Stress levels high among Trinis

Harriott was one of several people Sunday Newsday spoke to find out how stressed the public is, their coping mechanism and level of awareness on the topic of mental illness after yesterday’s lead story about 11,000 cases of mental illness as reported by the South West Regional Health Authority.

Harriott has had to overcome many stressful moments, much greater than worry about the cost of school books. Her father committed suicide 13 years ago. Although he was a very active person he went into a deep state of depression which led to him ingesting poison.

“I remember asking my father why he drank the poison but he could not give me a logical answer, he had dementia.

I am aware of how serious mental illness is and on occasions I feel depressed due to financial constraints but I hold myself together for my children. I don’t want them to suffer. I also know about Barataria’s Mental Health and Wellness Centre as being a good facility to help persons as well,” Harriott told Sunday Newsday.

A teenager also spoke about losing someone to suicide.

“I had a friend who committed suicide. She was quite reserved and never socialised much but we never suspected things were so bad until she died,” said 17-yearold Nickell Lewis. He also deals with anger issues and finds prayer to be a great outlet to calm himself. While his friend, Joseph Rogers, also 17, said he believes mental illness has a lot to do with a person’s mentality, as such he tries his best to remain calm or walk away from hostile situations.

Mahaylia Richardson, who also spoke frankly, tries to not get stressed out by the state of the economy and crime.

“It is frightening when I look at the crime situation in our country and the fact that I recently graduated, so getting a decent job is also something I think about, I don’t let it get to me, as life goes on.” Norine Bazie, another interviewee, said she is aware of the many forms of mental illness—anxiety, depression, insomnia and dementia but manages her stress by being active and involved in different activities.

While the stresses of daily life can take many forms, the way people cope with it affects the quality of their lives.

“Mental health issues remain a worldwide phenomenon and the challenges of dealing with mental health is growing,” South West Regional Health Authority acting chief executive officer Gail Miller Meade had said during Friday’s launch of the TT Association for the Improvement of Mental Health in San Fernando.