What is a mental disorder? How do mental disorders occur? Is mental health a serious issue? Is it real or is it all in the head?
According to reports, mental health and mental illness are a silent killer. When people don’t understand the issue, they are not sensitive to the problem. According to a recent report published by the World Health Organization (WHO), over 800,000 people commit suicide every year, with a person shockingly dying every 40 seconds. Out of the thousands of people who died, many of them never sought professional help. People with mental disorders often suffer in silence.
Why are so many people committing suicide? Is it because they’re cowards, too afraid to face the world in front of them? Or, is it because they are too afraid to seek help from loved ones and professionals because they think they will be misunderstood?
People who commit suicide forget that the pain they are feeling does not end with them. It is passed on to their loved ones after they die. This can damage relationships. So how can we help mentally ill people battle and overcome such a dilemma?
People suffering from mental illness, are unstable and have several symptoms for their disease like severe mood swings, depression and more. These people suffer from a lot of pain, and in the end, this affects their loved ones as well.
In today’s world, society needs to be more conscious of the fact that people do suffer from mental disorders, which is why we need to be caring and understanding of their needs. We need to provide effective treatment for those suffering. We should not let people suffer and leave them feeling lonely and helpless. We should not develop pre-conceived ideas and conceptions about mental health, if we have no information about what someone is going through.
As a society, we should keep our ignorance at bay and understand the value and importance of a person’s life, before it’s too late - realizing that no matter how healthy a person can be physically, his or her life mainly depends on the nature of their mental health. In better words, we need to realize that, by taking mental health for granted, we are taking people for granted, and by taking people for granted.
- The reader is a student and resident of Dubai
