COVID-19 Unleashes Mental Pandemic Among Senior Executives

Over 30 million people around the globe have been infected with the novel coronavirus. With a rise in infections, the number of individuals with mental health concerns is sloping upward too.

Significant reduction in social contact, job insecurity, adapting to the work-from-home environment, increased work pressure, lack of economic stability, fear of infection and infecting loved ones has been plaguing people's minds leading to increased mental distress.

A study published in The Lancet on the burden of mental health in India between 1990 and 2017 has found 197 million Indians were suffering from mental disorders. Within these, 45.7 million were reported to have depressive disorders and 44.9 million were suffering from anxiety disorders.

Researchers have suggested that mental health concerns already existed during pre-COVID times. However, the pandemic has led to an alarming rise in such cases.

Notably, the silent mental pandemic has been affecting the working class particularly the senior executives and top management officials.

A senior manager working with a large Bengaluru-based IT services company was on the verge of a nervous breakdown before he reached out for professional help last month.

A change in lifestyle due to several months of working remotely while juggling looking after a young child and helping with household chores, along with mounting pressure to meet targets and the stress of managing team members got the best of him, reported Economic Times.

He reportedly had turned aggressive and abusive against his child for the first time in his life, stated Archana Bisht, founder of 1to1help.net, an employee mental wellbeing firm that came to the technology professional's aid.

"This was the last straw for him and he turned to us for help," she said.

"Being at the top, business leaders do not have many people to turn to. It is for the first time that we are finding so many leaders stressed out," said Navnit Singh, CEO and MD India for Korn Ferry (management consulting firm).

"Today's leader has to act like a sponge, taking pressure from outside and even inside the firm. This is not easy for all the leaders in such an unprecedented situation," said Dr Samir Parikh, director of the department of mental health and behavioural sciences, Fortis Healthcare.

Also Read: India's COVID Deaths Cross 1-Lakh Mark, Tally Crosses 64.7 Lakh: 10 Points