The first unforgettable thing about Aokigahara is the silence. The quiet is that of the desert. In some places, hidden within 3,000 hectares of conifers, not even a wisp of wind can get into them. Every breath, even the faintest, sounds like a roar. Under the fallen branches and the decaying leaves, the floor is made of volcanic rock, deposited by a massive eruption of Mount Fuji (in the year 864). The stone is hard and porous, full of small holes that dampen any noise. This is also the reason why roots cannot penetrate deeply and so curl up on the lava. The trees have grown so close to each other that the light is dim most of the time. Aokigahara is a forest that swallows things up. Sounds, lights, colours. Lives, even. Jukai (the “sea of ​​trees”) is notorious both for the complete serenity of nature on the slopes of the sacred mountain, and also because it is widely known as “the forest of suicides”. No other place in the world, apart from the Golden Gate Bridge in San Francisco, boasts a higher number of people who select it as the location to end their life. The statistics vary from year to year, but on average, from 1950 onwards, 30 suicides have taken place each year.

That the forest has become the last resting place of many, therefore, is no longer a secret to anyone. On the contrary. The authorities have placed signs at the entrance to the main paths with advice to “reconsider” their choice and “think carefully” about the fate of their children and their family. The problem is that they are not always successful in their persuasion. Thus, in an attempt at least to avoid copycats, in recent years they have stopped publishing the official number of bodies recovered from the forest (the biggest shock occurred in 2004 when there was a peak of 108). These numbers will, in any case, never be confirmed as accurate. This is because, even though hanging is the most common cause of death and also the most “visible” to the small army of police officers and volunteers who have been scouring every corner of the forest to recover bodies since the 1970s, many others choose methods like drug overdose, which exposes them to the risk of getting lost forever among the foliage or becoming prey to some animal. In Aokigahara, no one, if they wanted, would surely find it hard to disappear into thin air.

The origin of the legend

But why do so many souls in pain choose Jukai as their preferred place to end their life? Despite its somewhat bleak side, it is paradise for fans of trekking and hiking and it is also chosen by teachers as a destination for school trips. It is within the Fuji Five Lakes region, a tourist attraction with few equals in the whole of Japan, known not only for views of Mount Fuji but also for its ice caves and stunning cherry blossoms in spring. Yet, it has slowly turned into an open-air cemetery, a perfect stage set for Halloween photoshoots (which in the Land of the Rising Sun is a craze second only to that of the Anglo-Saxon world) and for horror films. And even for moments of desecration, such as that of December 31, 2017, when the vlogger Logan Paul ventured into the forest with some friends and posted a video online depicting their reaction to the sight of a hanging corpse, resulting in an avalanche of criticism. In general, the exact reason to choose this forest to leave this world remains a mystery, even though several hypotheses circulate.

The most ancient legends refer to an historic practice widespread in the feudal era, the ubasute, the act of deliberately leaving an elderly person to die. In specific situations of economic hardship, it was not rare to find cases of families in which, by mutual agreement, the eldest relative was accompanied to some remote place where they were abandoned to certain death, to avoid burdening the rest of the family. From these episodes of senicide, many of which referred precisely to Aokigahara, the stories became legendary, and over the decades visitors claimed to have seen with their own eyes the yūrei, the spirits of the elderly abandoned to starvation. In the 1960s, Seichō Matsumoto’s novel Kuroi Jukai was published, often translated as The Black Sea of ​​Trees. The book tells of a troubled love story that ends with the two lovers committing suicide in Aokigahara, this time a reference to another practice of voluntary death in Japan: shinjū. It is a very similar concept to the western one of murder-suicide. This is relevant both to love stories (of which the tragic epilogue of the great Japanese writer Osamu Dazai’s life is an example) and also to family situations, even including cases of infanticide (in Japanese culture a suicidal mother who does not end the life of her offspring beforehand is considered abominable). More recently, “consensual” shinjū has become more common, even between strangers, who come into contact via the internet. Then, a very popular book even verges on instigation: The Complete Manual of Suicide, by Wataru Tsurumi, which, for all the reasons given above, defines Aokigahara as the perfect place to die.

