Coronavirus Raising Stress Levels In South Sudan

By Lonykuei Delta

I used to consider myself very good at resisting stress and depression, due to the fact that at a very young age I had seen it all, the bad, the very bad, the worst and good things; hence I developed my own mind-set of treating everything changeable, losable and unpredictable!

Also my many years working in mental health area, particularly in basic counselling back in Australia, helped me adapt and incorporate some basic tenets of stress prevention, hence keeping oneself safe in the sadness ridden environment.

But being in Juba right now, having witnessed the fall of many notable and noble men and women over the very recent years, seeing on daily basis, the general situation our people are in, with no solution on sight; and having persevered and endured very many challenges since returning home in late 2012, I must now admit that it is beginning for the first time, for me to feel I am hard hit by accumulated stress due to recent short-paced losses of people I held dear to me. These were mostly Senior Liberation Comrades, colleagues and relatives and people I developed special friendship or respect with.

Yesterday was the final straw, which seemed to have triggered and activated what was otherwise a "passive or dormant volcano" of feelings of distress and anger! Although I am still "barricaded in my anti stress armoury", sparkling of stress still find me.

The extra-ordinary scene I witnessed at the Military Mortuary yesterday, distraught family groups wailing and uttering sub-conscious lamentations, and I was told by an equally saddened SSPDF Officer, that it was a near daily affair the situation I saw. That sank deepest into the bottom of my heart. God Almighty forgive our human weaknesses and protect your people.