An insight into how millions of Indians battle with mental health issues every day with lack of awareness.
Anyone in the room says, “India” and our minds light up with moreish food in every corner, colourfulness, market streets filled with people, the hundred types of dances and different people from numerous cultures and backgrounds, we all can go on and on about this. But one thing no one seems to notice or talk about is the dark side of our country; it’s a very visible and startling position as one of the most depressed nations in the world.
Yes, it’s true. We shall address the elephant in the room, India is one of the most depressed countries in the world as of now stated by the World Health Organization (WHO) where 56 million Indians suffer from depression, India’s suicide rate is at 16.5 suicides per 100,000 people also making the country with the highest suicide rate in South-East Asia. Not only 56 million suffer from depression but there are 38 million Indians that suffer from anxiety disorders. Loss of lives due to suicide is a huge world phenomenon, where around 800,000 people die due to suicide yearly, which calculates to one person every 40 seconds according to WHO. The report titled ‘Depression and Other Common Mental Disorders — Global Health Estimates’ said over two-thirds of global suicides were in low- and middle- income countries such as India in 2015. The WHO report clearly states that 322 million people all across the world are suffering from depression and half of them reside in the South-East Asian and Western Pacific region, inferring to the fact that it includes large populations of India and China. Nearly 9 out of 10 Indians suffer from extreme levels of stress in their day to day lives which is enormously higher than other developed and emerging countries, including the USA, the UK, Germany, France, China, Brazil and Indonesia says the 2018 Cigna 360 Well-Being Survey.
The Lancet Public Health in September 2018 published “Gender differentials and state variations in suicide deaths in India: the Global Burden of Disease Study 1990–2016” as part of Global Burden of Diseases, Injuries, and Risk Factors Study (GBD) 2016 and their findings were such — “India’s contribution to global suicide deaths increased from 164,404 in 1990 to 230,314 in 2016, which calculates to 40.1% increase. India had 864 million (25.3%) of the total global population in 1990 and 81,040 (25.3%) of 320,567 global suicides among women and 83,365 (18.7%) of the 445,476 global suicide deaths among men. In the year 2016, India had 1316 million (17.8%) of the global population and its contribution to suicides increased to 94,380 (36.6%) of the 257,624 global suicide deaths among women and 135,934 (24.3%) of 559,523 global suicide deaths among men.” Suicide was labelled as the ninth leading cause of death in India in 2016. The total number of suicide deaths in India stood at 131,008 with the suicide rate (SR) of 10.3 per 100,000 of population.
India’s National Crime Records Bureau (NCRB) has been giving out yearly reports on suicides being committed in India since 1967. Their 2017 report says 129,887 suicides were reported in India with a decrease of 0.9% in comparison to 2016 and SR decreased by 0.4 during 2017. In 2018, a total of 134,516 suicides were reported, with an increase of 3.6% in comparison to 2017 and SR increased by 0.3 in 2018.
The number of suicide deaths in India are not only huge but also indubitably concerning for a country with a huge population and where much live-in poverty without access to any health care system.
Young Indians brawl with depression, anxiety and other mental disorders the most in the entire country where the suicide deaths are highest from age group 15–29. 150 million people in India need therapy for their mental health disorders but less than 30 million people seek help, revealed by the National Mental Health Survey by the National Institute of Mental Health and Neuro Sciences (NIMHANS). A very shameful reason behind fewer people seeking help is the taboo that surrounds mentally unwell people in India.
According to reports from the Indian Union Ministry of Health and Family Welfare, the country requires around 13,000 psychiatrists. India currently has just about 3,500 which calculates to 1 psychiatrist for over 2 lac people. To achieve a ratio of psychiatrists to the population is about 1: 8000 to 10,000. By observing this data, it is clear that there is a huge disequilibrium between demand and supply in the nation which shows the intense shortage of medical help and mental health professionals which should be immediately looked on by the government and useful advancements should be taken to make the situation better for its citizens and especially for the poor section of the society.
Mental health holds a lot of significance at every stage of life. It isn’t something to be overlooked and India cannot afford to ignore their mental health crisis and the huge number of Indians especially the young adults being affected by it every day. It’s only the need of the hour to educate, coach and counsel the people of India, describing them the importance of a healthy mental state of mind and about mental health issues that are on the rise in India and other countries all around the world. Indians due to lack of modernism in their culture and traditions are not able to unfold and open up with their trauma, depression, stress and anxiety which is hindering with their personal growth and betterment. People need to start encouraging others to speak up about their experiences in order to get the help that they need and deserve.
References
- Suicide in The World- Global Health Estimates: World Health Organization (WHO); [2016].
- Depression and Other Common Mental Disorders- Global Health Estimates: World Health Organization (WHO); [2017].
- 2018 Cigna 360° Well-Being Survey- Future Assured: Cigna Corporation (NYSE:CI); [2018].
- Gender differentials and state variations in suicide deaths in India: the Global Burden of Disease Study 1990–2016: The Lancet Public Health; [2018].
- The Burden of Mental Disorders Across the States of India: The Global Burden of Diseases Study 1990–2017; [2019].
- Accidental Deaths and Suicide In India: Suicides In India (2018)- National Crime Records Bureau. New Delhi- Government of India.
- “National Mental Health Survey of India, 2015–2016”- National Institute of Mental Health and Neuro Sciences (NIMHANS), Bengaluru, India; [2016].
- “Mental Health in India: 7.5% of country affected; less than 4,000 experts available”- https://economictimes.indiatimes.com/magazines/panache/mental-health-in-india-7-5-of-country-affected-less-than-4000-experts-available/articleshow/71500130.cms?from=mdr
