Aim: It’s understandable that most articles regarding the topic contain a large number of calculations and complicated words, hence, the aim of this literary piece is to deliver information systematically and in an easy manner.
Introduction:
COVID 19: At this point, there isn’t a single person who isn’t aware of the global disease. While the impact of COVID is no doubt global, and not just restricted to one country, this article focuses on its impact on the Indian population.
As we all know, India is close to becoming the most populated country, and reducing the number of potential COVID patients requires:
With a population of 1.4 Billion, and a good part of this number belonging to rural and remote areas, enforcing rules that take away their ability to socialize was going to be impossible.
Due to its nature, COVID was bound to have more than one type of effect on the population of India. The most direct and obvious one being the effects of the disease on an individual's physical health.
However, thanks to the various different studies in the recent few years, mental health is finally getting the attention it deserves. While the term “mental health”, has been under the spotlight recently, most of the articles surrounding it end up becoming unnecessarily complicated.
In simple terms, Mental health refers to our psychological and emotional well-being. Every event that occurs often affects our “mood” which tends to throw us off our usual behavior. A lot of people seek outdoor activities and use them as a form of release for pent-up stress. However, due to the pandemic, this option was no longer available, leaving people with simply bottling up what they felt. Slowly but surely, this leads to bad sleeping habits, overeating, mood swings, lethargy, and a lot more.
How the public feels: A number of interviews were conducted, wherein, every single individual was asked a common question. “How did COVID impact your mental health? And do you think, things would have been different if not for the pandemic?”
*Note: for the sake of anonymity, the names of the interviewees have been hidden.
Interviewee 1: “The pandemic absolutely ruined my mental health. I was stuck at home, every second of the day, and unfortunately, that wasn’t a good thing. Especially, since I didn’t share a good relationship with my parents. Just like how people look forward to running or exercising, I have always looked forward to planning events in school which, obviously, wasn’t possible anymore. Slowly, I could feel myself losing touch with reality and everything else. Things suddenly seemed to take more energy than usual, maintaining relationships never felt harder, even with people I cherished and wanted in my life. Not to mention, exams were still being conducted and college applications weren’t particularly helping in any way possible.” - A 19-year-old student.
Interviewee 2: “My life came to a standstill. Yeah, sure, initially, it felt great to take that long break from work, I got to spend a lot of time with myself and my family, but after a while, things started to get monotonous. Initially, we were happy to split house chores, play games with each other, or watch TV together, but after some time, we started to snap at each other. Personally, I felt suffocated, and there was no getting away from the entire situation, You can’t force people to stay together without overstepping into their comfort zones, and unfortunately, that’s what happened as the pleasant times turned a bit toxic and everything felt very forceful. I longed for normalcy where I could go to work and come back to a happy household. I definitely know that my wife felt the same way I did. Working from home, as fun as you may think it is, is not at all interesting or challenging, it just made me feel lazy and incompetent. There’s a lot of this built-up energy which we need to focus somewhere, and when that outlet has been taken away, it becomes frustrating.” - A 40-year-old IT employee.
Interviewee 3: “I didn’t get to see my family anymore. I always thought, living close to them would make things easier, but this COVID only ruined everything. My family barely visits me, and anytime they do, it’s only my grandchildren. It deeply dissatisfies me, that I live rather close to them and yet I am not allowed to see them.” -A retired bank manager.
Conclusion: COVID’s effects aren’t only confined to the physiological aspects. When we aren’t ourselves, we tend to turn against each other, even when we don’t intend to. Perhaps accepting the situation for what it truly is might help. Making do with what’s available, adjusting, and moving out of our comfort zone; every small thing would greatly impact the mood of everyone around us.
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