Covid-19 in India: the population plagued by psychological sequelae
Audio 02:33
A health worker tests for Covid-19 when a train arrives in Bombay in April 2021. The country still registers more than 50,000 cases per day and also has to deal with psychological disorders linked to the disease.
© AFP / Punit Paranjpe
By: Sébastien Farcis Follow
6 mins
India has begun its deconfinement, after one of the most vague of the deadliest Covid-19 contaminations in the world, which occurred between April and May.
In big cities like New Delhi, life seems to be returning to its normal course, but in people's minds, the trauma of the crisis still haunts the Indian population, who feel like they have survived a war.
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From our correspondent in New Dehli,
Tawqeer Hussain is a journalist in New Delhi.
At the height of the crisis, he went to overwhelmed hospitals during the day, and in the evening, he helped his sick relatives to find a bed.
Then one day, he learns that a 34-year-old friend has died of Covid-19 because he could not find oxygen.
It is the beginning of a descent into hell.
“
I felt my heart stop beating. And from there I started having panic attacks. It sounded like heart attacks and kept coming back as soon as I had to write about Covid-19. It was caused by my feeling of helplessness in the face of this crisis and by a deep fear of dying,
”explains Tawqeer Hussain.
Yet he comes from the tormented region of Kashmir.
He grew up during the Civil War and covered the conflict as a journalist.
So he has already rubbed shoulders with death.
But this Covid-19 crisis was, for him, much more violent.
“
I've seen people die and activists shot in front of my eyes before, but it never bothered me.
Because during a conflict, you can protect yourself from bullets behind a wall.
But when a person runs out of oxygen, there's really nothing you can do.
And you don't know who will be the next person to die,
”says Tawqeer Hussain.
Psychological ailments after physical ailments
People cured of Covid-19 must also fight, now, against this kind of psychological disorder. This is the case of Anshuma Kshetrapal, who suffered from a severe form. “
This disease does not have a clear treatment protocol, so the doctors tried everything on me, which made me feel like a guinea pig. I no longer felt secure and lost faith in the system. It calmed down, but now I feel guilty for not helping the people who needed me when I was sick,
”worries Anshuma Kshetrapal.
Former patients, relatives of the deceased or simple frightened residents, a large part of the Indian population is now suffering the psychological impact of this massacre.
This is what Sreeja De, a psychologist in New Delhi, explains.
“
At the moment, every week, I receive 5 new patients affected by an emotional burnout.
The reasons are various, but the symptoms are anxieties, lethargy, reduced concentration and motivation,
”describes Sreeja De.
India is sorely lacking in psychologists to cope.
to compensate, the Nimhans Medical Institute launched a toll-free number that offers emergency psychological support during the pandemic.
In 15 months, more than 500,000 people have used it.
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