How is the lockdown affecting mental health, and what are we doing about it?
Let me introduce you to Rohan – A 24-year-old guy from a big city who is highly engrossed in his work and daily life. He has always been so busy that sometimes he even forgets that he is not taking proper rest. A few days back, he thought of approaching a mental health professional because he could not stand the stall that life had suddenly brought in due to COVID 19.
Moreover, he is worried about his professional life due to the economic slump down. He feels anxious about the future and finds it difficult to share with people that he is struggling to stay home. Isolation is creating this despair wall around him and the stigma attached to the sharing of such feelings is haunting him. After a weak of suffering, he decides that he has to buck up and takes the first call of talking to a counsellor.
Well, this story just reminds us of a mighty being who fights with his inner demons to find happiness in whatsoever he or she does. This also highlights that any day if given a choice to choose between happiness and sadness, people would always choose the latter. And this why so many courageous minds these days are approaching counsellors for help because it is okay to not feel okay.
The current spread of COVID-19, or the Novel Coronavirus, has created a context where the days that follow seem bleak. A complete lockdown has created a sense of loneliness amongst people wherein they are not only just trapped in their homes but their minds as well. With no more place to venture out apart from the house, confinement to a place can lead to mood swings, unhappiness and in extreme cases make an individual go through anxiety or depression.
However, like Rohan, I believe any problem finds a solution with time and this is how I see it. The lockdown, if taken as an opportunity can do wonders to us. It is like this forced vacation that we have been asked to take wherein we can focus on ourselves, our goals, hobbies and overall, just relax and learn. In this digital age, we can explore media by using the best things that it has to offer, connect over a call with family and friends or perhaps, just have a sip and read a book.
Yo Zindagi is a campaign to Promote Mental Health and Emotional Maturity by engaging individuals in conversations and workshop. Follow us on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram.
These suggestions sound fun but need the motivation to follow or sometimes a push from the outside world, right? Just like any human being, we also need this outer force to be exerted on us or a voice that says, “Hey! I am here. Tell me what is going on in your mind.”
So, friends and dear ones, let us be that voice. You lend us your voice and we will do the needful by lending you our ears. Talk to us. Help us to help you. After all, a friend in need is a friend indeed.
Reach out to ‘Yo Zindagi’ for help and we will surely be there to listen out to your concerns.