World Mental Health Day 10th October

This year’s World Mental Health Day, on 10 October, comes at a time when our daily lives have changed considerably as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic. The past months have brought many challenges: for health-care workers, providing care in difficult circumstances, going to work fearful of bringing COVID-19 home with them; for students, adapting to taking classes from home, with little contact with teachers and friends, and anxious about their futures; for workers whose livelihoods are threatened; for the vast number of people caught in poverty or in fragile humanitarian settings with extremely limited protection from COVID-19; and for people with mental health conditions, many experiencing even greater social isolation than before. And this is to say nothing of managing the grief of losing a loved one, sometimes without being able to say goodbye.

The economic consequences of the pandemic are already being felt, as companies let staff go in an effort to save their businesses, or indeed shut down completely. Given past experience of emergencies, it is expected that the need for mental health and psychosocial support will substantially increase in the coming months and years. Investment in mental health programmes at the national and international levels, which have already suffered from years of chronic underfunding, is now more important than it has ever been. This is why the goal of this year’s World Mental Health Day campaign is increased investment in mental health. 

The double impact of the COVID-19 pandemic and the lockdown, 2020’s defining moments, is going to be felt by generations – not just in a physical and financial capacity, but mental too. The good thing, however, was that the conversation around mental health gained momentum during this period, and the Sushant Singh Rajput case took the discussion further. That said, it also revealed the glaring need for more sensitisation around the subject, especially after a celeb tweet that read – ‘Depression is a consequence of drug abuse’. “Several conversations around mental health emerged in 2020. There was advocacy as well as mockery, but at least some noise was made,” says Shikha Verma, a mental health advocate who has battled bipolar disorder.

Management graduate Pihu Singhal shares, “I speak from experience that when public figures show their vulnerable side and talk about their battle with mental illnesses, it helps normalise this conversation. My friends were more understanding when I told them about undergoing treatment for depression. They even shared articles about Deepika Padukone speaking about her mental health. This also led to peers, family members and others acknowledging the fact that many among them may need therapy as well.”

This year’s theme for the day is ‘mental health for all’ as it comes at a time when the entire world is grappling with the COVID-19 pandemic, which has impacted the mental health of millions of people. The levels of anxiety, fear, isolation, social distancing and emotional distress that is associated with the virus have become widespread as the world struggles to bring COVID-19 under control. However, the scenario surrounding mental health has not changed much, especially in India. There’s still stigma attached to mental illnesses and the number of psychiatrists and counsellors in the country remain at an abysmal number.

 WHO states that in India, (per 100,000 population) there are psychiatrists (0.3), nurses (0.12), psychologists (0.07) and social workers (0.07), while the desirable number is anything above 3 psychiatrists and psychologists per 100,000 population. WHO also estimates that about 7.5 per cent Indians suffer from some mental disorder and predicts that by end of this year roughly 20 per cent of India will suffer from mental illnesses. According to the numbers, 56 million Indians suffer from depression and another 38 million Indians suffer from anxiety disorders.

India also accounts for 36.6 per cent of suicides globally, and that suicide has surpassed maternal mortality as the leading cause of death among women and teenage girls aged 15-19 years? Lancet studies suggest that India’s contribution to global suicide deaths increased from 25·3% in 1990 to 36·6% in 2016 among women, and from 18·7% to 24·3% among men. As per the National Mental Health Survey 2015-16 , conducted by the National Institute of Mental Health & Neurosciences (NIMHANS), Bengaluru, under the purview of the Union Ministry of Health and Family Welfare, it was revealed that 9.8 million teenagers in the age group 13-17 years suffer depression and other mental health disorders and are “in need of active intervention”. Whereas, according to a study by the Lancet, suicide deaths ranked first among all causes of death in women aged 15-29 years in 26 of the 31 states, and in women aged 15-39 years in 24 states in the country.

It is therefore required for all of us to improve the awareness of mental health among the Indian population specially the younger generation needs to know more about the symptoms and how to get over the conditions by by of help from trained professionals and counsellors.

Stay blessed! #kishoreshintre #possessedbywritingspirit