People aged 20-30 years most affected by mental illness: survey.

ISLAMABAD -- Women and men between the ages of 20 to 30 years in Pakistan are most affected by some form of mental illness.

This has been highlighted in a report of the World Health Organisation (WHO).

SehatYab, an online mental health service quoting the report, highlighted that 15pc of Pakistan's population (25 million people) were living with a mental health condition. However, there were only between 500-600 psychiatrists available to provide treatment.

The psychiatrist - patient ratio was amongst the lowest even when compared to developing countries, the report stated, adding that, 'four out of five patients suffering from mental health issues do not seek treatment'. 'That is a huge number and arises primarily due to lack of awareness as symptoms were believed to be signs of poor faith. Among other reasons was depression, which was under-played with being lazy and anxiety with being fussy,' it added.

Says 15pc of the country's population suffers from a condition

Sometimes, people with certain conditions are labelled as being possessed by a supernatural entity, it stated, adding that it was this lack of awareness that SehatYab's management wanted to tackle.

A symptoms-based self-assessment questionnaire was developed (on guidelines developed by Mental Health America) in easy Urdu. The questionnaire was promoted through social media for free and the respondents got a result which suggested whether they need a psychiatrist, psychologist or self-care besides indications of anxiety and/or depression.

During the period, February 2022 to May 2022, the online self-assessment survey was launched. Its aim was to firstly, create mental health awareness and secondly, to generate...