Imagine a 750-sqft-apartment. All four or five members cooped up for more than 20 days, not able to step out socially, trying to accomplish work from home (WFH), managing the housework, combating fear of COVID-19, and having to put up with each other all 24 hours of the day. Almost all of the above is a novelty for an average Indian. So, being positive is a real challenge.
Imagine a 750-sqft-apartment. All four or five members cooped up for more than 20 days, not able to step out socially, trying to accomplish work from home (WFH), managing the housework, combating fear of COVID-19, and having to put up with each other all 24 hours of the day. Almost all of the above is a novelty for an average Indian. So, being positive is a real challenge.
The avalanche of COVID-19 information through various social media and internet platforms only adds to the perceived negativity. Thoughts range from whether “I will be infected” to “the world is coming to an end”. Fear is the watchword now – fear, of becoming infected, of becoming financially bankrupt, of not knowing what will happen, and of having to put up with people at home. Earlier, COVID-19 was something alien that would not touch us, but now with the numbers glaring at us, it is an imminent reality.
As we enter into an extended phase of lockdown, experts warn that more than physical and financial crises, what we have to accept and handle is the impending mental health crisis.
“Anxiety and stress are very high among the general population in the present scenario. But we should not let the fear overpower us,” Dr. D. Srinivasan, Consultant Psychiatric, Kovai Medical Center and Hospital, says, from his experience of handling calls from people during the lockdown. He is one of the psychiatrists rendering his services to the Corona (COVID-19) free tele-counselling, introduced by the Tamil Nadu Chapter of the Indian Psychiatric Society, to reassure people during the time of lockdown.
Sneha’s mother-in-law who was stable after a mild psychiatric problem is showing symptoms again. She displays extreme anxiety, is stressful and irritable towards family members.
Tara’s sober 8-year-old son turned hyperactive and went around rattling things in the house. She had to hand him an iPad as a pacifier, and today she regrets that because he is hooked to all the wrong apps and websites.
36-year-old Shyamala says she feels depressed because it is too stressful deciding what to cook for the next meal, with the limited resources and without the help of a maid. Her pet dog is also not a source of joy because he has turned sullen being shut in the house.
Talking about domestic issues, Dr. Srinivasan says family members are used to tolerating each other only for a particular period at home, but now there is no scope to get away from each other.
He suggests that this lockdown should be considered as the “real free time” in everybody’s life. No one has ever got such a time before. Lack of time was a major cause of broken relationships. Now that there is so much time, husbands should do away with the excuse “don’t have time” to communicate and connect with their wives.
“Adults should engage the children in physical activity, storytelling and indoor games. Listening to each other and improve communication and relationships. At the end of it all, it is family that one is going to live with,” the doctor asserts.
If such practices are not followed, problems in the family would only intensify with extended lockdown. Relapse of mild psychiatric conditions is a high possibility, he warns.
Child Counsellor Parvathambal says that busy work schedules of parents and study schedules of students did not allow for quality time in families. “This forced lockdown has provided the time, but most parents are not clear as to how to spend that time with their kids. Compulsion to entertain children forces parents to indulge them with gadgets and OTT time. It is alright for kids to be bored sometimes,” she adds.
28-year-old young Ganesh, who started his ad agency two years ago with a whole lot of dreams, has grown a beard and is “trying to be positive”. It becomes impossible when he is torn between giving up his swanky office space and laying off his staff.
Uncertainty is a reality, though the levels may vary for different people. “There is a fear whether we will live through this. Let us choose to see the other side too. There have been no accidents and hence so many lives have been saved. The huge expenditure spent on treating accident injuries has been avoided. Nature is recovering…..,” he adds.
“I am not alone. Everyone is going through the same. There is light at the end of the tunnel and I will come out of it.”
Those who need help can reach out to https://tnips.org/index.php/covid-19-counselling