Mental health and Indian society 

A survey conducted by WHO in 2015 revealed that one in twenty adults suffer from depression and a study in 2019 revealed that 35.1% people to commit suicide in India are of the age of between 18-30. 

All the things written above were just a little bit of information on mental health issues in India, which only tell us the statistics but the real issue lies way too much deeper in the society .So, let's talk about Mental health and Indian society.

Stigma around mental health issues

Humans have changed so much over the years and so is their way of thinking.  Many things people were fine with in the past are seen as problematic nowadays. People know the difference between what's fine and what's not. Many of the problematic customs which were common in the past are non existent today.  People who support and are in the favour of old problematic customs are looked down upon. People are becoming more understanding and open minded and are saying no to racism , caste system etc.

But there is one thing which is still not much understood by people and that is mental health. The issue is not exactly untouched by our society but still there are so many things about it that people haven't understood or acknowledged enough. We know that mental health issues exist but do we take them as much as seriously as physical health?

Let me answer that for you, We do not. At least the majority doesn't. Most people don't even realise that they are suffering from mental health issues because of lack of awareness about mental health. Many people do know that they are suffering from mental health issues but are afraid of telling others about it because having mental problems is considered taboo in most places. But even after all that some people acknowledged their mental issues publicly but instead of getting support they get labelled as crazy, dramatic, weak and are given unsolicited and biased opinions. 

Physical health vs Mental health

Physical health issues are treated very much differently than mental health issues. For example, you could recommend dermatologist, orthopaedic or any kind of doctor to someone without offending them but it won't be the same case is you suggest someone a psychiatrist or a therapist. When someone is feeling something wrong physically, people are most likely to to console the person take their words into consideration, recommend them doctors. The family of the patient will most likely support and understand him/her but if they are feeling mentally ill , they will be called dramatic and their illness will be treated like a phase. Instead of sending the patient to doctor the family will most likely be against it. It is not that, that everyone is completely oblivious about mental health but the point is that some people misunderstand about this topic without even realising it . Many people think that if a individual looks completely fine from outside then they can't have any issues or if someone's life seems perfect from outside then they surely don't have any mental health issues. But things don't always work like that, actually mental illnesses can happen to anyone at anytime. People with no prior history of mental illnesses can get mentally ill. Years of repressed trauma can also slowly develop into an extreme mental health condition.

The solution

In order for us to become a liberated and open minded society, we need to acknowledge out mental health. We need to take care of our mental health as much as we need to take care of our physical health. We need to try to understand and sympathize with people suffering from any mental conditions. We need to create a safe space for people to talk about their problems and issues of any kind without feeling afraid of getting judged. If we as a society developed enough to make individuals comfortable enough to not fear getting judged and are supported then that would make us an ideal society.