CAN seeks FG partnership on mental health

*As Archbishop Okoh recalls aboriginal encounters with radical battling intelligence illness

By Luminous Jannamike

ABUJA — President of the Christian Association of Nigeria (CAN), Archbishop Daniel Okoh, connected Friday called for a nationalist concern betwixt the Church and the Federal Government to code the country’s increasing intelligence wellness crisis, drafting from his ain puerility experiences surviving among radical battling intelligence illness.

Delivering his keynote code astatine the National Mental Health Summit organised by CAN astatine the National Christian Centre, Abuja, to people World Mental Health Day, Archbishop Okoh recounted however his formative years successful a religion compound exposed him to the realities of intelligence suffering agelong earlier it became a nationalist wellness concern.

“I grew up successful a religion compound that had what we called ‘faith homes’. They were places wherever radical who were ill, including those with intelligence wellness challenges, stayed adjacent to the religion truthful they could person prayers, counselling, and care. As a child, I lived among radical with terrible intelligence conditions; immoderate violent, immoderate withdrawn, and I watched immoderate of them regain their sanity and spell connected to unrecorded afloat lives,” helium said.

That aboriginal exposure, helium said, shaped his lifelong knowing of intelligence wellness arsenic a human, not simply medical, challenge; 1 that requires compassion, patience, and a holistic approach.

“I saw radical who came successful nether unspeakable conditions but were transformed done love, prayer, and guidance. Some became pastors, married, and raised families. Those experiences taught maine that nary 1 is beyond restoration,” the CAN President recalled.

Archbishop Okoh explained that the summit, themed ‘Faith and Mental Health: Break the Silence’, was not conscionable different gathering but a telephone to action, urging the Church and authorities to collaborate successful breaking stigma and gathering a compassionate nationalist response.

“For excessively long, discussions astir intelligence wellness person remained successful the shadows of ignorance and fear. Many Nigerians endure quietly, adjacent wrong our churches, battling depression, anxiety, trauma, oregon affectional exhaustion. They are often misunderstood oregon judged alternatively of supported. This acme challenges america to alteration that narrative,” helium said.

The CAN President warned against reducing intelligence unwellness to spiritual weakness oregon demonic affliction, insisting that religion indispensable spell manus successful manus with aesculapian attraction and societal support.

“Mental unwellness does not mean a deficiency of faith. The Bible teaches america to ‘bear 1 another’s burdens’. The Church indispensable beryllium a spot of refuge, not rejection, for those struggling mentally oregon emotionally,” helium said.

Archbishop Okoh urged the authorities to fortify intelligence wellness policies, summation funding, and integrate counselling and therapy into assemblage and superior healthcare systems.

He besides pledged that CAN would mobilise its nationwide structures to complement specified efforts done grassroots outreach, pastoral counselling, and intelligence wellness education.

“Many radical are acrophobic to confide successful household but find comfortableness successful speaking with pastors. We indispensable usage that spot responsibly, successful concern with professionals,” Archbishop Okoh said.

Reflecting connected Nigeria’s societal conditions, helium linked rising intelligence distress among young radical to economical hardship, substance abuse, and the mor...