ON October 10 we celebrated Mental Health Day and all of social media turned green. It was quite a pleasant sight that made my heart smile as I thought that the importance of mental health awareness was being realised.

A few weeks later I was thrust into utter disappointment as a friend of mine tried unsuccessfully to get help for someone close to him who was struggling with suicidal thoughts. The government-operated mental health helplines went unanswered and when he finally got through to a counselling centre, they stated they could not provide any immediate assistance because they required payment before a future appointment could be scheduled.

These events brought to my realisation just how unprepared we are to support those persons struggling with mental health challenges, and how unconcerned some “mental health professionals” can be.

In true millennial fashion I took to Google to see what “help” was available for those with mental health issues in Jamaica and the very first link took me to a website which spoke about the Mental Health Unit,which apparently is a branch of the Ministry of Health and Wellness. That website had no “help” available — no useful tips, no support resources. There was however a link at the bottom of the page which brought me to another website with pretty brochures and an inspirational video.

But what do I do if I am struggling with my mental health right now, in this moment?

There was another link which spoke about a wonderful initiative which was launched to provide mental health support for Jamaican youth aged 16-24. Even though I’m six years older than the target, I decided to give it a try and sent the word SUPPORT to the number provided. At the point of writing this article I have not received a response via WhatsApp and the number they gave me to call seems to have been malfunctioning the three times I called.

When I started this investigation I was in a good place mentally and not in need of physiological support. The frustration I experienced as a result of this investigation must be mild compared to someone who is feeling mentally overwhelmed, alone, frustrated with life and on the verge of giving into the negative thoughts prompting them to give up on life.

I know what those thoughts are like as 14 years ago I lived with them — and if at that point I had tried to reach out for help and failed…well let’s just say you wouldn’t be reading this article today.

Mental health needs to be more than signing MOUs and launching beautiful websites; it needs to be more than public relations tactics to make our elected officials look good. People are struggling and in need of help. Often times they are hesitant to try and get help because they fear scrutiny and even worse, they fear help will not be available.

In a publication prepared in 2019 for Jamaica’s Ministry of Health and Wellness, the Pan American Health Organisation and United Nations Development Programme noted that there has been a rise in the number of individuals seeking treatment for mental illness.

In 2013 and 2014 there were approximately 90,000 visits to public health facilities for mental health treatment — which grew to nearly 108,000 visits in 2015 and 132,000 in 2016. If we assume that this number grows by 20 per cent each year that would mean in 2022 there are over 390,000 visits for mental health treatment.

Now, I am a mere writer who by no means fancies myself a statistician so take my figures very lightly, however, even the PAHO publication stated that access to mental health services in Jamaica is low, with insufficient resources allocated to scale up treatment.

I dream of a Jamaica where mental health treatment is made into a priority, where help is readily available and overpouring to those who really need it, and helplines are used as more than copy on website brochures.

Sereta Thompson is a public relations professional and mental health advocate. She can be contacted at seretaathompson@gmail.com Follow her on Instagram @ShadesOfSerri