Are our minds ready for a lockdown amid coronavirus pandemic?

Are our minds ready for a lockdown amid coronavirus pandemic?

Dr Pradeep Kumar, a Psychiatrist who specialises in hypnotherapy and one of 10 professionals offering free sessions, said, “Social distancing is hurting many people mentally. I am getting 10-15 calls every day.

Jescilia KarayamparambilUpdated: Friday, March 27, 2020, 10:15 PM IST
article-image
Representational Image | File

“I think I am a character in SCI-FI movie —where roads are empty, pigeons are not loitering around my window, screechy children have gone silent and my TV screen is yelling Corona, Corona, Corona…I just hope this ends well,” laughs Komal, who is now tired binge-watching movies and television shows. While people like Komal are taking the lockdown in a lighter vein (at least for the first few days), there are others who are finding it difficult to practise social distancing and isolation from day one.

“Some people initially are able to manage it, but it kicks in slowly,” said Dr Jyoti Dadlani, a Psychologist practising in Vile Parle. She is the brainchild of an initiative —‘At times of Coronavirus: How to protect your mental health’. She is among the 10 Psychiatrist and Counsellors who are offering free sessions on mental health to people who are hit directly and indirectly with Coronavirus up until the end of March.

Dr Pradeep Kumar, a Psychiatrist who specialises in hypnotherapy and one of 10 professionals offering free sessions, said, “Social distancing is hurting many people mentally. I am getting 10-15 calls every day. I cannot attend all of them. So, I am giving them an hour slot based on my schedule and urgency of the case.” Kumar, who comes with more than two decades of experience, added the impact of Coronavirus will be short to medium term. “But the impact due to lockdown on the mental health of Indians will be long term or even lifetime.”

Taking sessions online or through a video call is not new to Kumar and other professionals, he added. So, this idea of conducting sessions online even for extreme cases does not bother him. “I have a patient who is a foreign national and is in isolation. She was in bad shape when she first contacted me. She took three sessions with me and now, I see a drastic improvement in her mental health,” revealed Kumar.

Social distancing will lead to phobia and fear of being lonely, and this is expected to stay even after the lockdown is lifted, claimed mental health experts. “This 21-day lockdown would have impacted the mental health of 90 per cent of the population (some visible cases and some mild cases),” reiterated a psychiatrist.

What happens to kids

For most chirpy kids (who are also termed hyperactive kids) being confined in their homes, would leave a lifetime impact on them. Experts feel the best way to handle this situation would be having a counselling session for kids as soon as school reopens. This will enable the kids to interact with not just adults but their friends too. They can open up and share what they felt due to this lockdown. Meanwhile, Dadlani, who is a mother of an 8-year-old, said, “Parents usually never care about the mental health of their children. But in this lockdown scenario, they should ideally engage with their children. This will help the parent as well.”

She suggested parents and children should create a timetable and plan the day. “Get your children involved in daily chores like cooking, cleaning the house etc, and also play games with them is important.”

Experts feel the best way to keep oneself healthy mentally would be by keeping oneself busy.

RECENT STORIES

Mumbai: Central Railway's Mumbai-Hazrat Nizamuddin Rajdhani And Mumbai-Nagpur Duronto Express Trains...

Mumbai: Central Railway's Mumbai-Hazrat Nizamuddin Rajdhani And Mumbai-Nagpur Duronto Express Trains...

Mumbai: CBI Questions Gangster Prasad Pujari After Deportation From China; Reveals Meeting Kumar...

Mumbai: CBI Questions Gangster Prasad Pujari After Deportation From China; Reveals Meeting Kumar...

Bombay HC Refuses To Stay MAT Order Asking State Govt To Give Grace Marks To Transgender Persons

Bombay HC Refuses To Stay MAT Order Asking State Govt To Give Grace Marks To Transgender Persons

Bombay HC Dismisses Rakhi Sawant’s Pre-Arrest Bail Plea In Case Filed By Her Estranged Husband...

Bombay HC Dismisses Rakhi Sawant’s Pre-Arrest Bail Plea In Case Filed By Her Estranged Husband...

Mumbai: Christians Prepare For Holy Week Culmination With Maundy Thursday And Easter Services

Mumbai: Christians Prepare For Holy Week Culmination With Maundy Thursday And Easter Services