World Mental Health Day: Min Sudhakar urges citizens to take care of mental health during COVID pandemic

Bengaluru: People should take care of their mental health, apart from their physical well being, during the COVID-19 pandemic, Medical Education Minister K Sudhakar said here on Friday. He also suggested that the public could avail of personal counselling provided by the state government in case they needed it.

“Citizens should concentrate more on their mental health during this pandemic period. Suicide, madness, stress and other such things are the result of mental depression,” Sudhakar was quoted as saying by his office in a release.

Noting that WHO reports around 7.5 per cent people in India are victims of mental depression and the country contributes 15 per cent of global mental illness, he cited a survey which said that by 2020, 20 per cent of people in India would suffer from mental illness

In view of such factors, people should prioritise mental health, he said. Pointing out that Karnataka has a separate mental health authority, the Minister said over 7.13 lakh people had already availed of personal counselling facility.

“Our doctors and nurses are boosting the morale of the patients, apart from rendering regular treatment,” he said October 10 is observed as world mental health day to create awareness about mental health.

Highlighting the hardships caused by the pandemic,he said many people had lost their jobs due to the economic crisis, others have had salaries deducted, while those who have jobs are mostly working from homes.

These were some causes for mental depression, he said, adding that family members should support the victims in such difficult times.