- Advertisement -
Dr. Saeed Ahmad Ali
LAHORE, Oct 10 (APP):Experts have stressed the need for treating mentally ill people in good manner and advocating its importance while promoting positive mental well-being for all.
They expressed these remarks while talking to APP in connection with the World Mental Health Day which was observed across the globe on Tuesday. This year, the theme of the day is “Mental health is a universal human right”.
They said that mental health is just as important as physical health and requires you to be aware of the symptoms, signs and steps one can take to care for his mental health.
Brig. (retd) Dr. Sultan M. Abid, the Director of Medical Services at Fountain House, underscored the significance of this year’s theme as a compelling call to action. He reminded that there are viable alternatives to improve mental health by taking action, ‘we can foster hope and bolster prevention efforts for our mental health’.
The important thing is to not suffer in silence and to seek professional help if anyone is suffering from deteriorating mental health, he said.
To a query Dr. Sultan M. Abid said that mental well-being at a community level requires support and access to the best standards of care, advocating for mental health issues, conducting research based treatment in the country, creating awareness, promoting education about mental health its difficulties, and creating leaders in mental health.
Dr. Iftikhar, former Mayo Hospital Medical Superintendent, stressed the need to raise awareness among the public about effective ways to address social and psychological issues at preliminary level.
Individuals facing a multitude of socioeconomic factors may experience both support and obstacles to their recovery. These complexities add intricacy to the evaluation of the effectiveness of mental health services, treatments, and support systems.
Warning signs of deteriorating mental health include changes in sleep patterns or irregular appetite, changes in mood and its swings, and depressive feelings while losing interest in activities one normally enjoys, he added.
He said, the main causes include a drop in motivation or being not able to function and perform daily tasks and feeling disconnected from the surroundings, and feelings of apathy or nervousness.
Noted neurology expert Dr. Adnan Gill said, “Taking care of your physical health is also known to help your mental well-being.” Staying active, be it with running, walking, yoga, or other forms of exercise plays a key role in uplifting one’s mood and ensuring him remain both physically and mentally healthy.
He advised masses to set out a regular time to take part in activities as enjoyment is essential in ensuring that one has an outlet to release the negativity that you may be feeling, which contributes to declining mental health.
It is worth mentioning here that President Dr Arif Alvi, in his message on the World Mental Health Day, called for creating awareness about mental health and well-being of people.
“We need an integrated approach to strengthen the existing infrastructure by using online mental health portals, virtual programs, artificial intelligence, mental health chatbots, helplines, mobilizing relevant government and other stakeholders, and forging public-private partnerships,” he said.
World Mental Health Day has a rich history dating back to 1992 when the World Federation for Mental Health (WFMH) initiated this global observance. However, the journey towards recognizing and addressing mental health challenges extends much further.
The seeds of this movement were planted in the early 20th century, as pioneers in psychology and psychiatry began to study and understand the intricacies of the human mind.
It wasn’t until the mid-20th century that mental health began to receive more comprehensive attention, both in terms of research and public awareness.
The establishment of organizations like the WFMH, as well as the World Health Organization (WHO), played pivotal roles in pushing mental health issues to the forefront of global health discussions.
Rana Muhammad Tanveer, a noted lawyer told APP that the legal system was responsive to the request to prosecute the mentally stressed people of regular patients.
Examining the effects of prosecution on the patients, the legal system, and the staff, the authors found that only two patients benefited, three showed little or no change, and four did not interest follow-up due to social stigma, he added.