MENTAL agony plagues too many people. New data from the WHO warns of a crisis of staggering proportions: one billion people worldwide live with mental health issues. Anxiety and depression form the second leading reason for long-term debility. Suicide claims one in every 100 lives among the young — some 727,000 people died by suicide in 2021 alone. At this rate, the SDG target of a one-third reduction in suicide rates by 2030 is unattainable. While the WHO’s World Mental Health Today and Mental Health Atlas 2024 reports have highlighted some areas of progress, a vacuum in the global approach to this health calamity is also evident. Additionally, the world economy loses $1tr annually due to psychological disorders as productivity stands drastically impaired. Although mental illness spares no one, the reports says that women are afflicted at a disproportionate rate.

Matters are bound to turn darker on account of the devastation wreaked by climate catastrophes, and at the moment, Pakistan is reliving the 2022 floods, which impacted 33m people and killed hundreds. Since the end of June, cloudbursts and flash floods have battered KP, Punjab and Gilgit-Baltistan. Reportedly, more than 5.5m are affected, with more than 2m displaced. As authorities stress on physical remedies — aid, relief camps and relocation — they should remain aware of the silent mental health disaster that grips the country. Every displacement, collapsed home, loss of life and livelihood causes debilitating fear, depression, PTSD, and the dire consequences of these. Flood-affected populations in GB, particularly in Ghizer district, face a severe emotional health emergency, triggering a response from the region’s government to begin psychological rehabilitation initiatives. With fewer than 500 psychiatrists for 240m Pakistanis, the government has little choice but to seek international collaboration. Deeper concerns — insomnia, survivor’s guilt, ‘intrusive memories’ — require specialised support to prevent chronic reactions. Psychological repercussions surface over weeks. Climate blows, unlike socioeconomic distress, are here to stay. We cannot continue without disaster-response policies that assimilate mental care, which includes a vast workforce trained in psychological support, mobile mental aid services as well the political commitment to treat mental turmoil.

Published in Dawn, September 8th, 2025