Panaji: The current lockdown is resulting into psychological breakdown for many wit the mental health counselors getting SOS calls from their patients in Goa.
The psychological counselors claim that there has been instances of domestic violence, high level of anxiety and uncertainty during the lockdown period.
“The Coronavirus pandemic has worsened the mental health of many people. The concept of a lockdown is very foreign for us and since we have not been in a situation like this before, we do not know how to effectively cope with it,” said mental health counselor Aditi Tendulkar.
She said that various patients of hers have been complaining about their mental health being severely affected with due to the lockdown.
“Issues like anxiety, agitation, frustration, panic attacks, lose or sudden increase of appetite, sleeplessness or over sleeping, changing in body’s biological clock, depression, mood swings, delusions, irrational thoughts, fear and phobias, apprehension about the future, constant worry and fatigue, suicidal thoughts, feelings of worthlessness and hopelessness accompanied with constant triggers in the family dynamics are commonly seen,” she said.
Tendulkar said that various institutions and psychologists have begun free consultation and it has been observed that more people are coming forth to seek help.
Psychiatric Society of Goa (PSG) has started a service called Covidav to provide free online psychological evaluation and treatment to the people in Goa during the lockdown.
Dr. Priyanka Sahasrabhojanee, Consultant Psychiatrist and Emotional wellness, who is also a part of PSG initiative said that people who already suffer from a psychological condition or illness may have worsening of symptoms due to this trigger of a lockdown.
“People with Substance abuse disorders face a challenge including non availability of alcohol, etc and the current situation that demands effective coping, unlike substance abuse,” she said.
Sahasrabhojanee said that patients facing difficulty in procuring psychiatric medications due to which they may go off medications and have worsening of their symptoms.
“Relationship problems that existed prior may worsen as the members are forced to stay together during lockdown, which can trigger conflicts. Higher incidence of domestic violence against women is being reported during lockdown,” she said.
Sahasrabhojanee said that there is also stress about uncertainty about how long will this last.
“There is an increase in stress, depression and psychological issues after the lockdown. This lockdown has also become a financial lockdown as both salaried individuals and businessmen are suffering losses,” said Prakriti Poddar, expert in Mental Health, Corporate and Education upliftment, Managing Trustee of the Poddar Foundation.
She said that there will be rise in PTSD (post-traumatic stress disorder) cases as a lot of people have lost jobs and to get back again on their feet will require a lot of efforts.
“During this lockdown period we want to make sure that people remain uplifted by helping them realize they can talk to people who are certified volunteers,” she said speaking about the initiative of Poddar Foundation.
“We have people who are suffering from anxiety and are claiming to feel completely hopeless and helpless in this situation. Also we are getting calls from people who are nervous about issues in their relationships,” she added.
