Daily Times

Sir: The fact that we are living in such a fast moving era, yet we in Pakistan still consider mental illness and diseases as a taboo is disappointing to say the least. This ignorance of ours has resulted in a very high rate of suicides in the country, especially over the past few years.

Depression, anxiety, stress and many other conditions are just considered a phase that will go away soon. This is particularly the case when any member of our youth points out some of these problems, which causes many to turn a blind eye to their predicament, and more often than not it is their own family that refuse to heed their call.

It is often considered that people of young age do not have ‘real’ issues to deal with, yet these demographics account for most of our suicide deaths.

It is our ignorant behaviour that causes this problem to grow even worse than it was in past years, and it is high time we pay attention to the people around us, so as to be aware if they need help. In case they do, then we should not be afraid of reaching out ourselves, or offer the resources they need to get better. In the end, many of them just need to know that somebody cares for them, and is there to listen in their time of need.

MARIA ILYAS

Karachi

Published in Daily Times, August 4^th 2018.