Step 2 - Reasons and factors
Written by Aida Nabila binti Muslimin
Mental
illness, also known as Mental Disorder, is a health condition involving changes
in thinking, emotion, or behaviour that often results in difficulty coping with
life’s ordinary demands and routines. Mental illness can take many forms. Some
are relatively mild, where one may have a small number of symptoms that have a
limited effect on their daily life. Other mental health conditions are so
severe that an individual experiencing mental illness episodes may need hospital
care and medical attention. Mental illness can affect anyone, regardless of
age, gender, race, or social status. It was stated by the World Health
Organization (WHO) that as many as 450 million people suffer from a mental or behavioural
disorder, and nearly 1 million people commit suicide every year. The National
Health Morbidity Survey also stated in 2015 that every 1 in 3 adults aged 16
years and above in Malaysia suffers from some form of mental health issues.
With
the COVID-19 pandemic spreading globally, many countries worldwide, including
Malaysia, are undergoing a crisis. While the physical impacts of COVID-19 are
consistently illuminated and emphasized, the potential mental risk caused by
the pandemic could also be catastrophic. The pandemic has caused The World
Health Organization (WHO) and officials of public health around the world to
call for all people to practice social distancing where one needs to keep a
safe space between themselves and other people who are not from their
household, whether it is to avoid largely crowded places, mass gatherings or to
avoid having any close contact with at-risk people to prevent the spread of the
disease. This, though, is at odds with the very existence of humans as social
creatures. Social distancing irrefutably minimizes social contact and aids in
decelerating the spread of COVID-19, but not only does it test the capacity for
human cooperation, but it also brings about various mental health implications
such as fear, anxiety, grief, and depression. A 2015 meta-analysis reported by
a psychologist, Julianne Holt-Lunstad, and her colleagues from Brigham Young
University concluded that the risk of mortality in individuals who suffered
from chronic social isolation is increased to 29%. Fear and anxiety towards COVID-19
could potentially be overwhelming and therefore increasing mental stress.
According to the World Health Organization (WHO) survey, the COVID-19 pandemic
has also disrupted or halted critical mental health services in 93% of
countries worldwide while the demand for mental health is increasing, making it
hard for people to get mental help and support.
Numerous
people around the world are experiencing an increase in fear, anxiety symptoms,
loneliness, and depressed mood due to social isolation. Social distancing
disrupted the social rhythm by depriving one’s regular coping mechanisms with
stress, putting mental health at stake. In Malaysia, the Malaysian Government’s
measure such as movement control order (MCO), not only restrict one’s movement
outside and social activities but also puts one’s job status on the line.
Innumerable non-essential businesses are forced to stop, causing financial
difficulties to most business owners. Those in the B40 and M-40 category have also
lost their source of income or are on the brink of termination. Despite the
Government’s stimulus packages that were developed to support the financial
burden faced by many Malaysian citizens, many small and medium enterprises
(SME) in Malaysia are no longer able to withstand the increasing financial
burden and have resorted to wage cuts, reducing the number of employees and
providing unpaid leaves indefinitely due to flourishing uncertainty of the
economic status of the country. According to the Social Security Organisation
(Socso), nearly 90,000 job losses have been reported as of October 22, with an
average of almost 10,000 cases every month. Millions of people worldwide are
also facing economic turmoil, having lost, or being at risk of losing their
income and livelihoods. Job loss triggers feelings of uncertainty and
insecurity, which ultimately disrupts mental well-being, leading to feelings of
anxiety and depression. The financial burden hitting the population could
further worsen with individuals consuming alcohol and taking illegal substances
as a coping mechanism, which may raise multiple other disorders such as alcohol
use disorder.
Sections
of societies that are highlighted as vulnerable to mental distress include healthcare
workers who see thousands of patients infected with and dying from the
coronavirus, children and young people isolated from friends and school.
Psychologists say children are anxious, and increases in cases of depression
and anxiety have been recorded and identified in several countries. Domestic
violence is also rising, the Women’s Aid Organisation and Talian Kasih reported
an increment of 44% and 57% respectively in contacts after the
government-issued Movement Control Order (MCO), for which domestic abuse is one
of the reasons outlined. The pandemic also impacts the poor and vulnerable
populations, particularly patients with severe mental illness. People with
pre-existing mental conditions suffer a greater risk of relapses, owing to
fear, anxiety, and social rhythm. The still unbreaking stigma and discrimination
about mental illness where those suffering from mental disorders that are
perceived as restless, violent, and unpredictable will only prevent such
individuals from seeking professional help and treatment early. Social
distancing, which forces an individual to stay at home for an extensive period,
causes an individual who is already living in a pre-existing toxic home
environment to spend more time at home. For a patient who suffers from
posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) due to past family trauma, staying with
the family may also compound their mental well-being. Besides the general
population, health care workers on the front line are also at risk of
developing psychological distress while managing patients with COVID-19.
Frequent misinformation and rumours about the pandemic and profound confusion
about how long it will last, too, are making people feel anxious and hopeless
about the future.
Mental
health crisis due to COVID-19 is not only happening in Malaysia but also across
many countries. While mental health issues have been going around for a long
time, the current pandemic has caused an upsurge in the number and severity of
mental illnesses globally. United Nations health experts stated in May that a
mental illness crisis is looming as millions of people worldwide are surrounded
by death and disease and forced into isolation, poverty, and anxiety by the
pandemic of COVID-19.
https://www.mjpsychiatry.org/index.php/mjp/article/view/536/415
https://www.reuters.com/article/us-health-coronavirus-mentalhealth-idUSKBN22Q0AO
https://www.myhealthmylife.com.my/sites/default/files/2019-12/Mental_Health_Booklet_181119.pdf
https://www.who.int/mental_health/media/investing_mnh.pdf
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