EDITORIAL - Ramp up mental-health advocacy

The portrait of the Trelawny couple with their two lovely infants, which appeared in The Gleaner on Wednesday, did not look anything like a family in crisis. However, the murder of the children and suicide of their father that unfolded in the community of Wait-A-Bit, Trelawny, on Monday night, suggests that the young farmer could possibly have been struggling with some type of emotional disorder.

From accounts given by community persons, Kenville Mullings had a loving relationship with his two daughters. So even if he had a quarrel with their mother, what possessed him to turn on them and end their lives in such a brutal fashion? Many guess that he simply snapped.

We live in extremely stressful times and many people are predisposed to anxiety and panic attacks. The daunting challenges of daily living can leave persons tense, worried and anxious. It is, therefore, relevant to ask the question: Where does a 30-something farmer in deep rural Jamaica go for help when he is in emotional trouble or has concerns about his mental health?

There was a time when the obvious suggestion would be the Church, which is the institution on the front line of contact with emotional disturbance of every kind. And today there are Victim Support Unit satellites throughout the country.

But it does not seem that these are sufficiently equipped to deal with the challenges of daily living. For one thing, the Church mirrors society, and mental illness is heavily stigmatised. Society generally tends to sweep mental disorder under the carpet, with the result that churches' mental-health outreach and support is far less robust than for other areas of concern.

Pastors and church leaders are not psychiatrists, and few of them are psychologists or would have been trained in how to respond to persons who are emotionally ill. Even though they may appear well on the outside, persons who are mentally ill are usually in need of medication, therapy and treatment. The Church, oftentimes, is unable to provide these.

Support and compassion

However, what the Church can provide to someone in an emotionally fragile state is support and compassion. So even though the Church cannot be a substitute for a hospital, it can help these persons by welcoming them and offering them new friendships in place of ones that have crumbled. After this early intervention, the Church can then help them to get the treatment that meets their needs.

With what seems like escalating violence within families and brutal outcomes for children, there is urgent need for more mental-health advocacy, especially in rural Jamaica. Persons who are emotionally disturbed need the support of family and friends, but they also require professional help.

Worldwide mental-health afflictions are growing. Depression, according to the World Health Organisation, is the fifth-leading cause of disability around the world and is projected to reach second place by the year 2020.

The opinions on this page, except for the above, do not necessarily reflect the views of The Gleaner. To respond to a Gleaner editorial, email us: editor@gleanerjm.com or fax: 922-6223. Responses should be no longer than 400 words. Not all responses will be published.