Extreme solitude

All this background contributes to removing magic and increasing pathos while venturing into the trees. Getting lost is very easy, especially in the days following Typhoon Hagibis, which has kindly scattered leaves and branches here and there, disguising even the most beaten tracks. The mobile phone signal is the first thing to go, and in an hour of walking at a brisk pace, you see just a couple of living beings. At most. Some views are truly unforgettable, but the stories, myths, legends and objective data would make even the most daring of hikers paranoid. It will be psychological, but in total solitude, every faint noise sounds just like a whisper. Even having had the good fortune of not finding any dead body, in Aokigahara it is easy to come across vestiges. Those attempting suicide choose to get as far away as possible from the paths, but something is always left behind them. A ticket, a noose, a boot, a doll, a map. Much more frequently, a few strips of adhesive tape placed on the ground, to find the way out in case, at the decisive moment, they don’t have the courage to go through with it.

A social plague

The suicide rate in Japan remains among the highest in the developed world. In 2016, there were 17.3 cases per 100 thousand people, second only to neighbouring South Korea. As in almost all countries, most of the victims are men. Although suicide culture is still today an integral part of Japanese social life, compared to the harakiri of the samurai warriors and the ubasute of the feudal era, in recent times it has been young people who are most affected. Suicide is the leading cause of death among people between the ages of 15 and 39 throughout Japan, higher than the victims of cancer and road accidents put together. In 2018, the worst ever suicide rate among those under the age of 20 was registered, probably linked to pressures deriving from academic performance, a primary source of social inclusion and family satisfaction.

Aokigahara, however, offers a second chance to everyone – to look around, look for the light between the thick foliage, see the majestic profile of Mount Fuji or the clearness of the waters of Lake Sai and to try to think, one step away from oblivion, that in the end the world is not so bad.

L'articolo Jukai: The Forest of Suicides and The Sea of Trees proviene da InsideOver.

Arson, assault, and a growing sense of animosity – life is tough on L.A.’s notorious Skid Row. Home to 5,000 rough sleepers, it is considered ground-zero in the city’s accelerating homelessness crisis. Numbers have steadily risen in recent years, stalked by a shift in public sentiment against the unsheltered. L.A. is not alone in its homeless epidemic – San Francisco, New York and Seattle are all recording spikes – but curiously, in America as a whole, levels are down. Skyrocketing house prices in these sprawling cities are to blame, experts say, but the role of other factors – not least mental illness – cannot be ignored.

On Santa Monica’s bustling pier, by Venice Beach, and scattered across Skid Row, L.A.’s homeless population is expanding. This summer, their numbers topped 50,000 – 12% higher than last year. The rise has confounded city officials, who’ve pushed through new taxes and poured billions into housing schemes. Since 2015, homeless budgets have increased a staggering 25-times; but still, the situation spirals. 

It is not an isolated problem. From coast-to-coast, American metropolises are grappling with homelessness. San Francisco’s unsheltered community has increased by 18% in the last decade, Seattle’s 35%, and New York’s by almost 60%. But nationwide, since 2009, homelessness figures have fallen by a tenth. The issue is acute and uniquely urban. 

An unremitting rise in house prices is to blame, experts believe. Most on the streets are suffering short bouts of poverty, unable to keep up with mushrooming monthly bills. In cities like New York or L.A., for every 10% rent hike, there will be an 8% spike in homelessness, according to researchers at the University of New Hampshire. A majority of victims find temporary shelter with state or charity assistance, and in time reacquire their own accommodation. 

But if even a fraction of the needy fall through the cracks, that’s tens-of-thousands facing chronic destitution. Among these worst cases, the scourge of ‘triple affliction’ – homelessness, addiction, and mental illness – is rampant. A study by the Los Angeles Times found some 76% of those on the streets suffer psychological or physical disorders, keep in generally poor health, or struggle with substance abuse.  

Worryingly, these maladies appear to intensify the longer an individual is unsheltered, notes Janey Rountree, executive director of the California Policy Lab at UCLA, whose research has highlighted a gender dimension to the crisis also. “These issues were the most profound for unsheltered women, especially experiences with abuse and trauma,” she said. 

