UNICEF spokesperson James Elder stated this year that “tens and tens of millions of youngsters have been left feeling isolated and afraid and lonely and anxious because of these enforced lockdowns and isolations that have become as a result of this pandemic.”
The school official of one of the state universities in the Philippines told me that anxiety was the dominant emotion that their academic community was experiencing amid the pandemic.
When I was lining up for vaccination, I got to converse with a couple. The man specifically vented his feelings about not receiving the appropriate services a PWD-card holder should be accorded to because his disability came in the form of mental health concerns, specifically through panic attacks.
I also had a discussion with my college mates about education challenges in our country. I shared the experience of some teachers who were asked to implement forgiveness modules that covered issues on personal rejection, family conflicts, and bullying, among others. Faculty members realized that they needed processing of hurts before sharing the sessions with their students.
Globally, we have been seeing the importance of addressing our mental wellness. The integrative approach of holistic health is necessary, not only as an initiative of the government but as a joint effort of other institutions like the Church and the private sector.
In the Philippines alone, there is a lack of mental health professionals. We need more individuals and organizations to network and share resources to combat the rise in mental health issues.
UNICEF has partnered with countries to facilitate online counseling services. In the Philippines, our National Center for Mental Health has hotlines such as the 1533 Luzon-wide toll-free landline.
As part of this advocacy, I have been asked to give talks on the balanced approach to our well-being to audiences like the youth, medical personnel, the military, senior citizens, Church staff, and servants. Some schools and Church groups offer peer accompaniment online to those in need of a listening ear.
In Fratelli Tutti, Pope Francis stresses, “we need to have the courage to give a voice to those who are discriminated against due to their disability, because sadly, in some countries even today, people find it hard to acknowledge them as persons of equal dignity”(98). This disability may come in the form of emotional baggage and spiritual-psychological issues that a person may need to face. May we, as a community, reach out to one another as wounded healers, instruments of God’s mercy.
