The need of the hour: Mental Health Awareness

In today’s world almost half of the population including children, adults and senior citizens suffer from some or the other mental health issue. Your neighbor, a friend, a family member may be one of the many who struggle with mental illness every day. Mental health refers to our psychological, social and emotional wellbeing and the mental health statistics for India have worsened specifically during the 2020 pandemic. 

A recent event of the death of the renowned actor Sushant Singh Rajput brought the topic of mental health in the spotlight which was much talked about in the media. A celebrity death did help people become more aware of mental illnesses and how to deal with them. Social media was flooded with articles, podcasts and mental health programs for a while after the incident took place. People started recognizing what labels they should give to the loss of interest or feelings of loneliness, finally. There was also a surge in the clientele of SageAdvice after the lockdown began and the death of Sushant Singh Rajput took place. 

A multitude of people around us struggle with mental illness every day so why is it that we have to wait for something so devastating to happen to bring light to such an important issue?

We should spread awareness but not only after an incident takes place. We should raise awareness of mental health issues around the world from the very beginning to mobilize efforts in support of mental health. The need of the hour is to continuously share as much as we can so that we can impart our knowledge to others and they can in turn educate the ones around them. Spreading awareness will also contribute to removing the underlying stigmas attached to mental health.

Normalization of talking about the unknown and getting treated for mental illness is necessary because mental health issues aren’t menial. They are disorders that need to be treated and can only be cured by seeking help. Counselling conversations make it easy for people to gain insights and reflect upon their doings so they can improve their quality of life by coping with stress and anxiety associated with mental illnesses.

One should always seek help while suffering from any mental health issue. We, at SageAdvice, provide a platform for professional counselling for the ones in need. Head to the website today and book a counselling session with us for a better life!