ASHIKA’s STORY

Like most young people, Ashika, 19, loves being with her friends and sharing content on social media: “I feel happiest when I’m with my friends, visiting different places and doing videos on tik-tok”.

Her face shines as she talks about her best friends and the fun they have together when out in their local town in Nepal.

Ashika is currently receiving care and support from the only mental health hospital in Nepal, to give her time to recover from mental illness.

Ashika shared her story from her hospital bed:

“People think that because I am unwell, I am not good enough to be their friend. People start to look at you in different ways when you are mentally unwell.”

Many people in communities in South Asia do not seek help because of the perception of mental illness.

Ashika went on to say:

“I was brought to hospital by my landlord, who says I am “khuskeko” – a mad person. Since my friend on social media found a boyfriend and stopped talking to me, I’ve been struggling to sleep. But I have visions of her everywhere, and she actually talks to me all the time – she’s been telling me to stop going to school, and so I did.”

Ashika continues: “My mother does not want me to use social media, she shouts at me and forces me to do all sorts of house chores. She does not like my friends and does not want me to talk to them. She and my landlord say I talk and laugh loudly and say strange things. And then there’s my father – he is often drunk and beats me up. Sometimes he does bad things to me too, but I don’t want to talk about it”.

In Nepal, every year more than 2,000 cases of abuse and sexual violence against women and young girls are reported to the police. However, these cases are severely underreported, particularly where the victims suffer from some form of mental health issue.

Young women like Ashika need support from specialist mental health care and to be protected from abuse. They should be able to seek help, trust others to support them on their healing journey, and not feel ashamed about their mental health struggles.

Ashika is now receiving care from a great team of health professionals.

With your support this Christmas, we can help more vulnerable people experiencing mental illness and at risk of abuse. We can help young women like Ashika to find meaning and joy in their lives, and bring hope for human rights.