A Clinical Psychologist, Henry Ojenya, has advised families to be mindful of their children’s mental state, saying that 10% to 20% of children in Nigeria have a mental health condition.
Speaking in Jos, Plateau state to mark the recent Children’s Day, Ojenya said the disorders, which are developmental, are often referred to as the Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) and can lead to anxiety and depression with significant lifelong impact on the children, who later become youths.
He said some of the mental health conditions among youths today actually begin at childhood stage and deteriorate into their adulthood if not checked in time.
The psychologist also said owing to the importance of mental health which is unknown to many, they have been creating awareness among the populace in this respect to sensitize them.
Ojenya noted that the psychological effect of the crisis in parts of the state as it relates to farmers and herders, may also manifest as emotional exhaustion, stress, anxiety, psychological distress trauma, phobia, nightmares, irritability, hopelessness and depression.
He pointed out that mental health cases are also prevalent among women in the region, and this was x-rayed by a consultant psychiatrist, Dr Aishatu Yusha’u Armiya’u, who emphasized the need to address the mental disorder among women and youths in the region.
Citing Armiya’u’s position, he said the physical, economic, social, and psychological far-reaching repercussions of the crisis on the region’s stability and women who face abuses in the process.
