Sri Lanka Sumithrayo highlights building resilience post-COVID

By Yomal Senerath-Yapa 

Sri Lanka Sumithrayo held its annual World Suicide Prevention Day press conference at its Horton Place premises on Thursday, September 10 highlighting this year’s theme ‘Answering the Call: Responding to post-COVID challenges and building resilience’. 

Sumithrayo, founded in 1974 by Ms. Joan de Mel, strives to provide emotional succour to those at risk of suicide. 

Dr. Shehan Perera, consultant paediatric cardiologist, made the preliminary speech on Answering the Call- illustrating instances where a little altruism can make a difference in the lives of the vulnerable.  

Setting the tone for the conference, Dr. Perera said “You don’t really need money to help someone. At times, all it takes is a simple chat. Too often, we underestimate the power of touch, a smile, a kind word, a listening ear, an honest compliment or the smallest act of caring- all of which have the potential to turn a life around.”

Child and adolescent psychiatrist Dr. Udena Attygalle focused on the impact of the pandemic on children, and the coping skills they will need to deal with stresses post-pandemic. 

For children, the unpredictability of the post-COVID world could be frightening. It makes them feel that circumstances are ‘beyond control’. As children are heavily influenced by the adults in their lives, it is up to teachers and parents to make them feel secure- “for our feelings can be contagious,” Dr Attygalle said. Children are affected deeply if they feel their adults are under pressure- and consequently it is important for adults to not manifest to children that they are stressed.

Adolescent boys are especially prone to stress as society pushes them to be more bottled up, said Dr. Attygalle, while pointing out that adolescents tend to commit suicide often on impulse for very trifling reasons. 

He noted that it is important for adolescents to realise that “some problems do not have solutions.”

In order to endure such problems, we must learn to be content with what we have. “So in fact doing things by halves- instead of always expecting the utmost from life- can be a good thing after all.” 

“It is vital to show a suicidal person that we care- that lessens the motive significantly.”

Adults should also practise endurance themselves to set an example. It is important to have a place of mental refuge where we can retreat to in troubled times. “To make them feel secure we should feel secure first.”

Consultant psychiatrist Dr. Jayamal de Silva explored anxiety, depression and substance abuse in the aftermath of the COVID-19 pandemic, and coping skills for suicide prevention.

Suicide rates in Sri Lanka since 1995 (when the country had alarming statistics of 47 per 100,000) have come down to 14 per 100,000. They are now not as high as rates in some developed countries like Japan or even Finland and Australia, but still high when compared to countries in the region.

A common misconception, says Dr. de Silva, is to apportion all the blame to poverty- an idea disproven by the fact that many low income African and South American countries have very low suicide rates.             
      
Improvements in Sri Lanka were precipitated by the Presidential Task Force appointed in 1997 but many social factors have contributed. 

There are today trishaws readily available in villages and roads are in much better conditions, making medical care more accessible. Pesticides cannot be obtained readily, and medical treatment for suicide attempts is better regulated. 

Vis-à-vis causes, 20 percent of suicides are due to marital disharmony while 12 percent are triggered by chronic illnesses. Fifty percent of suicides were due to alcohol.  

The signs that a person may be suicidal include unhappiness, seeking isolation and talking little, lack of self-esteem and stating that they are contemplating suicide. 

Ironically, bringing talk of suicide into the open could result in escalated numbers of suicides. Dr. de Silva stresses, “When talking about suicide- our approaches should vary according to the audience- from the media, children, professionals or counsellors.”

“With adolescents and younger audiences, we should be very careful of how to talk of suicide- and take care not to elaborate on methods,” he added.