A PROGRESSIVE attitude towards mental health and wellness in TT has proliferated since the arrival of the covid19 pandemic, particularly at a governmental level and among youth and men, says clinical psychologist Asha Garib.
"Men are such key players in helping overcome the stigma attached to mental health and wellness," Garib told Newsday, "and it is empowering to other men who need help.
"When you see a male championing this cause, it's easier for a male who needs help to recognise, 'Okay, I can do this!'"
Mental health issues know no boundaries, affecting people in all income brackets and social status, everywhere around the world.
Insufficient or a complete lack of care for people suffering with mental health issues are on the rise globally. Although attitudes towards mental wellness are generally improving, the World Federation for Mental Health (WFMH) says provisions for dealing with mental health issues continue to pose a challenge, in low, middle and high-income countries.
The WFMH, an international non-governmental organisation founded in 1948, has designated October 10 World Mental Health Day, with the theme Make Mental Health and Well-Being for All a Global Priority, after a global vote.
[caption id="attachment_979644" align="alignnone" width="683"] Men are key players in helping overcome the stigma attached to mental health and wellness and it is empowering to other men who need help. -[/caption]
It makes for a fitting discussion in the context of TT society's views on mental health, which are heading in the right direction, said Garib.
Ahead of World Mental Health Day, WFMH president Dr Nasser Loza noted that "in high-income countries, over 75 per cent of people with depression have reported that they do not receive adequate care and in low and middle-income countries over 75 per cent of people with mental health conditions have received no treatment at all."
The WFMH, along with global and regional health institutions, including the World Health Organization and the Pan American Health Organization, have issued reports over the past two years indicating that reports of mental health issues have increased substantially since soon after the start of the pandemic, and have been exacerbated by covid19's remaining part of daily life.
[caption id="attachment_979642" align="alignnone" width="261"] Clinical psychologist Asha Garib. -[/caption]
As well as covid19 and its direct and indirect effects on mental health, people worldwide face consequences of war, displacement, man-made and natural disasters, and climate change.
There is a multitude of factors, spurred by the pandemic, that have contributed to the effect on the mental health and wellness of the general population in TT, including the deaths of family members, friends and co-workers; loss of jobs and income; drastic inflation; an increase in serious crime; and extended isolation. To give just one example, at a parliamentary joint select committee hearing on Social Services and Public Administration in March, committ
