Anxiety, Depression Affecting Emotional Health, Says Expert


Posted on: Wed 30-09-2020

A consultant psychiatrist, Dr. Sola Olowookere, has raised the alarm over the effect of the coronavirus pandemic on the emotional health of Nigerians. Olowookere, who spoke on Tuesday during a webinar tagged, ‘Happiness and Wellness Summit,’ stated that a lot of people had fallen into depression as a result of the pandemic.

He spoke on the topic, ‘The Impact of Pandemic on Emotional and Mental Well-being.’

According to him, the problem stems from many people being compelled to stay at home as they were cut-off from their ‘outlets,’ including churches, mosques, and social gatherings.

He said, “We see the adults 65 years and above, these are probably people that live alone. Their kids have probably gone on to marry and then with the lockdown, they are not able to have social interaction. It has increased anxiety in that age group.

“If you look at the working woman with a family, with the added responsibility of homeschooling, this is very difficult. We are not all teachers. We appreciate all the teachers and the fantastic work they do. They have a lot of patience and tenacity.

“Now, they (government) are telling us to combine this at home, while we do our jobs and try to provide for the family. I’ve heard people use words like, ‘I feel like pulling out my hair.’ These could lead to frustration and irritability.”

Olowookere also noted that a lot of COVID-19-related cases of physical violence and emotional abuse had been recorded.

Also, a clinical psychologist, Mrs Pamela Udoka, while speaking on the topic, ‘Sexual Health and Emotional Wellbeing,’ said there was the need for people to get the right information on sexual health.

She said getting the right information would help partners to be opened to each other.

“What has sexual health got to do with emotional wellbeing? Imagine someone who has wrong information about sex and this same person is now sexually abused; this person now goes into a relationship or marriage with that mindset without all those things being resolved, the person will not be sexually healthy.

“When we talk about sexual health, we are talking about a state of physical, emotional and social wellbeing. If you are not sexually healthy, you cannot enjoy sexual intercourse.

“When we talk about physical health, we are talking about self-image, like how do you see yourself? If you don’t love yourself you will not be willing to expose yourself to a partner,” Udoka said.

Source: Punch