Mental Health of Women

- Srikkoni Basu

"It ate me alive but no worries I wore the day mask to show my merries I was stuck in phantasm as they say 'time heals' It is so hard to carry the hate I stood at the edge of the roof with infinite fluster and insomnia extended my hand for help but it was quite late to apprehend." Although the suicide rate of Males are higher than women but the Covid-19 pandemic has affected women more than men and specially the housewives. Why are the homemakers suffering during this pandemic? Is the society not concerned about the mental issue among the homemakers or is it too taboo for a woman to have illness because she is not working, it's her duty to take care of her family, which is not a big deal right? Pandemic stopped everything, the schools were closed, the offices were closed, businesses were closed but the only thing which never stopped is the 'duty' of homemakers. Since ages, women were never safe outside home but due to the ongoing pandemic, unfortunately home is not their safe place either. Recently, in Delhi, The capital of India, we witnessed a breathtaking video. In the video, the husband of a young brave lady stabbed her chest on the main road, just because she wanted to work. Surprisingly, the shop which recorded the footage, also recorded how people came to watch the murder scene but kept on watching without stopping them. Was it their personal matter? Was it her fault? Women are overwhelmingly likelier than men to be employed as housekeepers as well, and when lockdowns hit, many were faced with a terrible choice: they could quarantine with their employer’s family and hold on to their job, or quarantine with their own family, and lose the source of income that made it possible to support them.

While the rural regions, the pregnant women highly suffered from mental illness and the most cases were of female foeticide. All the backward mindset family member wants a son over daughter. The undernourished mothers were kicked out of the house and they didn't have any place to go. Just not this, the rape cases were doubled than before. The women whose husbands or children are fighting for their lives in hospitals were forced to have intercourse with the workers. The oxygen cylinder were not available to them unless, they had to hand over their respect and dignity to the workers for saving their family. Everyone knew about the cases but what happened, the next day it happened all over again with someone else.

In some situation, it was observed dramatic crises, male aggression has long been more easily excused, especially when the anger was only temporary and had been the subject of sincere regret. Male violence may even have seemed legitimate for some people, as at it can be normal for a man to behave aggressively in situations of crisis and personal suffering, women then are being accused of having over-reacted. There are number of cases which resulted in lack of adequate domestic and emotional support which led consequences on women's mental health. The risk of anxiety, depression and post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) is also much higher in women and in society like us doesn't even bother to look into matters like this. The mental illness of the mothers and housewives are surely less visible, but no less terrible. The quieter emotional pain of so many millions of people, too many of whom are paying a higher price simply because of their gender.