Lebanon: Things are falling apart

The mental health of the Lebanese population has been greatly harmed, and people have been experiencing much stress from multiple disasters over the past two years. Since 2020 Lebanon has been experiencing its total financial crisis, continued social unrest, political deadlock, and pressures stemming from the Covid-19 pandemic. These were all compounded by Beirut’s port massive explosion on the 4th of August which killed over 200 people, injured 7,500, and displaced 300,000. The Lebanese Pound has lost 90% of its value and the country’s economic collapse is one of the world’s worst since 1850s. Over 80% of the Lebanese people have been pushed into deep economic hardship and poverty which put them on the edge of survival.

Mental health has always been considered culturally taboo in Lebanon although the Lebanese people have a long history of political turmoil. This failure to address mental health issues in Lebanon goes back several generations, exemplified by the Lebanese-wide amnesia surrounding the civil war.

The Lebanese population has long been exposed to domestic instability and conflict-related traumas that triggered a wide range of mental health disorders. A study done by Mourani and Ghreichi shows that 25% of Lebanese adults in Lebanon suffer long-term mental illnesses such as post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD). After the port explosion, multiple reports have highlighted the collective trauma that the survivors of the explosion experienced, including flashbacks, fatigue, nightmares as well as an increased need for mental health consultations. This massive explosion also revived past traumas experienced by generations of Lebanese citizens who suffered from displacements, multiple civil wars, and most recently, civil unrest and increased violence during some mass anti-government demonstrations.

According to the same study, the most common disorders suffered by the Lebanese population are depression, anxiety disorders, mood disorders, and phobias often linked to war-related traumas, especially the 2006 war. 16.5% of the population has depression and 12.6% have mood disorders. This is happening in a nation that has witnessed an exodus of healthcare specialists and shortages of drugs to treat psychosis, anxiety, and depression.

Nowadays the rates of suicides and calls to suicide hotlines have become higher and higher with each passing day. According to the statistics of the Internal Security Forces, every two days there is a case of suicide either by gunshot, hanging, jumping from a building, or poisoning. People are growing more and more desperate because of everything going in the country and especially because of the tough financial downturn. The phones at Embrace (the NGO that runs Lebanon’s only suicide hotline) hardly ever stop ringing every day. In one call, a father living in Bekaa Valley says he is thinking of taking his own life because he is unable to feed his four children, and in another, a 31-year-old man recently made homeless says he has lost all hope. (France 24, 2022)

What worsens the situation is the fact that 15% of people who are phoning Embrace are children. A new report from UNICEF states that many children in Lebanon are at serious risk of emotional, physical, or sexual violence since families are struggling to cope with the country’s deepening financial and political crisis. The services of mental health qualify for little to no private insurance coverage and receive minimal support from the government. These services remain unfunded and are concentrated only in urban areas.

For that, the mental health department must be given greater legitimacy and its role in public health must be normalized more broadly. Greater allocation of funding to this department, for the sake of better coverage of patients’ care and hospitalizations, will allow for more coverage for people as only 1% of funds reach the mental health department. According to studies by IDRAAC, the majority of the Lebanese population with chronic mental illnesses do not seek treatment due to the lack of awareness regarding these illnesses and disorders, in addition to other barriers such as social stigma and financial limitations. This shows the great need for enhanced awareness surrounding mental health as well as resources available.

Mental health plays a very essential role in leading to political and social change which must not be ignored. The reformation of mental health infrastructure can ease individuals suffering by equipping them to make political, social, and economic choices that prioritize their own welfare. Thus, ensuring a collective and healthy mental health will remain essential to establishing a just and functioning Lebanon.