KUCHING: Sarawakians have been urged to destigmatise mental health to facilitate its prevention and early detection. Welfare, Community Wellbeing, Women, Family and Childhood Development Minister Datuk Seri Fatimah Abdullah made this appeal in her keynote speech recently during a mental health awareness forum held at Nu Hotel in Bintulu.
She said the government was committed to educating the people on mental health after making them aware of it first.
She urged people to be more open minded towards the problem instead of condemning the sufferers.
“The one common factor is ignorance which leads society to attach social stigma to those having mental issues and cause them to suffer from discrimination instead of getting help.
“When society is not open-minded and unhelpful, mental patients feel they have to hide their troubles and in so doing they become more isolated, their conditions deteriorate, and they are less likely to receive timely help,” she explained.
Citing mental health issues in Sarawak as the fourth most prevalent nationwide, Fatimah said everyone should put forward their views on the worrying issue, especially among youth who mostly suffer silently.
“Some 35.8 percent of Sarawakians suffer mental health problems with the majority of them being 16-year-old and older rural bumiputeras.
“And it is worrying to acknowledge that 16 percent of Sarawakian teenagers suffer mental issues as early as 15 years old and below,” she said.
The reality is unfortunately grim. The National Health and Morbidity Survey (NHMS) 2015 survey conducted by the Ministry of Health (MoH) reported that 29.2 percent of Malaysians who suffer poor mental health are those aged 16 years old and above.
In other words, one out of three individuals in Malaysia have mental health problems.
Alarmingly, in the Health Ministry’s 2017 National Health and Morbidity Study for Adolescent Health Survey 2017, Sarawak recorded 10.1 percent of secondary school students who felt lonely most of the time, 7.7 percent were unable to sleep most of the time due to worry.
The suicidal behaviour from ideation, plan, and attempt were discovered at 10.9 percent, 7.9 percent and 8.8 percent respectively.
Expressing her concern for the raising numbers of youth suffering mental health, Fatimah stressed that society at all levels should remove the stigma on those who seek professionals to diagnose depression, anxiety and stress.
“We have made a start. Although most of the schools provide counselling service from the counsellors, we cannot just leave this matter to them.“By hook or by crook, teachers and parents need to be aware of the youngsters who are stressed,” Fatimah addressed. Fatimah reckoned that by doing little things, for example, just by listening to their problems, would give them relief.
“Instead of condemning and judging them, it would be so much better if we can listen to them and give words of encouragement to get them to seek help from
professionals.
“Lending our ears will get them to share their problems and troubles,” she said. “This is vital as the world is rapidly changing.”
