Kerala: Ernakulam tops list on number of people making distress calls

KOCHI: The number of people under quarantine seeking psychological support is high in Ernakulam compared to other districts in the state.

Over three thousand people have sought counselling in the district till Friday since the lockdown kicked in. The psycho-social helpline in Kozhikode, which stood second in the list, received distress calls from as many as 1,151 people.

With the number of people undergoing quarantine rising, the forced isolation is leading to a negative psychological impact on many. The consequences are more severe for city dwellers living cooped up in their flats than on those living in rural areas, say counsellors.

A total of 3,371 people in the district have sought counselling till June 19. While 1,906 people sought assistance to deal with stress, 552 were worried about the social stigma associated with coronavirus infection and its fallout on their families.

“As against people in rural areas, those living in the city do not have any means to let out their emotions. They are financially sound and mostly live in flats and have little or absolutely no communication with their neighbours. They mostly belong to middle and upper classes and while undergoing quarantine, they are comfortable to open up on their anxieties to counsellors who are strangers to them instead of an acquaintance. Those from lower, middle-income families are the ones who have suffered

financial setbacks

. They are more worried about financial support,” said Soumya Raj, nodal officerof district mental health programme.

For the elderly and those living alone, absence of their loved ones is painful. Some of them are living even without maids. We received several calls from such people as well, she added.

The counsellors explain to them how to deal with anxiety, depression, sleeplessness and psychological issues over phone on daily basis.

People living close to those who are undergoing quarantine also call up the counsellors due to the anxiety and fear over contracting Covid-19.

“In one such case, after a man was asked to undergo home quarantine in his flat, his neighbours got tensed. We collected a list of all residents in the flat and called them up to address their concerns. They were very tensed until the tests results came out,” said Soumya.

Several people have protested against allowing suspected Covid patients to undergo quarantine in their residential complexes, she added.

Ernakulam District Residents’

Association Apex Council

(EDRAAC) members said the council has been conducting awareness programmes for residents to maintain social distancing and not to stigmatize people in quarantine or those infected with Covid-19.

“People are really scared. We have been asking residents not to let those in quarantine feel isolated. We need fight Covid-19 and keep the virus at a distance, not the people,” said EDRAAC president Rangadasa Prabhu.