Mental Health in Catastrophes and Emergencies
When we think of catastrophes and emergencies, our minds often go to natural disasters like floods, earthquakes, or cyclones, as well as human-made crises such as conflicts, accidents, or pandemics. In those moments, the first concerns are usually safety, food, shelter, and medical aid. Yet, amid the urgency to survive, mental health often becomes the silent casualty, tucked away in the background until it can no longer be ignored. The World Health Organization’s theme for 2025, Access to Services: Mental Health in Catastrophes and Emergencies, calls on us to bring this hidden need into the light.
What Mental Health Looks Like During Catastrophes and Emergencies
In the aftermath of disasters, people may seem to be coping on the surface, carrying on with what needs to be done. But inside, there may be a storm of emotions : fear, anxiety, grief, or even guilt for having survived when others did not. Some experience flashbacks or nightmares that refuse to let them move forward. Others simply feel numb, disconnected from themselves and the world around them.
For many, the crisis may worsen pre-existing mental health conditions, especially if access to medication or therapy is disrupted. For others, the trauma of the event itself can trigger entirely new struggles. And these struggles don’t always look like psychiatric symptoms; sometimes, they appear as sleepless nights, irritability, unexplained body aches, or an inability to focus on even the smallest tasks. Recognizing these subtler signs is just as important as noticing the more obvious ones.
Recognizing the Invisible Impact
The invisible toll of disasters often hides behind the immediate needs of survival. People push their emotional needs aside to secure food, water, and shelter, and yet, the weight of unprocessed trauma builds silently over time. Children may begin to act out, regress, or cling to caregivers, while adults may feel restless, on edge, or unable to regain their motivation. Even entire communities can carry the burden of collective grief and trauma, which can slow down recovery and fracture resilience.
This is why recognition matters. When we offer a listening ear, a safe space, or even simple reassurance in those early moments, we can prevent distress from escalating. Psychological first aid, active listening, and community support are not luxuries, they are essential interventions that allow people to start healing before the wounds cut deeper.
Access to Mental Health Services in India
In India, access to mental health services has always been uneven, and disasters only magnify these gaps. While urban areas may have psychologists, psychiatrists, and counselors available, rural and disaster-hit regions often find themselves with little or no professional support at all. Relief operations understandably prioritize food, shelter, and medical care, but this means that mental health support is often delayed or sometimes missing entirely.
There have been important steps forward. The National Mental Health Programme (NMHP) and the District Mental Health Programme (DMHP) aim to bring mental health care into primary health services, so it isn’t seen as something separate or secondary. Telehealth platforms like Tele-MANAS have also emerged, bridging the gap for people who cannot travel to clinics or hospitals during a crisis. NGOs and grassroots organizations continue to do vital work by deploying trained counselors into communities where help is needed most.
But access is not just about whether services exist, it’s about whether they are truly usable. Many people cannot afford therapy. Others may not even know these services exist. And stigma still looms large, making people hesitant to seek help, even when their distress is overwhelming.
What Mental Health Professionals Can Do Better
As therapists, psychologists, and mental health professionals, our responsibility extends beyond one-on-one therapy sessions. We need to be part of the systems that respond in real time to emergencies. That means working alongside relief organizations, equipping first responders with skills in psychological first aid, and making sure that patients who were already in treatment before a crisis are not left behind.
Awareness is important, yes, but awareness without access is not enough. Real change happens when mental health is embedded in emergency planning, when support is offered in ways that communities trust, and when services are affordable and available across multiple formats, face-to-face, online, and through community-led initiatives. If we commit to this, we don’t just treat trauma after it happens, we help build resilience before the next crisis arrives.
Moving Forward with Compassion and Accessibility
Mental health care in times of catastrophe is not an optional extra, it is a lifeline, as essential as food, water, and shelter. Healing from disasters requires more than physical rebuilding; it requires emotional repair and the creation of safe spaces where people feel supported in their grief and recovery.
At Namaste Psychology, we hold firm to the belief that every individual deserves timely, compassionate, and accessible care, especially in the most difficult of times. We believe mental health support during crises is not a luxury, it is a necessity. Through therapy, community outreach, and advocacy, we are working to bridge the gap between awareness and accessibility, ensuring that mental health is never overlooked, even in the midst of crisis.
