In India, people often do not acknowledge the topic of mental health and choose to sweep it under the carpet. Societies such as ours perceive mental illness as something shameful and as if it were an individual's defect. How long can we ignore mental health? We live an increasingly fast paced life in a land of billions where there are more contenders than opportunities. Life can get overwhelming, very much so but there is a fine between feeling overwhelmed and being affected by mental illness. Any sign of mental illness and we hurry to shush it up and explain it in any other manner than actually acknowledging it because "pados waale kya kahenge?".
Anxiety? "Why do you get so stressed? Chill!". Depression? "You have too much free time do some work!". Over and over again, people and society avoid discussing mental illnesses simply because they do not know how to react to it, nor how to deal with it. Mental illness affects real people in very real ways. It has nothing to do with age, sex, gender, socio-economic background or any other factor really.
The World Health Organisation defines mental health as," a state of well being in which the individual realises his or her own abilities, can cope with the normal stresses of life, can work productively and fruitfully, and is able to make a contribution to his or her community." Mental illnesses are of various kinds and of varying degrees however they all affect an individual in all of the aspects the WHO has stated. The common thing being that each deprives individuals of the opportunity to be able to lead their life to the fullest possible extent, just like any other physical ailment would. As a society we choose to ignore and brush aside any dialogue on mental health without realising how dangerous it is. Unless we talk about it we will never be able to understand mental health no how it can wreak havoc on one's life in its totality. Ignorance and lack of understanding is the biggest hurdle which must be overcome before anything else. Not only does this make accepting the reality of mental illness problematic it also doesn't allow those who suffer from them to voice their situation.How can one talk about something when they know it will instantly be dismissed?
The first step is to acknowledge it. Acknowledge that you yourself or someone around you could be suffering from a mental illness. It isn't always easy but it is an essential measure towards ensuring mental well being. Once we acknowledge and accept the possibility of mental health it is very important to seek help for it. We often seek help for problems in our daily life or for any medical issue. This is no different. All mental illness stem from some biological cause and can most certainly be overcome. Seeking help can be a small step such as telling your near ones about the way you feel or a bigger step such as seeking medical attention. Mental disorders or illnesses can most certainly be treated with the help of counseling, therapy, medication or a combination of all these. One of the most important things to keep in mind is the willingness of the individual affected towards receiving help and the other is the necessity of an understanding and caring support system to help the individual through this process.
In the Indian context general public health services are mostly insufficient, inaccessible and of poor quality, the aspect of mental health has been conspicuously sidelined.The World Health Organizations 'Mental Health Atlas', 2011, states that India spends below 1% of its total health budget for mental health. There also exists a severe shortage of mental health professionals, with one psychiatrist for every 3.4 lakh people. However,there does appear to be a shift in the attitude towards mental health.The Union Health Ministry made public India’s first official 'National Mental Health Policy In October, 2014. The policy, which is to be proceeded by a "Mental Health Action Plan 365", which will ensure its implementation, is being commended as quite progressive and even radical for a country that has had a poor record when it comes to mental health. The policy does indeed identify vulnerable groups, lays emphasis on promotion and awareness of mental well being, recognizes the need to focus on caregivers,talks about the need of understanding emotional needs and the requirement of increased funding for the mental health agenda. Though the plan shows foresight and good thinking it remains to be seen whether or not it's goals can be actualized in the near future.
Health and well being of an individual should necessarily mean taking care of both physical and mental facets.We g to great lengths to ensure our physical well being then why not look after our mental well being?
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Pritha Ray is a 2nd year student of Philosophy studying at Gokhale Memorial College.
Anxiety? "Why do you get so stressed? Chill!". Depression? "You have too much free time do some work!". Over and over again, people and society avoid discussing mental illnesses simply because they do not know how to react to it, nor how to deal with it. Mental illness affects real people in very real ways. It has nothing to do with age, sex, gender, socio-economic background or any other factor really.
The World Health Organisation defines mental health as," a state of well being in which the individual realises his or her own abilities, can cope with the normal stresses of life, can work productively and fruitfully, and is able to make a contribution to his or her community." Mental illnesses are of various kinds and of varying degrees however they all affect an individual in all of the aspects the WHO has stated. The common thing being that each deprives individuals of the opportunity to be able to lead their life to the fullest possible extent, just like any other physical ailment would. As a society we choose to ignore and brush aside any dialogue on mental health without realising how dangerous it is. Unless we talk about it we will never be able to understand mental health no how it can wreak havoc on one's life in its totality. Ignorance and lack of understanding is the biggest hurdle which must be overcome before anything else. Not only does this make accepting the reality of mental illness problematic it also doesn't allow those who suffer from them to voice their situation.How can one talk about something when they know it will instantly be dismissed?
The first step is to acknowledge it. Acknowledge that you yourself or someone around you could be suffering from a mental illness. It isn't always easy but it is an essential measure towards ensuring mental well being. Once we acknowledge and accept the possibility of mental health it is very important to seek help for it. We often seek help for problems in our daily life or for any medical issue. This is no different. All mental illness stem from some biological cause and can most certainly be overcome. Seeking help can be a small step such as telling your near ones about the way you feel or a bigger step such as seeking medical attention. Mental disorders or illnesses can most certainly be treated with the help of counseling, therapy, medication or a combination of all these. One of the most important things to keep in mind is the willingness of the individual affected towards receiving help and the other is the necessity of an understanding and caring support system to help the individual through this process.
In the Indian context general public health services are mostly insufficient, inaccessible and of poor quality, the aspect of mental health has been conspicuously sidelined.The World Health Organizations 'Mental Health Atlas', 2011, states that India spends below 1% of its total health budget for mental health. There also exists a severe shortage of mental health professionals, with one psychiatrist for every 3.4 lakh people. However,there does appear to be a shift in the attitude towards mental health.The Union Health Ministry made public India’s first official 'National Mental Health Policy In October, 2014. The policy, which is to be proceeded by a "Mental Health Action Plan 365", which will ensure its implementation, is being commended as quite progressive and even radical for a country that has had a poor record when it comes to mental health. The policy does indeed identify vulnerable groups, lays emphasis on promotion and awareness of mental well being, recognizes the need to focus on caregivers,talks about the need of understanding emotional needs and the requirement of increased funding for the mental health agenda. Though the plan shows foresight and good thinking it remains to be seen whether or not it's goals can be actualized in the near future.
Health and well being of an individual should necessarily mean taking care of both physical and mental facets.We g to great lengths to ensure our physical well being then why not look after our mental well being?
ABOUT THE AUTHORPritha Ray is a 2nd year student of Philosophy studying at Gokhale Memorial College.
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