Mental Illness is a Bigger Killer Than the Pandemic

How are you? You don't have to say you're fine. It's ok to say, "I am not ok." It's human to be not all right all the time. But, we must talk about it.

It's more important than ever to understand the threats of mental illness. As the pandemic starts to fade, it has left many emotional scars. Loss of loved ones, job losses, home losses, everything has multiplied the stress levels and is taking a toll on one's mental health.

Why is mental health at taboo?

We seek help when we break a bone, but why don't we do the same for our broken hearts? We take leave to nurse our physical health; why is taking time off for mental health considered unprofessional?

We talk about conquering outer space, but it seems we are losing a battle with our minds. It kills at least eight hundred thousand people every year, more than your COVID19 pandemic.

According to the WHO, over three hundred million people are suffering from depression. That's almost equivalent to the entire population of the United States, twice the population of Russia. More people are suffering from depression today than the combined population of Germany, the UK, France, and Italy. Over two hundred and sixty million people live with anxiety disorders.

Mental health is a silent pandemic that's killing us, but we can stop it.

The first step is to start a conversation, and I'll be more than happy to begin one. So let's start over.

Why are celebrities influential in our fight for mental health?

We all fancy celebrities; their lives look as perfect as a picture. They have everything that many of us can only aspire to have someday - bath and fitness coaches, personal chefs, chauffeurs, hair and makeup artists, personal stylists. There is someone taking care of everything for them - except mental health.

Meghan Markle recently spoke about her struggles with mental health, being depressed, and having suicidal thoughts during her pregnancy. These are highly stigmatized topics.

But it's good that celebrities have started testing the waters. They have triggered conversations on prime-time television and newspaper headlines to dinner tables. Depression is becoming an issue, and people are talking about it.

According to an interesting research published by Taylor & Francis online, when a celebrity discloses his or her problem with mental health, the number of people seeking mental health support goes up.

A celebrity disclosure serves three functions - it educates people, inspires people, and serves as activism of sorts.

Long before Meghan Markle, another royal spoke about her personal struggles in public. In 1993, Princess Diana spoke about her battle with Bulimia.

Soon, the number of women seeking treatment for Bulimia doubled, and this phenomenon came to be known as the 'Diana Effect.'

A study by Taylor & Francis online found that when singer Demi Lovato spoke about her bipolar disorder, the people who had the highest celebrity attachment to her ended up having fewer negative stereotypes about those with bipolar disorder.

Such is the influence of a celebrity and their potential to bring about a positive change in society.

I understand that mental health struggles are very personal, and the choice to disclose them is all the more important. It comes at its own cost. But I urge celebrities to talk about their mental health, use their influence to inspire people to seek help rather than just doing product promotions. Tell the community that depression and anxiety are not taboo.

We need to create an environment and a society that understands mental health better.

We live highly stressful lives. There are deadlines at work, responsibilities at home, fleeting relationships, pressure to look a certain way on social media, and all of this is bound to take a toll on our mental health. I suffered from phone anxiety sometime back and wrote about it on Medium to help others. Fortunately, my wife was by my side, but others are not so lucky.

Nothing is wrong if you are suffering from anxiety or depression. The problem begins when we hide it. Almost 50% of all mental illnesses start at the age of fourteen. Most cases go undetected or untreated. The result is suicide - the leading cause of death among fifteen to twenty-nine-year-olds, or even worse - a mass shooting incident that you can see is rising.

Let's try to change the trend. Let's try to understand mental health.

So what is mental health? It is our emotional health. Our thought patterns are mode mental health dictates our decisions and behavior.

Just like physical health, mental health also depends on certain factors.

#1) Our Genetics

As per a research published by British scientists in the American Journal of Psychiatry, they studied 839 families, and 971 pairs of siblings in these families had severe recurrent major depression. They also had chromosomes 3P25-26. Now, scientists believe around forty percent of depression cases can be traced to a genetic link.

#2) Hormones

There is a hormone called 'Serotonin.' It is called the feel-good chemical. Serotonin's role is to allow communication between brain neurons. Imbalance in Serotonin has often been linked to depression.

#3) Life experiences

Psychologists at The University of Liverpool say, "traumatic life events and abusive life experiences are the biggest cause of anxiety and depression." They studied nearly thirty-three thousand people before drawing this conclusion.

#4) Family history

If a person grows around someone who is depressed, he or she is more susceptible to depression.

#5) Gender

It is hard to believe, but this study found that women had a 42% chance of hereditary depression. For men, it is just 29%. But when it comes to men, the stigma attached to seeking mental health help is more.

WWE superstars like Dwayne Johnson, a.k.a. 'The Rock' can help in breaking this trend. He opened up about his mental health in 2018. He mentioned he was depressed after watching his mother attempt suicide.

You see, this can happen to anyone, irrespective of their age, gender, social standing, etc.

Here are some of the early signs of mental health problems

• Eating too much or too little
• Sleeping too much or too little
• Distancing yourself from people
• Feeling low on energy
• Unexplained aches and pains
• Feeling a sense of helplessness or hopelessness
• Feeling on edge all the time
• You can break into tears any time
• Yell anytime
• Extreme mood swings

You may be hearing voices in your head, having thoughts of harming yourself, daily chores like going to work, dropping children to school, or taking care of them, may start feeling too taxing.

There is nothing to be afraid of. All you need to do is reach out and seek help. Honestly, the journey to seek help may not be all that easy.

There are three major hurdles in this battle to access mental health care.

1) The first hurdle starts at our homes. Even today, most families do not understand the idea of mental health, and often, your family will mistake depression as moodiness or introversion.

No family wants to have a member visit a life coach. Instead, families arrange vacations and dinner for treating patients.

Meghan Markle did not have access to health care; she says she was too royal for it.

More than 91% of the people with mental disorders never seek help for their condition in China. Many want to, but they cannot.

2) Lack of human resources. We do not have enough specialists in this field in many countries. For example, there are only 0.3 psychiatrists,

100k people in my country. The desirable number is 3.

3) The next problem is expenses. Today, mental healthcare is a luxury in many countries. In India, an average session of counseling or therapy costs you up to 41 dollars. The average cost per counseling session in the UK ranges from 55 to 85 dollars; in Japan, 74 to 138 dollars.

In the United States, therapists charge up to 120 dollars per session. In cities like New York or Los Angeles, the cost jumps to 250 dollars per hour.

Mental wellness is a 121 billion dollar market. It also needs to heal people. Mental health care can no longer be a luxury, and you can help in making it accessible. You know how? - By destigmatizing mental health.

A healthy mind helps not just the individual but the entire society. The WHO estimates that the global economy loses a trillion dollars every year due to loss of productivity. In most cases, it's a direct result of depression and anxiety.

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