Unexpressed anger amongst women is a major cause of various psychological and psychosomatic disorders, while anger is often a reaction to the underlying feeling of inadequacy, failure, guilt or loss in an overwhelming stress.
Renowned psychiatrist and Head Department of Psychiatry Fatima Jinnah Medical College Professor Dr Haroon Rashid Chaudhry stated this while talking to Business Recorder here on Saturday.
"Once induced, anger tends to get expressed almost reflexly but mostly on to the less powerful individuals, children, animals, objects, and sometimes one's own self.
The common targets include the spouse, the friends and the relatives of the spouse, the in-laws, the children, neighbours, junior colleagues and so on," he said.
According to him, the mental health problems of the Pakistani women are congruent to the global issues of gender equality, violence and psychological well-being.
Pakistani women are relatively better off than their counterparts in other developing countries of South Asia, however, great fundamental changes are required to improve their quality of life through implementation of women-friendly laws.
He stated that battering or domestic violence is generally part of the patterns of abusive behaviour. Partner abuse can take variety of forms including physical violence, assault, such as slaps, kicks, hits and beatings, psychological abuse, constant belittling, intimidation, humiliation and coercion sex.
The psychological consequences of abuse are more severe than its physical effects, as the experience of abuse erodes women's self-esteem and puts them at a greater risk for a number of mental disorders like depression, PTSD, suicide, alcoholism and drug abuse, he added.
Answering a question, he said that conflict between partners is well-known to affect children.
Children who witness marital violence face increased risk for emotional and behavioural problems including anxiety, depression, poor school performance, low self-esteem, nightmares and disobedience. Boys turn to drugs and girls become severely depressed and sometimes totally refuse to get married.
"Women, who experience physical violence or sexual assault, use healthcare facilities more than other women.
Over a lifetime they seek more services of physician and psychiatrist and visit hospitals and emergency centers, regularly," he pointed out.
Professor Haroon said that a person facing anger or other problems should handle it through following religious practices, relaxation exercises and sublimation into physical exercise, taking up household chores, hobbies, pastimes and improving intimacy with the spouse and other family members.
About the sick role, he said that it involves being excused from various obligations and duties, and not being blamed for being ill, well after the initial illness has settled.
This exaggerated response is often an indication of underlying anxiety, role confusion, conflicts and personality vulnerabilities.
Social factors such as uncalled for positive or negative re-enforcement of the sick role can sometime be disastrous and may lead to chronic invalidation, he said.