Mental health has always been a neglected topic, especially in developing countries. Covid has caused something of a tsunami of depression, anxiety, and fatigue in everyone’s life and because of that, it is very likely that people will be more prone to suffering from mental illness than ever. Which means we are currently encountering not one pandemic, but two.
Neglecting mental illness may lead to serious adverse outcomes. The World Health Organization (WHO) stated in a report that suicides due to depression are the second-most common form of death among individuals aging from 15 to 29 -- which busts the myth that mental illness only adversely affects the elderly. An individual might be a victim regardless of their age.
Most concerning is that most people do not want to talk about mental illness openly. It has become more of a social stigma, especially in the developing world. In developing countries, most people are uneducated and cannot even fulfill their basic needs. As a result, they think that talking about mental health is more of a luxury than necessity. They fall into the trap of thinking that drugs are the solution to every illness.
This stigma can be noticed in three areas. The first deals with close family, where most of the victims tend to feel that their family or friends would look at them differently if they were to have a mental health issue. From there comes self-stigma; when an individual internalizes some of the things that they might be hearing from society, in some cases it deepens their depression or anxiety even more.
And the third area of stigma is workplace stigma, where one feels that their career prospects would be compromised if they were to speak out. When it comes to work, mental health really affects people. A survey showed that someone with a mental health problem couldn’t do their job efficiently. On top of that, a separate study found that fewer than 10 employers would feel able to employ someone with a mental health issue.
Unfortunately, the situation regarding mental health is not good in Bangladesh. A survey from 2019, which indicates that 92.3% of the people who are suffering from mental illness do not seek medical attention, speaks volumes. This shows how reluctant those people are when it comes to talking about mental health. The picture is very shocking in the rural areas where mental illness is considered as a misfortune in the family or some sort of punishment from God. For the cure, they tend to seek help from traditional healers who scam people and implement wrong procedures to cure mental illnesses by interpreting them wrongly.
The situation in the cities is not much better than that of the village. Most people don’t like to talk about mental illness, and those who do face discrimination and often get bullied. But still, there is an appalling lack of interest from the government and NGOs.
The good news is that many charities and organizations have come forward to help people with mental health problems. And some people are changing their minds regarding mental health. Even though the changes are small, these are small steps taken in the right direction.
Tasrif Zawaad is a freelance contributor.
