The Suicide, Stress and Mental Illness of Refugees at Mae Ra Ma Luang Camp, Thailand
The topic of my paper involves the state of mental illness and the causes of suicide of the refugee people who are living in Mae Ra Ma Luang, This paper will include information about refugee life and mental health. The purpose of my research is to learn more about the mental health of my research participants by asking them questions. I believe that the information I glean from the questions that I ask my participants will be useful for the people who work for the refugee people, especially those refugees who have experienced violence. I am quite interested in this subject knowing that the refugee’s backgrounds and experiences before arriving in refugee camps must cause them many challenges as they navigate life in the refugee camps.
Mae Ra Luang is one of the biggest refugee camps in Mae Hong Song province, Thailand. For several years refugee people have suffered from mental illness and as a result have suicided. The cause of these suicides seem to be related to the length of time they have lived in the camps and the lack of freedom they experienced in the camps.
The causes of mental illness in the refugee camp and the resulting suicides is the main focus of this research. This research uses the following definition for mental illness: A mental illness is an illness that causes disturbances in thinking, perception and behavior beyond those that might be experienced even in an acutely distressed state. They can be severe, seriously interfering with a person ’s life, significantly impairing a person’s ability to cope with life ’s ordinary demands and routines and even causing a person to become disabled. (Cooper & Dogra, 2017) Since 2013 the numbers of suicides among the refugees at Mae La Ma Luang has increased. This is in spite of the fact that the staff in the camps have tried to teach the refugees about mental illness, its causes and effects. The issue of mental illness can be explained, in part, by psychological theories of mental health.
The famous psychologist, Jean Piaget(2000) says emotions can function in human life both as habits (learned reactions) and as motives. Learned emotional habits can be reaction not only to physical things but also to thoughts and expectations. Emotions are motives when they impact an impetus to behave in certain ways and give it direction toward certain goals. Let us then consider in detail how emotional habits are motivations. The discussion will revolve around three basic emotional patterns: 5 pleasure, fear and anger, and is taken from a text emphasizing the physiological factors in emotion. Lund, 1939.
We must not forget that refugees are still human and have emotions, feelings and dreams. From the experiences of the researcher, he believes, the refugees need freedom and justice which respects their humanity. They do not need to stay in the refugee camps for a long term. They compare their lives to a bird who is caught in a cage (is the net). They do not need to cut off their lives from the wide world. There are 7 things that the researcher observes about the refugee’s experience of mental illness:
- Adjusting to the new culture and not knowing the new language.
2. Disciplining Children.
3. Worry about life and opportunity.
4. Comparing oneself with the status of the other people
5. Poverty and the society.
6. Being far from family and friends.
7. Disagreement in relationship.
These are the major stress-causing factors that refugees face and that this researcher is studying to see how they may relate to mental illness and suicide. The sources of the stress have an impact on the mental health of the refugees. The refugees, as a result,feel various pressures that they cannot get rid of.
The stressful circumstances are encountered every day and at every stage of the human development. There is evidence that stress before birth can influence both the mother and the fetus and that it may contribute to obstetric complication and birth defects. Selye, (1956). It has been 2 years since the researcher began this research and since then has gathered information from the refugee people. All of the refugee people moved to Thailand and stay ed at the refugee camp which the Thai government provided for them. They fled to Thailand because of the effects of civil war in the Burma. All of them escaped from the fighting and they hid in the jungle.
They lived in fear and shock. Some of their relatives and loved ones were killed by the military. It was a nightmare for them. When they moved to Thailand, they believed that the injuries 6 they suffered inside their heart would be healed because they were in a safe zone and did not have to escape. But they have not been able to get rid of their injuries inside their hearts and their minds. As discussed in Peter Levine’s book, In an Unspoken Voice (2010), those injuries are apparent in their actions and their thoughts and finally, this will be an issue for the rest of their lives and, for some, ending in suicide because they accumulated unbearable stress which lodged deep in their heart causing mental illness.
The stress and the mental illness refugees experience can stop them from developing human relationships and logical thinking As Exum’s (1979) book on the comprehensive approach to human relations development says, “Human relations training is a program which facilities recognition and appreciation of the differences in individuals and develops communication skills as the basis for effective interpersonal relationships.”
This means, the refugee must learn how to develop their life and consult about their issues with others. The mental illness or the stress may involve culture as well. For example, in Asia, we are in high-contextual cultures which means that people try to avoid to using the direct words or the rude words otherwise we believe these words will affect the listener’s mind and their mental constructs including stereotypes and prejudices.
These national or status prejudices can impact a person’s stress level and mental health as well.
Finally, the hope is that this research about the stress level, the mental health and the suicides of the refugee people, will help the researcher understand the mental working process of the human being, especially the refugee, and, therefore, will help the researcher know how to use all data that has been collected for improving and training the patients in the future.