A few weeks ago, former Miss USA Cheslie Kryst died after falling from a high-rise building on Manhattan’s West Side, where she had an apartment. A beauty queen, Kryst was also a TV personality and attorney. Shortly before her death, she posted a picture on Instagram with the caption; ‘may this day bring you rest and peace.’ Her death was an apparent suicide. The world is waging war against suicide, but mental illness seems to be a fierce ‘beast’ to tame. The activism, campaigns and movements are working tooth and nail to put an end to this tragedy; unfortunately, it is still claiming lives of many. According to the World Health Organisation (WHO), more than 700, 000 people die due to suicide every year. Yet, for every suicidal death, there are many more people who attempt suicide. In Rwanda, at least 579 people committed suicide between June 2019 and July 2021, statistics from Rwanda Investigation Bureau indicate. Psychologists and mental health specialists point to certain signs such as hopelessness, sadness and despair to be some of the signals to look out for, but depression and its signs might as well be mutating. Some victims of suicide display none of those signs, yet end up taking their lives. Those who knew and interacted with Kryst described her as one who was always full of light. When depression becomes too much, many give in and choose death, says Anna Mutesi. Whereas some show some a bit of signs indicating that they are not okay, others show no sign whatsoever, she notes. “Life is full of pain and at this point, I can’t say if we are winning this battle or not. People, especially the youth, are the most victims of this tragedy,” Mutesi says. She adds that the only thing to be done is to keep on sensitising and encouraging people to seek help. Sam Asiimwe Ruhindi, a photographer, pins this misfortune on the rise of technology. “Technology has led to a loss of face-to-face interactions, where you find people are closer online than physically. And honestly, you can’t tell if someone is okay via a text or smiling picture uploaded online. It is different when there’s face to face interaction.” He explains that another thing that needs to be considered is unhealed pain from past generations, for example if a child is born in a family where one of his/her parents lived a toxic life, it’s likely to be passed onto the next generation. “To curb suicide, there should be centres where a person who mentally breaks down will go and find a resting place—not talking to a therapist, but resting. And therapy on the other hand is costly; it should be cheaper or even free to encourage everyone in need of help,” Ruhindi says. Iréné Mizero, the chairman and founder of Mizero Care Organisation, a non-government organisation which promotes mental health, says the lack of knowledge and means, low access of services, among other challenges, need to be addressed. “Consequently, mental health cases are increasing basing on reports from Rwanda Biomedical Centre. There is still a task to empower leadership and investments in the domain of mental health in Rwanda and Africa. That’s why Mizero Care Organization was founded,” he says. As mental health experts explain; suicide is one of the consequences of psychological issues. Depressed people are at high risk of it. This is rising day-by-day due to various factors; some depression cases are unassessed, others are not well-managed as advised by science, he points out. “More needs to be done to prevent suicide; we call upon the concerning mental health institutions to put effort in boosting knowledge about the issue and making it a priority to save people, by engaging into research to identify the cases and if possible, work in a multidisciplinary manner to make a clear plan to address it,” Mizero says.
