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covid-19

Social diStancing adding

to mental health woeS

As the country battles coronavirus with social distancing, experts fear that

isolation may lead to wide-scale mental health crisis, writes ASAD ASHRAF

day after Delhi is under total lockdown, on ahead for us,” Saima told the Tehelka.
March 23, 25-year-old Delhiite, Saima Reh- “As advised by my counsellor, I am trying to distract
man called upon her counsellor to learn ways myself by offering prayers, sharing jokes, cooking, read-
A to cope with her anxiety and depression with ing, and watching stuff on Netflix. But at the end of the
social distancing and quarantine becoming the norm day, I am still scared, angry, and my anxiety is through
amid large scale Corona fears across India. the roof,” she added.
“It has just been two days of being at home and not Saima is one among millions of Indians coping up
meeting many people; my anxiety and panic attacks with mental health issues in the country. Mental health
have already shot up. As an extrovert, this self-isolation, experts believe that social distancing and isolation of
social-distancing, quarantine is taking a toll on my people living with depression and mental health issues
mental health. It is bad. The longer I am in quarantine, might aggravate their illnesses further. More so, anxiety
the worse my mental health gets, and the way the situ- and panic combined with social distancing and lone-
ation in our country is escalating, I don’t know what’s liness could be lethal and further complicate mental

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