Why we need a pandemic to focus on mental health, asks Shama

As someone who has battled depression and bipolar disorder, Shama Sikander has been very vocal about mental health issues. But the actor laments how the topic gains prominence only when there’s a crisis like the current pandemic.

“Even during the last lockdown in 2020, everyone spoke about mental health because they suddenly realised its importance. The moment the lockdown ended, everybody forgot about it... it’s not going to work,” she rues. Pointing out how the discussion around mental health came back in focus only after the second wave of Covid-19 hit the country, the actor insists we need to talk about it on a day-to-day basis. “I’ve recently seen big celebrities resume the dialogue around mental health. Suddenly, it has become the talking point. But I’ve been talking about it all year long. It should be talked about all the time, lockdown or no lockdown, pandemic or no pandemic,” she says.

Sikander, 39, feels every person must ensure that people around them are doing fine during these testing times. “You just get busy with worldly things and think that you’re fine. But you’re not. You need to heal. People are suffering from within. I wonder when we are going to realise that mental health is the most important thing, and not just during the tough times,” she adds.

As for herself, the actor is using this time to heal and meditate to keep dark thoughts at bay, something that she recommends others to do as well. “I’m a very spiritual person and I’ve been meditating more and more over the past year. It has made me more accepting of this situation. The catastrophe has happened for us to realise how fragile life is and how we need to stop and understand the value of life and what it is offering us,” she concludes.

Mental should health be about talked all the pandemic time, or no pandemic. SHAMA SIKANDER,

Actor