Suicide Prevention Day 2021: Increased Number Of Suicide Cases Reported During COVID 2nd Wave
About 55 per cent had significant anxiety symptoms and over one-fourth experienced depressive symptoms. The online survey was conducted to evaluate the awareness, anxiety and depression symptoms among people in the country during the COVID-19 pandemic.
A study by a private hospital in Delhi has found that there has been a rise in cases of anxiety and depression among people during the COVID-19 pandemic.
Such cases spiked particularly in the lockdown period following the first wave. The study was conducted by Max Super Speciality Hospital, Saket, on 1,211 individuals from the general population during the second wave of COVID-19.
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25% reported severe anxiety, 27% considered self-harm
¡°Nearly 27 per cent participants said they considered self-harm or suicide at least once, while three per cent indicated they had recurring thoughts. During lockdown, we received distress calls from patients and their families about anxiety, depression, and self-harm,¡± said Dr Malhotra.
About 55 per cent had significant anxiety symptoms and over one-fourth experienced depressive symptoms. The online survey was conducted to evaluate the awareness, anxiety and depression symptoms among people in the country during the COVID-19 pandemic.
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The study found that of all the respondents, 44.6 per cent of them met the criteria for mild anxiety, 30.1 per cent for moderate anxiety 25.3 per cent for severe anxiety.
Reasons which led to suicidal thoughts
Dr Manish Kandpal, psychiatrist at Ram Manohar Lohia Hospital, said suicidal thoughts were mostly spotted in young and middle-aged people facing adjustment issues; many of them resorted to alcoholism.
¡°Due to economic hardships, fear and long isolation, people developed depression which led to suicidal thoughts. There are mainly two categories of people approaching us. In one category, their mental health conditions had improved but they could not continue or had missed their (treatment) courses. The other category was mentally healthy, but had faced difficulties during pandemic,¡± noted Dr Kandpal.
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People aged between 31 to 50 years
A recent study on India¡¯s lockdown by the ¡®International Journal of Mental Health Systems¡¯ saw a 67.7% increase in online news media reports of suicidal behaviour. Compared to 2019, the suicides reported in the lockdown were by people between ages 31 to 50.
There were notable differences between the two years in the methods used for suicides and attempted suicide. In the lockdown, more suicides were reported by hanging (64.4 per cent vs 42 per cent) and fewer cases of poisoning (8.5 per cent vs 21.5 per cent).
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World Suicide Prevention Day
World Suicide Prevention Day is observed on September 10th every year to highlight various ways by which suicide can be prevented. This day was marked in 2003, for the first time as an initiative by the International Association for Suicide Prevention (IASP) and the World Health Organization (WHO) who teamed up to create a day dedicated to a very important message: suicides are preventable.
If you know anyone battling with depression or other mental health issues, please reach out to someone who can help. AASRA Foundation: 022 2754 6669 Samaritans Mumbai: +91 84229 84528 / +91 84229 84529 / +91 84229 84530 Sanjivini Society for Mental Health: +911124311918
Senior Writer at Indiatimes. She writes on Lifestyle, fashion, beauty, astrology and health.
