Mother's Mental Trauma

Mental health is a serious issue. Many people take it lightly. They do not express mental health issues either due to a lack of seriousness or fear of society.

Recent statistics tell us that 7 out of 10 people in India have faced mental health issues. Many people suffer from mental disorders due to various reasons.

According to psychologists, mental trauma results from the surrounding environment and pressure conditions. Loud noise, constant quarrels, irritating behavior, jealousy, work pressure, anxiety, death of dear ones among others contribute to mental illness.

My mother is suffering from mental trauma. I have seen it up close. It's a terrible issue to cope with. My mother, after her late 50s, came under the grasp of mental illnesses. She started shouting at everyone, including us. She started fearing people and stopped going outside of our home. She ignored her daily routine. Throughout the day, she started talking to herself, remembering incidents from her past life.

She began to believe that everyone was disrespecting her and speaking ill of her. If someone was laughing nearby, she assumed he/she was laughing at her.

She started reacting randomly and illogically. So much so that she would not open the door unless she was sure it was me or my elder brother. Apart from us, she would not open the door for anyone else.

This behavior began in December 2017, following my father's demise. My father passed away in December 2017, and since then, she has become abnormal. She couldn't absorb the shock.

Now things are getting worse. No counseling is helping her. Several doctors have visited her, but there has been no improvement. She behaves irrationally and even shouts at most of the doctors.

It pains me greatly to see all of this. I feel very sorry for her. I consistently console her, talk to her, and explain everything to her. She agrees to some points sometimes and promises not to shout anymore, but the next day, she shouts again.

My neighbors are also disturbed and often complain to me about her erratic behavior. Sometimes, I also feel helpless and don't know what to do or what the way forward is. She needs medication, but she vehemently opposes going to the hospital or taking any medicine.

She is going through a very dark and difficult phase in her life. This age and stage of life are challenging to navigate. It's affecting me and my brother profoundly.

She has fallen down on the floor and broke her hip joint severely. She is going through unbearable and severe pain. However, she does not want to go to hospital even for check up. She is not allowing any home visit of doctors also. This is beyond explanation. No body can help her at this point of time except herself.

Honestly, I don't know what the solution is, and I'm still trying to figure out how to help her. It's very challenging to address these mental traumas. I can only pray to Lord Jagannath to help her overcome this stigmatic mental trauma and bless her with peace, prosperity, happiness, and good health forever.