Worse still is the epidemic’s fast-mounting mortality rate. Between 2013 and 2018, the number of deaths in L.A. increased two-fold, and now top a thousand a year. (Even when taking into account the higher numbers of homeless people, that equates to a one-third spike in fatalities). Drug and alcohol overdoses were the largest contributing factors, with victims passing an average 22 years before regular citizens.

This bleak picture is further marred by an unsettling surge in aggression against L.A.’s homeless community. Through the first six months of 2019, violent crime targeting unsheltered people leapt 34%, with over 1,200 reported incidents. The use of fire and incendiary devices – a common score settler on the streets – is also on an upward trend. In one such incident, a beloved Skid Row musician called Dwayne Fields died after his tent was set alight. The man charged with his murder was himself homeless – inter-community violence is not uncommon, the LAPD says.

Fields’s killing, and those like it, have thrown the homeless plight into sharp relief. For the first time in decades, the issue is resonating with would-be voters – polling by the Public Policy Institute of California recently found it to be the state’s top problem in most people’s minds. With an election looming, homelessness promises to be a fractious policy battlefield. President Trump has already broken cover on the subject, casting it as a blight that ruins the US’s “best highways, best streets, [and] best entrances to buildings.”

Strident words, but his bite might be worse than his bark – he’s publicly flirted with increasing arrests and even warehousing street-dwellers in unused aircraft hangars. History reflects poorly on such muscular measures. L.A.’s one-time ‘Safer Cities Initiative’ hoped to sweep Skid Row clear of crime and disorder by cracking down on minor offences, but it succeeded only in criminalising homelessness.   

Regardless, Mr Trump seems happy to adopt a hard-line. Unsheltered people are often migrants in search of “prestige”, he said recently, though data shows that some 75% of L.A.’s homeless community are locally raised. 

The Democrats, unsurprisingly, are offering a different approach – one that runs contrary to Trump’s planned 18% housing budget cut. Presidential candidate Bernie Sanders’s “housing for all” scheme would commit billions to home construction, a pledge shared by most of the Democratic contenders.        

‘Housing First’ is another promising approach. It involves placing unsheltered people in accommodation without preconditions – such as sobriety – with a view to providing social services later. Though devised in America, the policy has been most widely rolled out in Nordic nations. In the decade since it was launched in Finland, homelessness rates have halved. 

Repatriating the scheme would be a positive move, but so severe is the crisis that only root and branch reform will suffice. A truly holistic approach is needed, one that addresses not just the paucity of affordable homes, but also homelessness’s sharp racial disparity, mental illness, and the widening gap between rich and poor. As the 2020 election nears, hopefuls will talk a good game – but for those on Skid Row, actions – not words – are needed. 

L'articolo L.A.’s Spiralling Homelessness Crisis Promises To Be Key Election Battleground proviene da InsideOver.

Thelma lives with her mother and younger brother, both of whom are HIV positive. Like many kids in Zambia, it is rare that she eats breakfast since food is scarce. She wakes up before 5 am to begin her arduous journey to school; it is a one hour and twenty-minute trek in the scorching heat – on an empty stomach. Being hungry means that she finds it difficult to concentrate on her studies. But being at school also means that she, at least, gets to eat once for that day.

Back home, life does not get easier. A product of rape, Thelma does not know who her father is. She believes it is the reason why her mother does not treat her well. Thelma says that the sadness, worry, and anxiety she feels has led her to think that she does not want to live anymore. She is 16-years-old.

“If you ask me if there is anything that makes me happy, I’ll tell you nothing makes me happy,” Thelma said.

“There are a lot of things that make me sad. Firstly, my mother and her abusive language, her character, and knowing that she is HIV positive. I don’t know how to say this, but at times she buys food for my young brother but not for me. She’ll buy basic necessities for him but not me. I just watch. I buy my own clothes using the money I get from plaiting hair during the holidays.”

Thelma is just one of the children who have worked with Zambia Orphans Aid-UK, a charity that was founded for children who were orphaned and lack the money for food, shelter, and school, following the HIV/AIDS crisis,

The effects of trauma at a young age

In recent research, the organisation discovered that 49% of orphans or vulnerable children had thought of suicide at some point, and at least 80% experienced symptoms of poor mental health. Of those who took part in the study, 70% reported that they had lost family members in the past two-year period, linking bereavement to poor mental health.

