Reading their mind

 

 

A group of mental health professionals visited the violence affected areas of Nandigram on 5 March 2007. The purpose of the visit was to assess the mental status of the affected people and families of the deceased, following the violent incidents and mass killings. They were assessed by clinical interviews and administration of psychological tests.

A formal interview with the family members of Arup Das, killed by a mob at Gaudan Bedia village last month, revealed disruptive interaction pattern, feelings of helplessness, hopelessness, insecurity and fearfulness. They reported disturbed sleep, loss of appetite and anticipatory anxiety about a similar incident or some untoward happening. His wife Supti, was brought to tears following more persuasion and assurance. Reportedly, she had decreased interaction, death wish and crying spells. Depressive cognition was also well pronounced.

Arup’s elder brother, Amiyo Das (50) reported that he had been asking questions and getting answers related to daily chores from the deceased – a clear case of hallucination borne out of trauma and acute stress interaction. Another group of villagers at Hasanpur village and the adjoining areas were interviewed. A 35-year-old woman, Anusuran Biwi, reported that she was quite scared, did not sleep at night and her family members patrolled in turns, as there was fear of being attacked again. The fear has engulfed them so acutely that their day to day social and occupational functioning has got affected. Villagers had stopped going out of their homes due to the fear of being singled out and killed. Feelings of being cheated and deceived were at their peak.

Elderly villagers shared their feelings of mistrust, anger, an imminent and impending crisis, fear about all spheres of life, be it social or occupational. Their earnings have been affected and they feel like victims, due to no fault of theirs. Biological functions have been affected the most, like decreased appetite and virtually no sleep, as they have to be vigilant at night in apprehension of an attack anytime. It’s not about night patrolling, but they have to be over vigilant during the day as well to ensure their safety. This lifestyle was taking a toll on them, in terms of physical and psychiatric problems. Children, during the interview with the team, reported fear, disruption of their studies and play activities. They have stopped going to school, cling to their parents and cry too often, as one of the mothers reported; all these being manifestations of fear, as nightmares and emotional disturbances. On being interviewed, Saswati, a daughter of one of the deceased, reported that the interpersonal problems were on an increase within their families. She was preoccupied with the feeling of insecurity related to the economic status of the family and her marriage. She expressed her loss of identity as a caring, strong and competent person. She had feeling of numbness in different parts of her body, especially when she thought a lot about related issues. Due to the fear and the violence, villagers like Khairun Biwi and Qareem Shah, reported mixed feelings of anxiety and depression, associated with agitation. They feel a threat to their life throughout the day and night and decline in interest in their day to day activities. Their emotional disturbance was caused by uncertainty surrounding the occupation and their economical well-being.

The gravity of the situation was evident, when one of the elderly women, Rabia Khatun, started shouting loudly, giving way to pent up emotions of anger, frustration, feeling of being deceived, mistrust of every outsider, apprehension and death hovering overthem all the time. The findings of the psychological tests revealed feelings of insecurity, mistrust, higher level of situational stress, anxiety, suspiciousness, need to be vigilant, helplessness, aggressiveness, emotional withdrawal, indecisiveness and inadequacy.

The interaction with the people of Nandigram has thrown light upon their fight for life. This fight or flight as normal human reaction to threat will deteriorate their physical and mental health. Hence, timely action needs to be taken, to ensure their mental health, as the picture being manifested by people is just the “tip of a huge iceberg”.