The need to follow norms and live up to expectations can often affect women’s mental health. This is especially true during the festive season. Mental health issues in women peak during Diwali.
As a community, we strongly believe that responsibility for preparations on a festive day should be shared. It is not solely on the woman to handle everything.
EXPECTATIONS
Expectations during the festive season cause both physical and mental fatigue in women.
Performance related stress can affect mental wellbeing. Women are often expected to take lead in all activities to successfully finish a ritual. This expectation can hamper their mental health.
Women face tiredness, fatigue, back aches, body aches, headaches and other issues. Add to this, the responsibility to keep a balance between work and family can create stress and anxiety. If things don’t go well, it can build a sense of helplessness and worthlessness. Women aged 24 to 45 years specifically face significant stress. They experience work pressure from all parts of their life. This stress manifests in psychosomatic illnesses. It also leads to conflicts in relationships and other clinical symptoms.
The added pressure of gift-buying, social gatherings, and expectations of holiday cheer can become overwhelming. This can trigger or intensify symptoms like anxiety and depression.
Tips:
Women must learn to celebrate themselves every day through self-care.
Ultimately, family support makes every celebration worth its while.
During non-festive days women should take out time to satisfy their needs. Keep up with socialisation and surround themselves with positivism and a happy atmosphere.
It is an art and skill to make each day count – as important, bright, and vibrant as a festival. Invest in yourself from time to time, be in terms of wearing what you like .
(Dr Naresh Purohit is advisor, National Mental Health Programme. The views and opinion expressed in this article are those of the author)