The sub-Saharan African country has over 1 million children who have been orphaned. The AIDS pandemic has claimed the lives of generations of parents, siblings, aunts, uncles, and other family members. Whilst the mortality rate in Zambia has decreased in recent years as antiretroviral medication is now widely available to combat the effects of HIV/AIDS, two-thirds of its population is under the age of 25.

Katy Dore, Executive Director of Zambia Orphans Aid UK explained, “The Zambian welfare system is totally insufficient to meet the needs of the 1.2 million orphaned and vulnerable children in the country – half of whom have lost a parent to AIDS. With a total population of 17 million, this is a huge challenge for the country.”

Traumatic events are harmful to children’s developing brains and lead to changes in how they respond to stress. Brain development in the earlier stages of a child’s life is crucial since it is the basis of all future development. As a child grows, what they experience will teach their brains how to respond in various situations. The long-term effects of trauma from a young age sometimes do not show up until years later.

“When we experience trauma most of us have people we can turn to for support, such as family or friends,” Dore continued.

“Developed countries have well-resourced social welfare structures that can step in to protect vulnerable people. But, there are no community-based counselling services available for ordinary people in Zambia. Orphaned and vulnerable children we work with lack effective family structures, so they are often left with nowhere to turn to when life gets tough and they are finding it hard to cope.”

Lack of options in education

Stress coupled with the lack of support, leads to low self-esteem and aspirations, contributing to absenteeism and poor performance that cause many children to leave education prematurely in Zambia. Furthermore, children who unable to access education are at increased risk of sexual, economic, physical or emotional abuse. Education in Zambia is not free, which means that not only are fees levied and there are also not enough schools, so class sizes of over 70 students are not unusual.

Fridah Nakaonga, a Project Officer in the Education Department at Kasama Christian Community Care in the northern part of Zambia said that these children face a lot of challenges at such young ages. As a result, mental health issues become more prevalent. This also leads to some of them failing to concentrate in school and performing badly.

“They do not have anyone to turn to for emotional support and guidance, they have so much pain held within themselves and have not been able to share it with anyone,” she explained.

“A conducive environment – be it at school or home – needs to be created for them to have a sense of belonging so that they can feel secure and interact with other people freely. In so doing, they will live a normal and happy life.”

L'articolo Zambia: Almost 50% Of Vulnerable Children Consider Suicide proviene da InsideOver.

Nigerian police have arrested a man on Friday who confessed to being a serial killer. The 39-year old man, identified as Gracious David-West, was arrested as he attempted to flee Port Harcourt, Rivers State, to a neighbouring city.

David-West, who is from Port Harcourt, Rivers State, is Nigeria’s first recorded serial killer. He confessed to over 15 murders, claiming he had no motive except for an “urge” to kill.

“I don’t know what is making me kill. Immediately the urge comes on me, I kill,” he said.

“After killing, I will start regretting. I even went to a church and told the pastor that I have been killing girls in hotels. The pastor invited me to see the senior pastor during a programme but I waited and couldn’t see him so I left the church and went back and lodged in a hotel and resumed killing.”

The cult member also confessed that he stole money from his victims, using the stolen money to lure future victims.

“While the argument is on, some of them will tell me not to kill them that they have money in their accounts and can offer anything just to save their lives.

“I will ask them how much? They will check it before me; when I confirm the account balance, I will collect the PIN and after the day breaks, when I must have killed them, I will go to ATM and collect the money in the account.

“I will use the money and get other girls. I have killed five girls in Port Harcourt, seven in Owerri and three in Lagos. I started the killing in Lagos, that was where I got money because the first girl had N52,000 ($145) in her account. After that I went to Port Harcourt, then Owerri, [then] I returned to Port Harcourt. The last girl I killed, I met her at the club,” he said.

Port Harcourt State police detective, Mustapha Dandaura, said: “One of the hotels in Port Harcourt who complied with our directive to install CCTV cameras in the reception and hotel corridors was monitoring the camera and saw the picture of the suspect Gracious David West and uploaded the video online and it went viral on social media.

“The hotel later reported to the police about the development and released to us the telephone number he dropped with the hotel.

“We began to track him on his phone, and with God on our side, he was arrested … yesterday [Thursday] afternoon.

