A quote claiming that depression is exclusive to urban privileged individuals has recently gone viral, coinciding with the month of "Mental Health Awareness." This quote aptly highlights the extent of our awareness on this topic.
This notion is equivalent to suggesting that fever, cancer, or heart disease only affect wealthy people and can simply be wished away. Check any district hospital for a bit before claiming such views.
As author Andrew Solomon wrote 21 years ago in the New York Times, "The depressed poor perceive themselves to be supremely helpless — so helpless that they neither seek nor embrace support. This means that most people who are poor and depressed stay poor and depressed."
Poverty fosters a passive relationship with fate, making individuals less likely to confront their problems and more inclined to accommodate them. Consequently, there is a lower likelihood of suicide among those living in poverty. However, this does not imply that they suffer any less from debilitating mood disorders, lack of motivation, or an unusually heightened sense of fear. Unfortunately, it is common for us to label them as lazy from a distance and disregard their struggles. Have you never encountered a poor individual who refuses to work hard but instead falls back into unhealthy habits such as drinking and gambling? Have you not witnessed anyone from the rural struggling to wake up every day full of enthusiasm? Perhaps you've never come across a mentally unstable roadside beggar rambling to the sun? Do you know the kind of social and psychological trauma even a rural parent can experience when their child is born with disabilities? Studies published in 2015 found depressive symptoms among 45% of rural adults of Bangladesh, and the number is even higher for elderly women.
The individuals claiming online that depression is solely experienced by the wealthy are the very people belonging to the top 10% income bracket in the world. Hardly qualified to be the voice of the underprivileged.
Why do we celebrate uninformed opinions about such a sensitive topic? Do we really believe, if one is great in acting, he must also be knowledgeable in everything— including healthcare and psychology? Perhaps we should also take his advice on managing our finances or scheduling our parents' health check-up next season while we're at it?
It is possible that you have not personally experienced mania, depression, anxiety, or panic attacks. That's why you have the luxury of confusing them with every day sadness and tension. However, these conditions continue to afflict many out there, maybe even someone very near you. Sometimes, offering a moment of silence rather than mocking the suffering of others, can be a better use of the little time we have on earth.
This notion is equivalent to suggesting that fever, cancer, or heart disease only affect wealthy people and can simply be wished away. Check any district hospital for a bit before claiming such views.
As author Andrew Solomon wrote 21 years ago in the New York Times, "The depressed poor perceive themselves to be supremely helpless — so helpless that they neither seek nor embrace support. This means that most people who are poor and depressed stay poor and depressed."
Poverty fosters a passive relationship with fate, making individuals less likely to confront their problems and more inclined to accommodate them. Consequently, there is a lower likelihood of suicide among those living in poverty. However, this does not imply that they suffer any less from debilitating mood disorders, lack of motivation, or an unusually heightened sense of fear. Unfortunately, it is common for us to label them as lazy from a distance and disregard their struggles. Have you never encountered a poor individual who refuses to work hard but instead falls back into unhealthy habits such as drinking and gambling? Have you not witnessed anyone from the rural struggling to wake up every day full of enthusiasm? Perhaps you've never come across a mentally unstable roadside beggar rambling to the sun? Do you know the kind of social and psychological trauma even a rural parent can experience when their child is born with disabilities? Studies published in 2015 found depressive symptoms among 45% of rural adults of Bangladesh, and the number is even higher for elderly women.
The individuals claiming online that depression is solely experienced by the wealthy are the very people belonging to the top 10% income bracket in the world. Hardly qualified to be the voice of the underprivileged.
Why do we celebrate uninformed opinions about such a sensitive topic? Do we really believe, if one is great in acting, he must also be knowledgeable in everything— including healthcare and psychology? Perhaps we should also take his advice on managing our finances or scheduling our parents' health check-up next season while we're at it?
It is possible that you have not personally experienced mania, depression, anxiety, or panic attacks. That's why you have the luxury of confusing them with every day sadness and tension. However, these conditions continue to afflict many out there, maybe even someone very near you. Sometimes, offering a moment of silence rather than mocking the suffering of others, can be a better use of the little time we have on earth.
Radi
Dhaka
23 May 2023