Afraid dengue may kill mum, 23-year-old attempts suicide

A 23-year-old woman from Colaba attempted suicide by consuming phenyl and 15 tablets of crocin on Saturday after she learnt that her mother is suspected to have dengue fever. She was rushed to GT hospital and admitted to the Intensive Care Unit (ICU), where doctors say she is ‘critical but stable’.

The doctors added that her mother was also admitted to the hospital on Monday after she was tested positive for dengue. Her condition is said to be stable and she is responding well to the medication.

Since past two months, the city has been battling the spurt in dengue cases and deaths, which led the woman to think that her mother would also die of the disease.

The doctors at the hospital said that the woman was working as a sales manager in a leading bank but had resigned a week ago as she was facing difficulties in her job.

Dr Sagar Mundada, who is treating her, said: “We have seen cases of young women attempting suicide for various reasons such as relationship and family issues. But I was shocked when I got to know that she tried to kill herself thinking that her mother would die of dengue. We learnt from the relatives that the woman is stubborn and impulsive in nature, which are traits of Cluster B personality. There is also a co-factor in this case that she was stressed because of her job.”

City experts stated that the state of mental health in the city has become a huge cause of concern with age-group 15-29 reporting the highest suicide attempts. Also, 42.5% people employed in the private sector are battling depression, anxiety and sleep-related problems.