As a an avid news junkie, I have read disheartening news reports describing how incidents of domestic violence and rape are on the rise, how women in the RMG sector and informal sector have been losing their incomes, how women account for a large percentage of unpaid agricultural labour,how with schools and universities being closed women are having to look after their children and work from the house, that child marriage is on the rise, and that there are more women in debt now than ever before.
Concurrently, I was also encouraged by the commentaries that women led governments including our own have handled the crisis better than their male counterparts, that women have organised and distributed charity, that women have taken charge of supplying food to hungry people and animals, that women have set up home delivery businesses and support organisations,that women have led protests against job losses, non - settlement of dues, and gender -based violence.
Through the psychosocial lens I believe the two disparate narratives: that women have become helpless victims due to the pandemic, and that women have agency and are active participants in the fight against the corona virus,indicate that women are more vulnerable but just as much or more resilient and capable than the men.
Notwithstanding there has been much talk in the media regarding the mental health challenges that women experienced: fear and anxiety, boredom and frustration, weariness with restrictions and constraints, food insecurity, depressive emotions, negative self -worth, and suicidal thoughts. (The symptoms of these are sleep problems, eating disorders, food stockpiling, self - harm, temper tantrums, cyber bullying, trolling, and personality and relationship changes.)
The truth is that social distancing and isolation have worsened the condition of both men and women with existing mental health problems, and socioeconomic circumstances have created new complications for those people who were mentally healthy, as active participation in work and family life enhances attachment, fosters identity, and gives a sense of value and belonging.
Therefore, the emotional fallout of the pandemic is not solely restricted to the feminine realm just because men are more physically susceptible to corona virus fatalities, and the proactive women have shown us that chintay more jacchi and chinta korte korte shesh may not be the “natural” inclination of females only. Correspondingly, we need to understand the complexities of men’s psyche too, to better understand where we stand on women’s mental health, because firstly, we are a patriarchal society and misogyny is on the rise: more female victims imply more men with psychological disorders; and secondly, mental health cannot be neatly packed into male/female boxes, and in the future, the lingering effects of the trauma of theCovid-19 era will traverse gender.
Chintamoni grew up in Dhaka, where she will always belong, but never quite fit in. She is an enthusiastic traveller, a compulsive procrastinator, and a contumelious raconteur.
