All knowledge is
carried by language. Therefore, the language we use to conceptualise mental
illness portrays our understanding of the condition and its treatment.
In Malawi, mental
illness is misala in Chinyanja. A
person suffering from mental illness is wamisala
(a mad one), openga (one who lost his
mind) or odwala (sick or diseased to
the extent of losing reason). All the three terms have a negative connotation and,
therefore, attract maximum stigma.
To appreciate that the
terms are loaded with stigma, consider malaria fever. A person suffering from
malaria fever is assumed ill, akudwala
in Chinyanja.
This is unlike wamisala (the mad one). If we were to
speak as we do in mental illness, then the one with malaria fever would have
been wamalungo, (the malaria fever
one).
But such is not the
case with malaria fever. In malaria fever, the person is ill. He is not the
malaria fever itself while in mental illness, the patient is the mental illness
itself, wamisala, openga, odwala.
We have a negative conception
of mental illness and, therefore, no meaningful discussion of the nature of the
condition. Further, mental illness has become a hidden problem because there is
no awareness.
We do not know the
types of mental illness, the causes and treatment availability. Sometimes it is
like all mentally ill people fell ill because of smoking hemp and, therefore, no
one should care about them, zofuna
(self affliction).
But there is no health
without mental health. Sadly, in all the four election campaigns I have followed
(1994, 1999, 2004, 2009), no manifesto particularly mentioned mental health.
Our presidential
candidates talk about health in general. If anything in particular, it is maternal
health, malaria, HIV and AIDs. Nothing on mental health, really.
The reason is with all
of us. Our language demonstrates that mental health does not have a meaningful place
in our everyday life. The way our language portrays the illness speaks for
itself.
But we need to place
mental health top on the national agenda because there is no health without
mental health.