“The command’s Special Anti-Robbery Squad (SARS), team were on their usual stop and search duties when they intercepted a commercial bus heading towards Uyo. When they offloaded the passengers of the vehicle for one-on-one search, with the help of the viral photo, they saw the suspect in the same attire (strip T-shirt and blue trousers), on the video, which he is also putting on now [when we arrested him].

“The SARS team called my attention to it … and I asked that they brought him straight to my office. They brought him in handcuffs, the moment he stepped into my office, I called him by his name, David-West, he answered, and I said to him, ‘Welcome to my office.'”

“He then said to me, ‘Please sir, I am ready to tell you the truth, I don’t want any problem’,” the police chief concluded.

West had the same signature, tying a white cloth to the victims’ legs, necks and hands. Last week, women in Southern Nigeria marched in the streets to protest the murders, although it was uncertain at the time if the murders were by the same man.

“Their killers must be found,” they chanted. “We the ladies are no longer safe in this state,” said protester, Lucy Okeke. “All we are demanding is greater protection for the women in the society, [and] all the victims of this so-called serial killer.”

Activist Emem Okon accused police of slut-shaming the victims, calling them prostitutes, and refusing to take investigations seriously.

According to Nigeria’s Ministry of Health, three in ten Nigerians suffer from mental health issues. The World Health Organisation places it fifteenth in the world for suicide rates. Despite the country’s mental health crisis, the country has only eight public mental health hospitals shared among a population of about 202,000,000 people.

L'articolo Nigeria’s Serial Killer Suspect Confesses to Police proviene da InsideOver.

India is the fastest growing and fifth-largest economy in the world. In terms of purchasing power parity, India is number three, and in the 2020s, India is expected to outshine Germany to become the fourth-largest economy. India is likely to increase its population by around 273 million people between 2019 and 2050 and emerge as the world’s most populous country by 2027.

India enjoys the demographic dividend of being a young nation. It is all set to become the world’s youngest country with 65% of its population in the working-age group by 2020. The paradox is that the fastest growing economy and the youngest country is the most depressed nation in the world. According to a World Health Organization report, around 6.5% of the Indian population suffers from some forms of severe mental disorder, with no apparent rural-urban differences. Approximately 50% of employees of the Indian corporate world suffer from stress, anxiety, and depression.

The decreasing gap between the haves and the have-nots and increasing purchasing power are giving rise to unhealthy competition among the masses. India’s conservative society and culture, coupled with the constant habit of comparison, is leading to growing depression in the nation. Depression is the root cause of mental disorders, and an estimated 56 million people suffer from depression in India. The race to own the biggest house, the most expensive car, and to secure the highest marks in the class among other things are giving rise to depression in the society.

Customs and traditions further add to the problem. Indians may love anyone but ultimately have to marry as per parental specifications. So, before loving someone, one has to think about, “What is his/her religion? Which cast does he/she belong to? What is Gotra?” Indians are more concerned about “what will people think?”

In the case of a joint family, quarrels between spouse and family/in-laws are a  common phenomena. In the end, the quality of life takes a beating. Additionally, the mad rush for money is blinding the sense of happiness and living.

Why is the situation grim?

Talking about mental disorder is often considered a taboo in Indian society. This prevents people from speaking up about their psychological issues. As a result, many people in India suffer silently because of the fear of being ridiculed by others. There is a constant pressure to act normal even when they are experiencing stress and depression, thus making life more difficult.

This fear of being mocked is leading to increasing number of suicides in India. An estimated 230,314 suicide deaths occurred in India in 2016. Suicide was the main cause of death for people aged 15-39 years in 2016.  Married women are often the victims of mental pressure and suicide deaths, mostly because of domestic violence, early motherhood, arranged marriage, and economic dependence on husbands.

The callousness of the government is further aggravating the problem. Mental health in India has never gained any importance or attention at all. There is a severe scarcity of psychologists and psychiatrists in India.

Contrastingly, yoga and meditation originated in India. Practising yoga and meditation can be seen to help improve mental health, but despite this, the state of mental health in India today is awful. It is no wonder that India is the most depressed nation in the world. It is high time to ponder over the issue, or risk it turning into an epidemic in India.

