Mental Aliments and Behaviour of Society - year 2005

A woman, screaming and shouting in the passage of the mental hospital - explaining something that appeared quite hazy to me. I kept on walking - head down, heart beating faster, a bit nervous and scared. As I approached, her voice became louder and louder. I automatically slowed down as I raised my head. She silently but furiously looked into my eyes, and I looked into hers … I tried to ignore, but then suddenly, she smiled and came nearer, “assalam alaikum baji” she said and extended her hand, my feet froze and with a slight reluctant smile on my lips, I replied - “walaikum assalam” and extended my hand too. Suddenly my nervousness overcame by curiosity, to know her - to know her more. She held my hand tightly and said “baji ! aap mujhey yahaan se leiney ayee hein?” she made me speechless … all I could say was “mien aatee hoon abhee”, then she loosen my hand a little and I walked quickly into the doctor’s office - hiding my feelings, from my own self.

Hundreds and thousands of mentally ill people, living in the ‘mental hospital’ for years, are waiting desperately for someone to come and take them back to their families. But no one comes; instead they are forgotten or disowned by their families - even by their own children. Days pass - and hope grows in their eyes, however their health deteriorates… they accept their fellows as friends and sometimes as foes. Then a stranger like me, from an outside world entering into their territory stimulates their gaze; dead and silent; and a buried hope emerges form their hearts.

When I entered the gates of the institution, their gaze followed me, strangely; I felt like losing all the confidence and strange feeling arose in my heart – “perhaps I am the one they were waiting for” – I question myself, “am I the real one?” Helplessness! Defeating me completely; “NO! I’m NOT the one…”

The ‘Institution for Mental Health’ commonly known as Pagal Khana, is the Lahore’s very old a famous institution for the patients having mental ailments. People from the outer world conceive it as a place where patient are fighting, crying or screaming, talking to themselves, getting electric shocks all the time, possess aggressive and uncontrolled behaviour, there are filthy floors everywhere, torn clothes; dark and depressing air to breath in.

A wall segregates this chunk of population from the rest of the world; and the irony is that whatever people perceive about it is being build up by the media. Media plays a powerful role but fact of the matter is that it is sometimes not well researched and is overstated. Since it has strong visual impact, it builds the perception more powerfully before losing the credibility of the imagery.

Mental Hospital has the capacity to admit 1400 male and female patients. Where they are being treated and sent to the rehabilitation after achieving certain level of stability. But after that, a stage comes when they are encouraged to send to their families.

However it is distressing to see that sometimes due to the socio- economic factors their families disown them. Hence at the time of their discharge from the hospital it is usually revealed, that the address that has been filled in the records does not even exist. Hence they have to come back and live in the asylum for the rest of their lives. Sometimes patients are taken to their homes but due to poor economic factors the families request the authorities to take the patient back or even if they accept them, they ill-treat them by not giving them the required medicines so that their health deteriorates and they have an excuse to send the patient back.

Doctors at the hospital say that they work so hard on improving the condition of the patient and they usually do get better with the passage of time; but the behaviour of the families worsen their condition. If we improve their condition to 80% when they come back from their homes they are again at 0%. Nevertheless when they are discharged they are given one month medicine in advance for free. Acceptance starts from home; yet this is so distressing that their families don’t accept them; then how do we expect that the society with accept them as other individuals living in the society. The doctors say that how far can they go and accommodate the patient with this limited capacity of beds and facilities.

A label, “mentally ill” is enough to make people hate them. No matter they are more talented and capable than we are. We can let our dog lick us from head to toe but would never let these humans touch us, for sure. We forget that they have a beating heart and a living soul; they can be intense from inside, where love can grow.

There are many mental disorders that do not require any such environment but mild medication supplemented by something that we call love and care of family can improve there health condition. But lack of awareness and poor economic conditions create a strange sense of rejection towards them. Hence they are deemed to be an obligation for their family and thus are sent to the social institution that is a stigma in our world – ‘The Mental Hospital’ – ‘Pagal Khana’.

Everyone wants to be loved by those whom he loves the most; but what about those who are locked up in dungeons or sent at places where no normal human is seen, as they have been labelled as a “Pagal”- a Psycho. Perhaps, these people need love and care more than we do, but whenever there is such an encounter, we either make fun of them or we treat them like untouchables or may be like ‘unwanted aliens’. It is a fact that sometimes, they might be dangerous but mostly they are not. Even normal humans act merciless towards them.

The acceptance of mentally ill in our society totally depends upon the old rituals that have no truth or morals. But, if our education and intellect can not make us realize that there is God who is watching over us and we have to accept His variety of beings, then this education is of no use. We have to accept them, we have to understand them and we have to love them. If we can not do that then we must not insult them. Who knows, a day will come when we meet a horrible fate like that and are too rejected by our loved ones … Imagine! …