Mental distress and well-being across the life course among the rural population in Jumla, Nepal: A qualitative study

Abstract

Psychological stressors, especially throughout one's lifetime, can result in mental disorders. This paper uses the life course framework to analyze in-depth interviews with the adult population about their mental health throughout their lifetimes in Jumla, Nepal. The study shows that early and mid-life social transitions like marriage, accumulated hardships like a chronic illness, and grief, especially due to the death of family members, were high stressors; the social positioning of gender and ethnicity/caste added to shaping one’s exposure to these stressors and the coping mechanisms they practice. Contrary to Western biomedical definitions of mental stress, this study focuses on lived experiences to inform the design of contextually appropriate mental health interventions in low-resource settings. The findings indicate that understanding the mechanisms through which people experience and respond to mental distress is essential in ensuring that interventions can also be used as preventative methods before being clinically diagnosed. Additionally, interventions that are culturally grounded and that acknowledge the coexistence of traditional and biomedical systems may be particularly important for improving access to support and promoting mental well-being across the life course.