L'articolo Boom and Gloom: India’s Growing Economy and Mental Health Decline proviene da InsideOver.

It’s not an obvious destination for those seeking closure from combat. Waterloo’s rolling hills and patchwork fields have known carnage on a continental scale, playing host to a battle that altered history. But on the hallowed ground of Napoleon Bonaparte’s final defeat, modern-day veterans are finding solace. Together with a team of historians and archaeologists, ex-military personnel from the United Kingdom are excavating the battlefield – and in doing so, helping heal their own wounds of war.  

This summer has seen dozens of ex-troops participate in Waterloo Uncovered, a rehabilitation scheme devised by two British soldiers – Mark Evans and Charlie Foinette – after their tour of Afghanistan. Diagnosed with post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), Evans turned to the duo’s shared passion: archaeology. The sedate pace of excavation, the attention to detail it demands and the reward of unearthing an artefact aided his recovery, and he resolved to involve other suffering veterans in the activity. 

One enthusiastic member of the project, Ben Mead, was aboard a helicopter shot down in Afghanistan in 2012. He sustained a catalogue of injuries – but it was PTSD that plagued him the longest. “Over time the guilt really does build up, and it breaks you as a person,” he recounts. His road to recovery was slow – akin to learning to walk again, he says – but the Waterloo dig has played an important role. 

“The buzz I get from being in a trench and finding something, it gives you an adrenaline boost. Something that’s been shot 200 years ago, that’s not seen daylight since, it’s like you’re the first person in human history in 200 years to find it. It gives you an uplift.”

With surprisingly little of Waterloo excavated over the years, the battlefield promises to yield evermore archaeological bounty to the veterans. Being on the front-line of historical discovery instils a sense of purpose in participants’ work, organisers say, helping cast out the mental negativity that dogs many of them. The team-driven nature of the excavation resonates with the ex-soldiers also, and has proven an effective remedy to the psychological isolation of PTSD.

“Seeing people from different backgrounds does actually help people come together and improve on their own,” says Matt Weston, who lost his legs and right hand in an explosion in Afghanistan. “It was quite apparent really even from the first day that people started to come out of their shell a bit and bond. You’d see people jumping between each different group and start socialising, which is a really important thing to do, especially when you’ve got mental conditions”.

Marshalling the group’s team spirit, organisers have focused their attention on Mont St Jean – a previously unexcavated field hospital used by British commander Lord Wellington. Thousands of wounded soldiers passed through the site during the battle, receiving primitive first aid under the most brutal conditions. The modern-day veterans have unearthed remains of amputated limbs, almost certainly removed without anaesthesia. There’s also evidence that the hospital itself came under attack, curtailing the wounded troops’ respite and forcing them to flee. “Mont St Jean became a place of suffering and endurance,” says Professor Tony Pollard, Waterloo Uncovered’s lead archaeologist.

The misery endured by the 19th century troops strikes a chord with their modern-day counterparts, who know all too well the horrors of war. The equipment, the tactics and the opposing sides have changed – but the soldier’s experience remains the same, notes Ben Mead. The dig has given him the opportunity to better understand warfare through the ages, and appreciate the fact that “the only thing that changes is technology, not the human”.

This focus on the past is inherent to all archaeology, but nurturing a forward-looking feeling is fundamental to the project, organisers say. For those stuck in a mental health rut, the importance of discovering new interests and developing skills can’t be overstated. Paula Rogers, an air force veteran injured in 2004, describes her immersion in amateur archaeology as “like learning a new trade”.    

“I find it really rewarding… learning how to do the plans, how to do the sketches, how to measure the levels between the different layers of the soil and the cuts,” she says. “I’m that interested in it that I’ve actually signed up with [a] university”.

The fact that a study of the past can furnish fresh opportunities for the future is tremendous – especially when it’s for the good of those suffering in the present. Building the confidence and prospects of its participants is as important to Waterloo Uncovered as its world-class archaeology. Having cracked the formula of combining the two, it’s little wonder the scheme is proving so successful. Founding member Mark Evans says it has “grown arms and legs”, and is scheduled to run until at least 2020. For the sake of those carrying the wounds of war, long may it continue. 

L'articolo A Dig With A Difference: PTSD Veterans Turn To Archaeology proviene da InsideOver.