Correlates of Holistic Health Linked to Depression among Professional Students of India-Need for De-stigmatization

Abstract

Depression is a leading mental health issue taking a toll on the physical and psychological health of young students across the globe. Mental illness, stress and associated stigma is highly unaddressed within the Indian student population. Suicide, a consequence of the same, is the leading cause of death among Indians aged between 15 and 29. The study explored the degree of prevalence of symptoms of physical and psychological health, primarily linked to depression and stress, across students of different Indian states, gender, age groups, academic courses and year of study. An electronic survey including questions based on Beck Depression Inventory and other indicators of physical health and stress was used to capture data from 292 respondents pursuing professional courses in various educational institutions of India. Analysis showed that 28% of respondents reported symptoms of borderline to severe depression and 30% of respondents were also facing moderate physical health issues too. Physical appearance, loss of energy, tiredness and change in sleep pattern were some of the major physical health indicators significantly affecting psychological health, leading to pessimism, guilt, punishment feelings, suicidal thoughts and loss of interest. This contributes to increased physical stress and affects students’ academic performance. Access to mental health services in India is found to be limited among student population. Besides, there is an associated stigma to approach mental health professionals, leading to unattended mental health issues causing adverse impact on physical and psychological health. A need for better psychological health services at the institutional level and efforts, on the part of social workers, to de-stigmatize mental health care, was recommended.