Sexual Harassment and Mental Health

I’M going to start by saying that it pains me that this is still a conversation that we need to have. Sexual harassment has been a trending topic for years; a problem seemly without a solution — or so many believe.

I believe one of the main issues is the lack of understanding of what constitutes sexual harassment and it is important to have this knowledge as both women and men experience it daily. This means they subsequently experience the mental health harms which arise from it.

Sexual harassment is ANY unwanted sexual advance — verbal or physical. It mostly consists of those obscene remarks that are unwelcome and ensure that we feel embarrassed and uncomfortable. They can take place anywhere, but are widely popular on the street, at work, schools and even in some homes.

Some physical examples include uninvited hugging, kissing or even basic touching. It can be behaviours such as repeated phone calls, texts, letters, visits etc. At other times, it is simply personal attention (such as staring) that we do not care for. Verbal harassment includes explicit compliments, dirty jokes or spreading rumours. While it happens to both genders, women are more often the victims — of any age, ethnicity or religion. The perpetrator can be anyone (male or female as well) such as a co-worker, boss, and friend or loved one.

There are two major types of Sexual Harassment.

1. Quid pro quo (“this for that”). This occurs when it is explicitly stated or implied that one will benefit from performing acts of a sexual nature. For example, a promotion or better grades for sexual favours.

2. Hostile Environment. This occurs when the harassment is so severe but unspoken of which creates an uncomfortable, unsafe, intimidating or abusive environment.
However, they can definitely occur together.

With regard to mental health, sexual harassment can cause emotional, psychological and physical distress. It is known as a common stressor that increases the possibility of low self-esteem and self-confidence, anger, fear, shame as well as feelings of helplessness and worthlessness. It brings about frustration, lack of concentration, productivity and efficiency – especially in a work or school setting. It may cause self-blame, lack of trust in others, withdrawal, isolation and increased absenteeism to avoid the harassment. It will strain relationships with those around you, especially if they are within the environment where the harassment is taking place; sadly, this automatically decreases your support system.

All the above can increase the possibility of developing mental illnesses such as anxiety, depression, post-traumatic stress disorder or alcohol/substance abuse and suicidal thoughts and behaviours. Some cases can manifest physical issues such as high blood pressure, headaches, and issues sleeping etc. In many cases, people are publicly sexualised and objectified to a point where their character is put into question. In severe cases, this causes people to have to leave their jobs or drop out of school. This of course results in loss of opportunities, incomes, goals and dreams.

The major difficulty is understanding what it actually is and noticing whether or not you are doing it –- being a perpetrator or victim. In a lot of cases, it is not even something that can easily be explained, it can simply be a feeling that you are eliciting in someone or someone in you. As a woman, I can speak about the most common one that happens which is us being called off on the street. I want to make it clear, even on my most insecure days, I am not complimented or happy about comments that strange men make to me on the street. It makes me feel objectified, belittled, embarrassed and always uncomfortable and I do not believe I am alone in this. To the women who do it to men (as this does happen), I am not sorry to say that you are encouraging behaviour that the majority of women find demeaning and have been fighting to stop for years.

What can we do?
We already know that prevention is better than cure and therefore, schools should integrate programmes with their students and businesses should do the same with their employees. Make it crystal clear on what constitutes this as well as how serious and damaging it is.

Until then, we speak up if people are making us, or others around us, uncomfortable. It does not necessarily have to be in a rude tone; politely ask the individual to stop as we must stop it right as it happens. If it continues, it is beneficial for all to report acts of sexual harassment to the appropriate authorities as perpetrators rarely ever stop on their own. We can all understand that it is difficult for a victim to speak out, so if you notice something and have the capability, why not speak out for them?

If you are a victim, I hope you know and understand that it is not your fault and it is okay to seek professional help if it is causing you psychological distress. You can also start a support group as I guarantee you that if you are experiencing sexual harassment in your current environment, you are not the only one. If you choose not to join together to make a formal complaint, join together just to support each other.

A specific study done on a popular company in the United States found that as many as 70% of women and 45% of men experience sexual harassment in the workplace. I imagine Guyana’s statistics would be the same or even higher. Why not encourage your superiors to do surveys in your workplace so we can know for sure? Then maybe, something legitimate can finally be done about it.

Thank you for reading. Please keep sending any topics you’d like to talk about to caitlinvieira@gmail.com. If you’d like personal counselling sessions, please reach out to me at +592 623 0433
Suicide Prevention Helpline numbers: 223-0001, 223-0009, 623-4444, 600-7896

Say Yes to Life and No to Drugs! Always

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