Nearly 900,000 Sri Lankans suffered from depression according to statistics and that was before Covid-19 struck!  Today, the most populated districts are in an indefinite lockdown while the rest of the country is not too far behind.  The toll on the mental health of Sri Lanka is triggering yet another crisis of catastrophic proportions, even though the government cannot be expected to worry about it just yet, as it grapples with a pandemic, says Dr. Dinesh Watawana from CIRA’s think-tank.  This is also the time every government must get all the help it can!

We need to consider mental health sooner than later. 
Fear in all forms – of death, of livelihoods, of survival and vulnerability
arising from distancing from loved ones chief among causes for a rapid decline
in mental health.  WHM or working from home was a positive distraction for
hundreds of thousands of people who made a life out of coming home to sleep –
being at work during day time!  But increasingly, this exceedingly
socially active section of society is struggling to make home their new
office.  The threat of losing jobs compounds the anxiety, says Watawana
who holds a doctorate in psychology.  We need to start talking about it
now, he avers. 

Meanwhile, vast populations glued to their TVs are bombarded with news of doom while also serving a fundamental need to be well-informed, also precipitates depression.  While CIRA the subject of mental health is slated for research by CIRA – peacetime and during the crisis, there are positive steps the media can do but the most important aspect is what individuals can do.  Our basic instincts are driven by a herd mentality and demands positivity inducers – leaders thereof!   For now, having someone to talk to is a start and perhaps starting a new hobby – no matter how bad the urgency is to stress out!

Mental health is a silent disease and the numbers, now increasing, already make Covid-19 pale into insignificance.  Just the same way we take this pandemic seriously, we ought to look at the mental health of our people, says Dr. Watawana. The good news though is the human mind, in a majority instance, is equipped to be resilient and that means, as a nation, we should be able to get through a most debilitating crisis – and find ways to cheer!  At the same time, research and timely intervention are in order!

Published 2nd Of April 2020