The Mental Health Crisis is Real

Behind those eyes there are lost souls. Souls who are sad and broken. Having worked in a hospital for the past two years I have seen many lost souls. Broken souls who have given up. I have seen drug addicts who have overdosed and ended up on ventilators. I have sat with mentally ill patients who tried to take their own lives. Though it breaks my heart I can’t help but relate with these souls for I myself have a mental illness but still I forge ahead dedicating my life to helping others. As a patient care assistant I sat as a sitter with patients who were so lost that they turned to violence and yes I was hit and kicked and almost strangled. As someone with post traumatic stress disorder I am not afraid to admit that yes it just made my own problems worse. When I was badly injured on the job I took it as a sign that perhaps God was telling me that it was time to move away from that job. I was later put on light duty and now work as an entry screener and some days I work at the mental health facility. What I have discovered is that since the pandemic and riots the mental health crisis has greatly increased. Not only is the adult unit filled to capacity but so is the children’s ward. Yes many children now have mental health problems and it’s heartbreaking. I have sat there watching as young kids younger than my own son who is twelve run into their parents arms after being locked away for god knows how many weeks. I have seen people being brought in and admitted to the units and I have seen the sadness in their eyes. It seems as though the mental health crisis has fallen through the cracks. Especially as the world continues to deal with the pandemic, rioting and politics. We are so blinded by what is happening around us. Having to wear a mask, dealing with a presidential election, a broken economy that is on the verge of ruin. There is just so much going on in the world that it comes as no surprise that so many are now lost. So many lost their jobs, their livelihoods and even contact with their own family due to lockdown. Children were unable to continue out the school year or even see their friends. I mean let’s face it, to some it was a chance to be close to one another but for those without families it was a lonely and frightening time. Look at those at the nursing homes unable to see family members. I would imagine those very people are having mental health issues of their own. I can only hope that the light will finally be shone on this crisis and that these patients will get the help that they need.