Sunday Times Lifestyle Mental Health (Mar 17 2024)

TACKLING THECHALLENGESOF MENTAL HEALTH

Worldwide, over 1.9-billion people battle with mental health disorders such as depression, anxiety and bipolar disorder

The prevalence of mental health disorders is at an all-time high. According to the World Health Organization (WHO), every year 703,000 people take their own lives and many more attempt suicide. Each suicide is a tragedy that affects families, communities and countries, and has long-lasting effects on the people left behind. The WHO says that the stigma, particularly surrounding mental disorders and suicide, means many people thinking of taking their own lives or who have attempted suicide, are not seeking help. Globally, one person attempts suicide every 26 seconds and one person dies from suicide every 40 seconds.

Worldwide, more than 1.9-billion people battle with mental health disorders such as depression, anxiety and bipolar disorder. Mental health is a key driver of absenteeism in the workplace and is set to cost the world $16-trillion by 2030.

In South Africa, economic uncertainty, political instability and poor socioeconomic conditions have added to the burden of mental health issues.

“There has been a substantial increase in the number of member mental health hospital admissions, indicating a need for additional support, particularly in the 18 to 44 age groups,” says Lee Callakoppen, principal officer of Bonitas Medical Fund. “This has an enormous impact on employers, as they try to keep their businesses going, prevent job losses and maintain a happy and motivated workforce.”

As many as 80% of South Africans who need mental health support are unable to easily access it, according to South Africa’s National Mental Health Policy Framework.

Most medical aids offer specialised mental health programmes. Encouragingly, most mental illnesses can be effectively treated by health professionals and community-based services or NGOs. This may include access to medication, therapy and counselling.

There has been a substantial increase in the number of member mental health hospital admissions, indicating a need for additional support

LEE CALLAKOPPEN

Principal officer of Bonitas Medical Fund

The Mental Health Programme (MHP) from Bonitas, part of its Care initiatives, includes depression as a chronic condition and is aimed at improving quality of life and empowering people with mental health issues to manage their condition. It is education driven and offers support and resources to get the right care at the right time and includes supporting family members.

Bonitas was the first medical aid to offer October Health (previously Panda) a free mental health and wellness app to members. The app provides easy access to expert help, mental health information and community support, serving as a triage system for people with psycho-social issues. Users sign in anonymously and almost all the care they receive on the app is anonymised, meaning there is significantly less fear of stigma or being identified by peers, says Callakoppen.

Having a mental health condition should never be a reason to deprive somebody of their human rights or exclude them from decisions about their own health. Yet all over the world, people with mental health conditions continue to experience a wide range of human rights violations. Many are excluded from community life and discriminated against, while many more cannot access the mental health care they need.

“Fortunately, increasingly wellknown and influential people who are suffering from or have overcome mental illness, are being more open about it, which will go a long way towards debunking myths, negativity, discrimination and judgment,” says Lee Callakoppen, principal officer of Bonitas Medical Fund.

Among the most typical symptoms of mental health issues, he says, are feeling overwhelmed with excessive fears, worries or extreme feelings of guilt; major changes in eating habits resulting in either weight loss or gain; struggling to concentrate and make decisions; loss of energy, motivation and drive changes; constant stress and anxiety over work, finances, life, friends and family; emotional detachment from reality (delusions), paranoia or hallucinations; frequently feeling tearful and having trouble understanding and relating to situations and to people; difficulties sleeping or sleeping more than usual; loss of interest in social activities;

HOW OVERWHELMING PROBLEMS MANIFEST

Mental

health issues are a medical condition just like diabetes, cancer or HIV/Aids. But with the right support and help, symptoms can be relieved and the recovery rate is encouraging. By Lynette

Dicey

THEYOUTHOF TODAY

The majority feel the need for support, but few are getting it

South Africa’s youth are struggling with mental health.

A Unicef South Africa-U-Report poll published in the latter half of 2023 found that around 60% of children and youth felt they needed mental health support and only 63% of those who needed support actively sought it. The biggest obstacle to seeking support was not knowing where to go for help, said respondents.

Of concern is that half of all mental health conditions start by the age of 14, although most cases are undetected and untreated. Research conducted globally indicates that the cost of delivering interventions to help parents better support their children s mental health is roughly comparable to the cost of a routine childhood vaccination programme, in the process reducing the burden on health systems, improving educational achievement as well as longer-term economic outcomes, says Unicef, the UN s children s fund.

South Africa has a poor record when it comes to mental health with a significant shortage of mental healthcare skills. Stigma and a lack of public spending aggravate the problem. The country s disability and mental health legislation has been criticised by the UN Committee on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities.

Not only do our mental health policies urgently need to be updated but we also need better education around mental health to improve mental health literacy, including better awareness of emotional pain, post-traumatic stress, anxiety and depression.

Unicef South Africa has a number of initiatives in place to support mental health among children and the youth, including parenting programmes, psychological support and training for educators to improve support for learners and a support network for adolescent girls and young mothers.

The organisation also supports the Risiha Programme that provides psychosocial, health, education and nutrition support for vulnerable children and youth and provides access to information and resources via mental health chat bots, ChildLine SA and various campaigns.

However, the organisation says more needs to be done and that South Africa needs to increase its investment in child and adolescent mental health and psychological support across sectors.

becoming easily irritated and more aggressive than usual; and having thoughts of death or suicide.

“Drug or alcohol abuse may also be a sign of underlying mental illness. Sometimes symptoms of a mental health disorder appear as physical problems, such as stomach pain, back pain, headaches or other unexplained aches and pains,” he says.

Somebody with a mental illness can’t be expected to simply “pull themselves together”, he says. “Mental health issues are a medical condition just like diabetes, cancer or HIV/Aids. But with the right support and help, symptoms can be relieved and the recovery rate is encouraging.”

Somebody with a mental illness can’t be expected to simply ‘pull themselves together’

Picture: 123RF.COM/DEAGREEZ

Picture: 123RF.COM/DEAGREEZ