Bhubaneswar: Actor Sushant Singh Rajput’s shocking demise has once again put the spotlight on the importance of mental health care in one’s life. Primary information about the tragedy suggests that the actor was in deep depression and attending several counselling sessions to deal with his deteriorating condition.
It is not only the actors, many youngsters these days are also developing a tendency to end lives when failure stare in the face.
With the nation in a state of shock following the sudden exit of the Kedarnath actor, Orissa POST speaks to a couple of city-based psychiatrists who tell in details on how poor mental health condition leads to develop suicide tendency in human beings.
Dr Amrit Pattojoshi, a professor of Psychiatry at Hi-tech Hospital, Bhubaneswar says, “Suicide is a multifactor issue, it involves personal stress and depression, anxiety and bad social support system. Therefore, when you command a huge fan following, you can’t express your inner feelings. Nowadays the youngsters don’t improve their levels of tolerance but all they want is instant gratification.
The unrealistic expectations from life definitely cause mental distress, but what they fail to understand is this phase of failure is temporary. The sudden impulse of ending life due to stress often succumbs to a thought process. Even youngsters who are committing suicide under depression are facing issues which they are unwilling to share with doctors or family members. People in general feel stigmatised while talking about mental health. In Odisha there is no helpline for mental health or suicide grievance helpline and the state government should open one.”
According to Surjeet Sahoo, the head of department of Psychiatry in IMS and SUM Hospital, said, “The Covid-19 has resulted in closure of many industries and the entertainment sector is no exception. Sushant Singh Rajput’s death is an example of how a person, sans social support, can slip into depression that eventually causes death. And when he/she goes through personal crisis, they don’t get any one to turn to”.
Dr Sahoo continues: “The overnight success and subsequent failure often leads to depression which has never been accepted by the society or by the victim himself. Sushant acted on mental health issue in Chhichhore, but in real life he succumbed to the mental battle. This apart, resounding success like in the case of Sushant often takes people away from their families. Besides, the rat race to scale the peak has left today’s generation devoid of emotions that can stand them in good stead in a moment of crisis. The youth these days are well-connected, but less communicated and celebrities are no different. On the other hand, many youngsters slip into depression after losing jobs and end lives.”