Youth have been hit by mental health crisis

By Varalika Mishra

Each year, on 10th October, World Mental Health Day is celebrated. It is a day to make people aware about the importance of mental health. Even though, there is a lot of awareness about mental health, we as a society have a long way to go. In India, several youths have been suffering silently and the result has been a rise in suicide cases. This year in September, Kota recorded 23 student suicides, its highest since 2015 just days after World Suicide Prevention Day.

Several students in Kota feel stressed and according to a survey conducted by the state government, over 1 per cent of students suffer from clinical depression. According to a survey conducted by medical teams where over 6,000 students were asked to fill a questionnaire, it was found that around 83 students were clinically depressed. The majority of the students felt stressed due to the tough competition to get admission.

In response to the increase in suicide cases, the hostel association installed spring-loaded fans in the students’ room.

“There are two or three key reasons for the students being depressed. Some children come here right from Class 9 or 10. At such a young age, they don’t know how to cope with the intense competition. When they see other students doing better than them, they begin feeling that they don’t know anything. Having that feeling constantly makes some of them go into depression,” said Jagdish Soni, Chief Medical Health Officer, Kota.

It is imperative to have better-coping mechanisms than just to install spring-loaded fans. Mental health is a health issues just like physical health. There is an urgent need to have trained counsellors, therapists, psychologists and psychiatrists at various educational institutions and workplaces. Advertisements need to highlight the importance of mental health and some important measures need to be taken by the government and civil society at large to curb the suicide cases. As individuals, it is necessary to talk about the relevance of well-being and rest as much as we talk about success and hard work. Parents should not put pressure on children and should cultivate a healthy environment at home with their children. As every child is precious and unique, the idea of comparison and criticism should be curbed.