to spend the days as they choose, doing whatever they like just so long as it isn't too stressful.

There are currently 35 patients undergoing the treatment with each paying around 4,000 yuan (US$500) per month.

According to Zhang, who expects to see similar units spring up around the country, a two-month stay is enough to put most patients back into a healthy state of mind.

"The majority of our patients are young professionals between 20 and 40 years old, high level management and white collar workers seem to be particularly susceptible," he said.

"Most of the patients coming to us have stress related problems such as depression, extreme nervousness and Obsessive Compulsive Disorders."

As well as following traditional psychological treatments, the centre also offers painting therapy, handicrafts and even group karaoke outings.

"Staying here can actually be quite good fun," Zhang added.

But the approach has been criticized by some who believe Shanghai's office workers, among the best paid in the country, just need to be told to stop feeling sorry for themselves.

Zhang Dan, a 24 year-old auditor from an accountant firm in Beijing, admitted she occasionally felt down, but saw no reason to seek treatment.

"Sometimes I really feel very upset and cannot see what my purpose in life is, but I think everyone feels like that sometimes and there's no need to go to hospital if that is all that is wrong with you," she said.

For Dr He Ming, a psychiatrist at a hospital in Hangzhou in Zhejiang Province, near Shanghai, the attitude that mental health is of secondary importance is something the Shanghai centre is helping to dispel.

"The Shanghai Mental Health Center highlights the important role of mental health in people's daily lives and fights the stigma associated with mental illness," he said.

One Chinese employee of a foreign public relations firm in Shanghai worried about the stigma attached to mental problems.

"I think a spell at the unit is probably a good idea for people living and working under pressure," the 27-year-old who asked not to be named said, "as long as the doctors make sure they protect patients' privacy."

(China Daily September 18, 2006)