Our world is at a crossroad guys! We have never seen anything like it (not in our generation at least), Some say it’s a Weapon of Mass Destruction (WMD), others say its global epidemic, still others say it’s population control strategy gone wrong, but whatever it is, it has brought our lives to a standstill, literally! That’s not even the heart of my gist in this particular blogpost.
You know, a lockdown has been imminent, only it took the government this long to declare it. Some have even argued that it ought to have been a national lockdown, especially since our condition in Nigeria is unique; among other things, there is a criteria for those who can be tested - have a travel history, showing symptoms, contact with a carrier and bla bla bla - meaning that several asymptotic persons are probably moving around and spreading the virus to other states that are not Ogun, Lagos and Abuja. Away from that too...
So I came across this news article yesterday of a German government official who was believed to have committed suicide as a fallout of COVID-19. https://www.vanguardngr.com/2020/03/german-minister-of-finance-commits-suicide-over-coronavirus/Just in case you are interested, that’s the link. This got me to think more deeply about the wider consequences of COVID-19. Mental health is at stake fam! Unfortunately, all the medical attention now (or at least a very large percentage of it) is focused on testing, isolation and treatments of victims, no one seems to be concerned/talking about the mental health implications of all of these. WE MAY HAVE MORE ‘MAD’ PEOPLE IN THE STREETS WHEN COVID-19 IS OVER (if not even before then). Why do I think so? So many reasons, but I’ll just state a few...
1️⃣For a good number of Nigerians, ‘work’ is the only ‘escape’ from home for several reasons; nagging spouse, troublesome kids, among others. Now they are forced to face their ‘giants’, and certainly there would be casualties. Already, statistics from China show that divorce rates have spiked in the last two months, God help us in a country like ours where almost every figure is a gross underestimate.
2️⃣Many Nigerians; and we are talking some 60-70% of Lagosians especially, are daily earners. They basically will starve if they don’t go out in a day. There have been reports of State and Federal government distributing food items and 20k to ‘poor households’ (I saw this one yesterday and laughed; Nigeria my country! SMH) respectively. And kudos to celebrities who have been doing a lot of giveaways, but how many people are giving away, how coordinated is the giving, and how many people are actually getting? Apparently, many people may likely die of hunger before depression even gets to them.
3️⃣Frustration from the lack of basic amenities will drive people crazy, literally. I saw a video on IG yesterday, of a famous Nigerian Actress frustrated about the unending and maddening sound of generators in her neighborhood, and crying and begging the government to provide electricity if people have to stay home. I am certain millions of other people (including myself) share her sentiment. Unfortunately, we can’t all handle frustration equally and we have a ‘deaf’ government (for lack of a better word); some may be pushed to breaking point if the frustration continues for two whole weeks ‘at the first instance’.
I could go on and on, but I guess my point is made. Depression, anxiety and the likes, may be greater evils than COVID-19 when the chips are down. But you can be a part of the solution;
- reach out constantly to that friend who you know has a pre-existing mental health condition.
- check in regularly with your friends and acquaintances who you know are home alone at this time.
- be conscious of your own mental health too. Exercise as often as possible (it works!)
- engage in some productive activities, at least read a book!
- as much as possible, don’t share fake news. Even some of the real news can be depressing too, so don’t share ‘depressing real news’. There is enough to chew on already.
- pray and hope in God! COVID-19 has proven (even to the Atheists, I believe) that the help of humanity certainly has to come from outside of humanity.
I am certainly this phase will be in the past sooner than we think, and I hope and pray that our sanity is intact when all of this is over.
Share in the comment section how you are keeping sane in the midst of this crisis (you could cheer someone on!) 🙏🏽
