Patna, Dec. 30: Every person in the next 20 years will suffer from one or the other type of psychological problem.

M. Thirunavukarasu, the president of Indian Psychiatric Society, made the observation at the 15th annual conference of Indian Psychiatric Society, Bihar branch, today.

Addressing the conference, Thirunavukarasu said earlier people used to come for mental treatment but now they seek mental fitness, which shows that psychological cases are increasing by the day.

Addressing the conference, Shambhu Nath Singh, the vice-chancellor of Patna University, said: “There are many myths about mental illnesses which worsen the condition of a patient. Mass awareness can help address the issue effectively.”

“Stress and lifestyle changes can be attributed to the increase in mental illnesses among people. In a competitive and more materialistic age, people are getting more ambitious. Inability to meet fulfil ambitions leads to psychological problems. Psychiatric diseases earlier comprised mainly two or three kinds but it has now increased to around 300 types, which include phobia, anxiety, identity crisis, sexual perversion, sexual deviation and others. At present, around 25 to 30 per cent of populace suffers from some type of psychological problem because of stressful life,” Thirunavukarasu added.