By  Elizabeth Herman | Posted: June 23, 2020

In a recent discussion with European leaders from an online platform, Gurudev Sri Sri Ravi Shankar addressed mental health issues as the world emerges from being shut down due to the coronavirus pandemic. The international group discussed coping with anxiety and depression, adjusting to online interactions, breathing and meditation, and delivering and investing in mental health treatment.

Christophe Glaser moderated, “On March 26, India’s 1.3 billion citizens went into lockdown in an attempt to flatten the COVID 19 curve. Now, according to a survey by the Indian psychiatric society, already within a week of the start of the lockdown, the reported number of cases of mental illness in India had risen by 20%.”

Having distributed more than 80 million meals, the non-governmental organization (NGO) International Association for Human Values (IAHV), joined with the World Health Organization (WHO) to round out the perspectives shown here. Members of this discussion included leaders of governments, NGOs, businesses and educational institutions.

The impact of fear

Recognizing the effects of mental health problems on the economy and human life, Glaser revealed that “depression and anxiety disorders cost the globe economy almost 1 trillion every year in lost productivity and mental health problems will be the leading cause for mortality globally by 2030.” 

A representative of the WHO presented statistics from prior to the pandemic and agreed, sharing, “300 million people with depression, 8 hundred thousand suicides per year, and about 1 in 5 kids with a mental health condition. Despite the very serious nature of these problems, we have very little investment going into mental health services.”

In addition to depression and domestic violence increases, a story from India illustrated how fear of the pandemic made workers migrate on foot across India. Gurudev described how extreme “fear and anxiety gripped daily wage workers especially. With no transportation, they were walking from Mumbai to North India, more than 1,500 kilometers, not caring for food or comfort. Only one instinct drove them, survival.” 

Similarly, one government official from Slovenia noticed that many in his country were “afraid for their survival. Now, they’re concerned about their future. We’re facing economic and social consequences, uncertainty about employment and income.”

Prejudicial ideas about mental illness also exacerbated the problem. Keeping mental health issues hidden out of fear of public stigma prevented people from getting the treatment they needed, and secrecy continues. With empathy, Gurudev recognized that “they don’t come out in the open because there’s a certain stigma attached to mental health issues. First there’s self denial, and in the early stages, it can be handled very well, like handling the flu. If someone’s having mild anxiety, we shouldn’t let it escalate up to schizophrenia or manic depression.”

Sources of reassurance: meditation, counseling, nature walks

Reassuring citizens to calm their fears has been the number one goal of governments and NGOs. Gurudev’s opinion was that NGOs can work more effectively in this area than governments. He said, “We take care of the stigma by telling people ‘it’s okay, if you’re not feeling good, just speak out and get help from doctors, therapists, counselors.” On the ground, people listened more closely to NGOs than to governments, yet they haven’t eliminated widespread fear completely. 

About the future, Gurudev predicted more fear. “After the epidemic subsides, the fear of crowds will continue for some time. I’m concerned that this paranoia shouldn’t lead to an obsessive compulsive disorder (OCD). We all have to get back to a normal and healthy mindset where people’s fear and anxiety is reduced. We’ve found that meditation is one of the best tools. Meditation coupled with counseling has been helping.” 

One representative of the European Union (EU) felt that walking outside could reassure people, and he recommended, “the message should be, ‘keep a distance, keep in contact, and go outside. Don’t stay at home. Don’t put people in danger, but communicate.’ Mental health is in danger when you’re told to stay home and you can’t see the sun, or nature.” 

Ways to deal with fear: breathing and meditation

With an emphasis on prevention of mental illness, Gurudev hopes educational institutions can help. “We can educate people on how to handle their own stress; materials on self help need to be widely circulated through education systems, in schools and colleges. People must be told that practicing breathing and meditation are like daily dental hygiene: they need mental hygiene as well, to stay free of stress.” To young people, Gurudev advised, “Let your mindset be right, don’t tune in to negative things, see the positive and be in the moment.”

About Sri Sri University in Orissa, India, where she serves as president, Rajita Kulkarni confirmed how students find relief from fear. “Making the breathing techniques and meditation part of the way students live on campus daily, we’ve seen some very staggering data. 83% of students who practice the breathing techniques daily reported an increased level of motivation and well being. Also, 89% of the students reported a sense of contentment. I would recommend this to all my colleagues in all institutions around the world.” 

Because world leaders have noticed the positive effects of breathing and meditation in their home countries and around the world, they continue to explore ways to expose their populations to these methods. “Since March, google searches for the terms meditation, mindfulness and breathing increased by almost 25%, and several of us have found that they’re very helpful,” observed Glaser. “Why are breathing techniques and meditation so important for our mental health? How can we make more use of that?” 

Gurudev answered, “Every emotion has a definite pattern in our breath. We breathe differently when we experience happiness than when we’re sad, agitated, frustrated. So every emotion has a definite breathing pattern. Now, using your own breath you’re able to change the way you feel. You needn’t be a victim of your own feelings. 

Meditation removes all the lesions that have formed in the hippocampus of our brain, due to stress, anxiety, and negative feelings. When these lesions are removed due to deep, conscious relaxation, you already feel better. 

About 600 research papers discuss the effects of meditation on the amygdala in the brain. Stress hormones reduce. You feel fresh, more alert, able to be in the present moment and not worry about the future or brood over the past. That’s the reason it’s very, very popular. Today, over 2 billion people meditate.” 

Delivering treatment and investing in mental health

Participants compared ideas about programs and treatments to help the mental health of their constituencies. For instance, a representative from Norway shared how his country preemptively made the adjustment to providing mental health services remotely, even before the lockdown. His clinic was, “one of the first having our employees in quarantine and that actually gave us some room and time to prepare for what was coming.” He hopes to continue using technology to solve the problem of geographical distance. 

Andrea Euenheim of Metro AG talked about numerous stress relief programs for her company’s employees. In addition, the WHO official focused on three areas, information, access, and standards. “Firstly, we’ve generated and distributed this psychosocial guidance generally but also specifically to certain groups, including children, elderly, frontline workers, etc. Secondly, we focus on tele mental health, hotlines, counseling, and self help. Third, we protect and preserve the standards of care.” 

The representative of Slovenia’s government also shared, ”I think governments should be very inclusive. Professional assistance is needed, especially for people with mental health problems and front line workers who said the government wasn’t attentive. ” 

The final speaker, from Germany, urged his European counterparts to work with Art of Living and IAHV, saying “It’s such a big problem that we need many, many stakeholders involved. Art of Living has been using the best practices for 30-40 years. The EU and the WHO and others should implement mental health programs and give aid to NGOs. Wouldn’t it be good to have Art of Living as a partner, to give these simple techniques to as many people as possible?”

The session ended with a prayer for a better world after the pandemic, and for universal good health. Everyone on the panel agreed that using your own breath to relax your mind and control your feelings can change everything. You can find out more from Beyond Breath - A FREE Breath & Meditation Online Session With a Live Instructor. Make use of these skills for yourself or a friend today!

Elizabeth Herman writes, offers writing support to clients, teaches, and volunteers for a better world. She has a PhD in Rhetoric, Composition and Literature. Find her on Facebook or Twitter.