Mental health is getting more complicated day by day. There are two basic reasons behind these complications. The first is people do not talk about it and consider it as a stigma for them and silently struggle with anxiety, depression, and other psychological disorders. And the second reason is the lack of available resources which means the doctors available for mental health treatment are very limited. According to research by WHO the total number of the population that suffer from mental illness is 24 million which is more than expected. To make this mental health treatment condition more stable we need to promote this illness, educate communities, and provide them with the right treatment that is also easy to access like online psychologists. Let’s see in more detail the importance of mental health awareness.
The Mental Health Stigma
Mental health is connected with your emotional and psychological behavior. It impacts how you think, feel, and act normally.
- The main thing is that people are unaware of this illness and do not believe in its existence. They think that mental illness is caused by supernatural forces like black magic and other false beliefs. They do not consider it as an illness and these misconceptions make it difficult for people to get help and as a result, patients become more isolated. And they don’t have any idea that if they do not take this illness seriously then how dangerous results they can face in return.
- These situations are mostly common in rural areas in which people are sure about their traditional beliefs and where mental health education is very limited and this stigma is very harmful to them. They have a fear that if people know about their mental illness they will call them crazy and mad and make it difficult to survive in society.
- Women are more affected by mental health illnesses as compared to men. The reasons can be societal pressures, or abuse and a big reason is having limited support. Then domestic violence, forced marriages, and restricted freedom also disturb their mental health. Still, now women’s mental health is neglected and sometimes blamed on character deficiencies or a lack of strength.
Barriers to Mental Health Care
Now we see that awareness is important to decrease the mental illness of patients. But can we have those resources or doctors available to treat those large populations? Obviously not!
- We have a shortage of mental health professionals. We have just 500 psychologists and 400 psychiatrists that are well trained and if we see the ratio of mental health professionals to the population then this situation is alarmingly low, approximately 1 psychiatrist per 100,000 people. This situation is nearly impossible for each doctor to handle.
- The main reason behind these complications of limited doctors is the lack of mental health infrastructure. Most of the hospitals have very limited resources to handle mental health crises. Many healthcare providers are not trained in treating complicated mental health issues and as a result, they provide a therapy that is either inefficient or inappropriate.
- Another fact is that the government allocates a very low budget to mental health services that are not sufficient to provide quality care to patients. Then the actual reality is that the large population of lives below the poverty line and getting mental health with this poverty is impossible for them. The treatment of mental health is considered a luxury that is only affordable for wealthy people. Professional treatment and medicine are just out of reach for many people, and government-funded services are basically nonexistent.
Reduce the Complexities with Technology
All these were the barriers to the mental health now how can we improve this situation through mental health awareness?
Social media Awareness: As this is an era of technology then it can be very helpful for us if we utilize technology like social media to inform people about mental health illness and its treatment. People are using social media sites like Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter to find safe places where they can talk about mental health, share their experiences, and ask for help.
Online Mental Health Services: Then due to the limited resources for treating mental illness in hospitals, we can use the online platforms for both doctors and patients. Doctors do not need the expenses for a hospital and patients get the treatment in the peace of their home without telling others. Online psychiatrist services are more flexible due to time and security. Patients just simply write a query “therapist near me” and they can easily find a doctor of their own choice.
Affordable Services: Another issue was the higher cost of mental health providers then this issue can also be resolved with the help of online mental health services. These services are very affordable for all levels of the population. They don’t need to worry about their mental health treatment cost.
All we need to do is raise awareness of mental health issues and attempt to help people understand that, like physical illnesses, mental health disorders can also be treated with simple consultations with a psychiatrist or psychologist.
Final Thoughts:
Raising awareness of mental health issues is very important. It is necessary to eliminate the societal stigma associated with mental health issues and enhance care accessibility for all members of society. We need to promote online mental health services to make these services more accessible for all the people.