Wear a mask, watch your bubble, keep your distance.
Each day, stories in the Toronto Star and elsewhere drive home the precautions to look after your physical health during this pandemic as well as tracking the daily case count, the capacity of intensive care units and the challenges of administering tests.
But are the media doing enough on the topic of mental health? As individuals, are we giving our mental health enough attention?
I was left wondering after a resident in an adjacent apartment building took his own life last month. I can’t speak to the circumstances behind this tragedy. But it did make me think that the topic of mental health is not getting the attention it deserves as we navigate a crisis that for many is unprecedented in our lifetimes. It’s a timely reflection as Saturday marks World Mental Health Day and the end of mental illness awareness week.
First, if you or someone you know are in distress, help is available. Resources are online at www.crisisservicescanada.ca or you can connect to the national suicide prevention helpline at 1-833-456-4566, or the Kids Help Phone at 1-800-668-6868.
We are all dealing with a perfect storm of stressors. Disrupted routines, uncertain school schedules, financial concerns, job loss, isolation, curtailed social gatherings and the ever-present worry about getting sick. There is the stress endured by front-line workers and those who have been hit by COVID-19 or had loved ones fall ill or die.
Dr. David Gratzer, a psychiatrist with the Centre for Addiction and Mental Health, remembers working as a physician during the 2003 SARS outbreak and says the topic of mental health was virtually ignored at the time.
Fast forward to today’s health crisis and mental health is getting more attention. Provincial and federal governments have pledged funding to improve programs. Such support is critical, Gratzer notes, because even before the pandemic “we couldn’t meet all the need.”
Media outlets are giving attention to the topic. For example, Star reporter Nadine Yousif covers mental health and has written in recent weeks on the shift to virtual visits with psychiatrists and psychotherapist, how the current stresses are hitting youth harder and the launch of a powerful new suicide prevention campaign.
In the coming weeks, she plans to look at the gaps in mental health care, such as youth living in vulnerable situations “There’s also the added trauma of racism and discrimination that is compounding mental health struggles for racialized people in Toronto, who we know are disproportionately hit by cases of COVID-19,” Yousif said. “All of that is so, so important.”
That’s all good. The Star needs to keep the topic in the spotlight.
Gratzer says while the difference from the SARS crisis is like “night and day” in terms of the focus on mental health, continued reporting will be important.
“Whenever there is such a huge stressor in our society, there are mental health implications. I think ongoing reportage will be very important to reassure people that what they’re going through may be both common and highly treatable,” he said.
“First things first, if you’re feeling a bit stressed, that’s probably OK,” he said.
That’s the good news. Despite the unsettling times, Gratzer doesn’t anticipate significant increases of major mental illness.
But those with a history of major mental illness could be vulnerable, he said. “If you’ve had a past depression, one of the big risk factors of a future depressive episode is major stress,” Gratzer said.
“For people who can no longer get out of bed because they feel so depressed …, I think talking with a health-care professional is important,” he said. “Or you’re no longer enjoying life or you’re having suicidal thoughts. That’s all reason to seek care.”
If you think a loved one is having a tough time, reach out, he said.
“Of course, be respectful and thoughtful of how you start that conversation. But just as if you had an uncle who seemed to be in a difficult point with his diabetes, you would bring it up. Why wouldn’t you bring it up if your favourite uncle seemed to be struggling with depression?” he said.
“Why not offer to take him to a family doctor appointment?”
No doubt, it’s time to move past old attitudes that for too long discouraged conversations around mental health and illness.
“Times have changed, but they haven’t. I think we speak more than we ever have about mental health problems. Great. But there still is a stigma and there still is a hesitation,” he said.
Just as we look after our physical health, our mental health also needs attention.
Gratzer cited the tips laid out by authors Rowan Diamond and John Willan in a paper in the British Journal of Psychiatry to nurture your mental well-being: learn, since new knowledge can give a sense of achievement; connect through meaningful interactions that can promote self-worth; take notice of the present to shift focus away from the negative; give back since contributing can provide a sense of purpose; be active; and build a routine.
So next time you don a mask, spare a thought for your mental health too. And remember that help is available.
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