EDITORIAL - State of mind

One of the biggest news events to grab the attention of the public recently was the shooting of former soldier Winston Ragos by Police Master Sergeant Daniel Florendo Jr. in Quezon City.

The incident has raised several issues, including concerns by some sectors that it is a preview of what will happen if the state declares martial law. However, this piece isn’t about martial law, it’s about another aspect of the incident; mental health.

According to the family and friends of Ragos, he wasn’t right in the head after being discharged from the army. Before his discharge, Ragos was in the thick of the fighting to liberate Marawi from terrorists. Medical experts refer to a condition many fighting men suffer as Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD).

Two questions arise from that incident. The first is, are our soldiers getting enough care in the way of mental health after they leave the army? Another is, how prepared are we to deal with mental health issues, not just for police and armed forces veterans, but also the public in general?

Why should this issue concern us? Apparently, you don’t get PTSD only in the battlefield. Any traumatizing event like natural disasters, serious accidents, life-threatening illnesses, physical abuse, and even sexual assault during childhood or adulthood can lead to someone having PTSD. Remember the aftermath of super typhoon Yolanda? Many survivors, especially in the hardest-hit areas, needed counseling because they found it hard to go on with their daily lives after what they saw, experienced, and did just to survive.

Also, PTSD is only one of many mental health concerns that we may soon be facing.

Considering the number of days we have been shackled in our own homes, mental health issues may soon become a pressing issue for some of us.

The mind constantly needs stimulus to stay healthy, and for many of us, there’s just not enough stimulus in our homes, or even our immediate environs to keep us sound of mind.

Because we don’t easily see problems of the mind as we easily see problems of other parts of the body, it’s very easy to overlook mental health concerns. This is something not just the government, but all sectors of society should look into as soon as the situation permits.