Kolo

   It’s an unpopular opinion that mental health issues in Nigeria just means you’re kolo. After this, any other thing is just seeming rubbish. Unfortunately in Nigeria, there are a lot of people who are seemingly okay because of the fear of negligence or stigma that comes with saying that they are either mentally unwell or destabilized. These things should never be overlooked especially with the upheaval of suicides in the country.

  WHO describes mental health as an important and essential component of health, which is a state of complete physical, mental, and social well-being not just the absence of disease or infirmity. Simply put one’s mental health can affect the way one thinks, operates, and relates with others. 

Mental/behavioral disorders worry people of different tribes, races, ages, and strata (jobless/wealthy) yet, there is still goodly neglect of mental health. In 2006, WHO-AIMS estimated that 20-30% of Nigerians suffered from mental health/behavioral disorders. That means about 20 million Nigerians suffer from mental illness, even more alarming is the fact that most of them go without professional assistance. Many things contribute to these high figures some of which include the decadence of our economy and the negativity of environmental externalities (bad energy please stay far away).
   

If you were asked who is most likely to be “kolo” who might you say if we’re being honest? In Nigeria, most people identify more with the overt cause of mental illness than the covert causes. Back to my question, most people will say “na the one's wey they take igbo go quick crase” or “if e dey their family e fit worry person for their generation” or” na juju”. There’s also an unpopular myth that says you might go crazy from over-reading (sigh), while I will not affirm or decline (again deep sigh) it is obvious that we already conclude what might, not exactly what does. While I am a vibrant believer in God, the idea of taking people who we think are mentally unstable for prayers instead of to a therapist or psychiatrist still baffles me (ignorance isn’t bliss).
  

Now that we can vaguely describe mental health/behavioral disorders, let us talk about the most common forms of mental disorders. Mental health/behavioral disorders are broadband of mental ill-health (it isn’t just the naked “mad” people we see parading the streets). Some are more severe than others and need the victims to be institutionalized or hospitalized, while others may need over the counter pills or therapeutic talk sessions. The less severe the case, the easier it is to handle it.

 

A few of these include;-

Anxiety disorders:-  these are very common. It includes bouts of fear and apprehension, sometimes an overwhelming feeling of fear in a social gathering that can lead to physical pain in the chest, headaches, and nausea. If left untreated it can become more frequent, accompanying it will be obsessive thoughts, panic attacks, and fear of leaving the house. It is commonly diagnosed as – panic disorders, obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD), post-traumatic stress disorder, social phobia, and generalized anxiety disorder (GAD).

Mood disorders:- another very common disorder, at least one out of ten adults suffer from this condition. It is normal to get in a bad mood (every now again we have feats) but if these feats last longer, are more severe and disruptive, you might just have a mood disorder. The most common causes of mood disorders include – bipolar disorders and depression. With proper diagnosis and treatment, you can lead a normal life with these ailments. Yet, if left untreated it can affect normal functioning and chronic health conditions such as heart conditions are worsened.

Schizophrenia/Psychosis: a significant change in cognitive and emotional functions marked by a serious brain injury (either car accident, a huge fall, or the likes).  This can lead to delusionary thoughts, speech impairment, distortion of images, etc. In most cases, people suffering from psychotic disorders hear voices, withdraw from others, are overly emotional, or show no signs of emotions.

Dementia:- ever heard your grandma complain about you as if you were her child and you tried as much as you could to tell her that it was your dad and not you? In Nigeria, people would say “na old age cause am”. Dementia is usually of a chronic or progressive nature in which there is deterioration in the ability to process thoughts beyond what might be expected from normal aging.  It affects one’s thought process, comprehension, memory, and judgment. Some other times you hear statements like “since that man get a stroke, en don dey talk nonsense. Na em village people don do am” – the impairment in cognitive function and incoherent speech is usually accompanied by deterioration in emotional control and social behavior (maybe just maybe that’s why we have so many angry old people). It is commonly diagnosed as Alzheimer’s disease, Parkinson's, and substance-induced dementia (drug/alcohol abuse).

Eating disorders:- have you ever been so angry or sad or heartbroken and all you want to do is eat? I’m talking about stuffing so much food in your system that you feel like passing out or just been so distraught that all you want to do is starve, days go by and you just do not feel hungry or motivated to eat? Eating disorders are serious chronic disorders that can be life-threatening if left untreated. They typically take root during adolescence years and primarily affect females, with variations in the way it is expressed by a person, it is usually found to involve obsessive and distressing thoughts and behavioral patterns. These include – reduction/inflation of food intake, feeling distraught, and low self-esteem. Most commonly diagnosed as Anorexia Nervosa (self-starvation), Bulimia Nervosa (binge eating followed by purging, fasting and excessive exercise), and Binge eating disorder (episodes of uncontrolled eating without the abuse of laxatives or vomiting).

Next time when someone tells you they feel mentally unstable or feel the need to see a psychologist or psychiatrist, please don’t tell them off with the wave of an arm or refute them, listen to them and encourage them. Yes, there are many “kolo” people roaming the street of Nigeria, and you just might be one of us.